Harmeze

Former Gustav Zwilling Villa

According to the Auschwitz Museum Website, Harmeze subcamp actually consisted of two subcamps located in the village of Harmęże - called 'Harmense' by the Germans - situated about 2 kilometres from Birkenau. The Polish residents of the village were expelled prior to construction of the subcamps, the first of which was established in December 1941 in a manor house known as the Gustav Zwilling villa - the owner having also been expelled. Around 50 Polish prisoners were held on the second floor in rooms that were separated from the rest of the house by a barred and padlocked door. The Polish prisoners were later supplemented by other male prisoners from Germany, the Soviet Union, Romania, France and Czechoslovakia.

These prisoners were then put to work on agricultural tasks, specifically, raising poultry and rabbits and looking after some fishponds. In June 1942, the prisoners were moved into the village itself, where they were held in two buildings. More than 30 female prisoners then took their place. These female prisoners were mostly Jews from Czechoslovakia with a dozen German Jehovah's Witnesses. 

The male prisoners were moved again in summer 1943 to another Auschwitz subcamp called Budy and the women took over their agricultural tasks. There were two thousand hens, one thousand ducks, five hundred turkeys, five angora rabbits and three hundred geese to look after, the rabbits being kept for their wool.

Food in Harmeze was better than it was in Auschwitz, and the prisoners managed to find some more supplies. In January 1945, the female prisoners were also moved, at first to Wodzisław Śląski from where they were moved on again to other camps, including Bergen-Belsen.

The camp was commanded by SS-Unterscharführer Bernhard Glaue and subsequently by SS-Rottenführer Xaver Eidenchinkt.

Further details: 

www.auschwitz.org

http://auschwitz.org/en/bookstoreproducts/product/auschwitz-from-a-to-z-an-illustrated-history,210.html#2

Fishponds where the female prisoners used to work


This is the duck hatchery building, now a delicatessen.

One of the hen houses

Another hen house

Former farm building

Another farm building

Notice these concrete fence posts - originals from the time of the subcamp

This is the former house of the Psota family that was used as a smokehouse and, from June 1942, as accommodation for prisoners from Fischerei Kommando (work party)

Harmeze subcamp main area












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