"Gross-Rosen Concentration Camp " a Rogoznica Travel Page by alancollins

The concentration camp at Gross-Rosen was set up in August 1940, close to what is now Rogoznica in south east Poland, as a sub camp of Sashsenhausen. It was intended that the prisoners would work either in the granite quarry that belonged to the SS DEST firm, or construct the camp. It was estimated that there was 5 million cubic metres of granite to be excavated and at a planned output of 50 thousand cubic metres a year the quarry had a life of 100 years.

The first 100 prisoners arrived on the 2nd August 1940 from Sashsenhausen and the numbers grew to 400 by the beginning of 1941. The regime was harsh due to the nature of the work and brutality of the guards. The death rate was high and with sick and exhausted prisoners being sent back to Sashsenhausen, the camp was not very efficient, though new prisoners were sent on a regular basis.

Gross-Rosen gained independence as a concentration camp of the 2nd category on the 1st May 1941, at the time the camp comprised of 4 barracks for prisoners. The camp grew rapidly in size with 22 barracks for the prisoners and at least 97 sub-camps. On 1st January 1945 the camp and sub camps held 76,728 prisoners. The camp was finally liberated on the 13th February 1945 by Soviet Forces. Some 120,000 prisoners passed through the camp and its sub-camps of which approximately 40,000 died, either at the camps or during the forced march following its evacuation.