Theresienstadt: Hitler's gift to the Jews or way station to hell?

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Issue Date
2014-04-25
Embargo End Date
Authors
Trier-Metzger, Nancy
Advisor
Stewart, James A.
Citation

Metzger-Trier, Nancy. 2014. Theresienstadt: Hitler's Gift to the Jews or Way Station to Hell? -- In Proceedings: 10th Annual Symposium on Graduate Research and Scholarly Projects. Wichita, KS: Wichita State University, p. 48

Abstract

During the Holocaust, over 140,000 Jews were imprisoned in the Theresienstadt/Terezin ghetto. I will demonstrate that the Nazis did not originally intend to create an illusory "model ghetto;" rather, Theresienstadt was always intended to be a significant component of the Final Solution. By examining primary materials in German, particularly documents of the chief implementer of the Final Solution, SS General Reinhard Heydrich, I will show that the Nazis established Theresienstadt/Terezin as a collecting point and transit camp for Jews who were then sent to concentration/death camps (referred to as the "East" by the Nazis). They later called it a Jewish Settlement, exploiting the artistic and musical activities created by the prisoners, thereby creating a propaganda tool to convince the world of their supposedly humane treatment of Jews.

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Description
Presented to the 10th Annual Symposium on Graduate Research and Scholarly Projects (GRASP) held at the Heskett Center, Wichita State University, April 25, 2014.
Research completed at Liberal Studies Program, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
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