Auschwitz Concentration Camp (World war - II)
Auschwitz Concentration Camp (World War-II) Today, Auschwitz is open to the public as the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum . It tells the story of the largest mass murder site in history and acts as a reminder of the horrors of genocide . Auschwitz is the German name for the Polish city O ś wi ę cim. O ś wi ę cim is located in Poland, approximately 40 miles (about 64 km) west of Krak ó w. Germany annexed this area of Poland in 1939 . The Auschwitz concentration camp was located on the outskirts of O ś wi ę cim in German-occupied Poland. It was originally established in 1940 and later referred to as "Auschwitz I" or "Main Camp." Auschwitz, also known as Auschwitz-Birkenau, opened in 1940 and was the largest of the Nazi concentration and death camps. Located in southern Poland, Auschwitz initially served as a detention center for political prisoners. However, it evolved into a