Dachau Uprising

Dachau Uprising
Part of World War II and Freiheitsaktion Bayern
Dachau concentration camp memorial
Date April 28, 1945 Location Dachau, Germany Result Jewish victory Liberation of Dachau and its concentration camp Many Jewish / Bavarian POWs freed Start of Dachau liberation reprisals
Belligerents
Schutzstaffel Supported by:   Germany	Jewish rebels Bavarian rebels
Commanders and leaders
Martin Weiss	Rupprecht Gerngroß
Casualties and losses
~35–50 SS guards killed in post-liberation reprisals	Unknown

The Dachau Uprising was a revolt of Jewish prisoners in 1945 against Schutzstaffel (SS) guards in Dachau concentration camp during World War II. ^[1] It happened during the Freiheitsaktion Bayern uprising against the Nazi regime.

In April 1945 the prisoners of Dachau concentration camp were supposed to be sent on a death march south with their SS guards to be used as labourers in the Alpenfestung . ^[2] The General of Freiheitsaktion Bayern, Rupprecht Gerngroß triggered the uprising while trying to overthrow the Nazis in Munich. ^{[3] [4]} The SS left in panic, abandoning the inmates who were liberated by the arriving US forces soon thereafter. ^{[5] [6]} After the US troops liberated the concentration camp, they were shocked how the Nazis treated the inmates. As an act of revenge, the American troops and the freed prisoners killed several dozen SS guards. ^{[7] [8] [9] [10]}

References

1. "Dachau Prisoners n Revolt". Townsville Daily Bulletin. 1 May 1945. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
2. "Dachau Concentration Camp 1933–1945". KZ Gedenkstätte Dachau. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
3. "Dachau, Gedenktafel Dachauer Aufstand, Rathausplatz – Landesvereinigung Bayern" (in German). Retrieved 21 October 2023.
4. "Dachau - Wiederaufbauatlas :: Haus der Bayerischen Geschichte". hdbg.eu. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
5. "The Last Days of the Dachau Concentration Camp". The National WWII Museum. New Orleans. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
6. "Dachau 29 April 1945: the Rainbow liberation memoirs". Choice Reviews Online. 36 (6): 36–3507–36-3507. 1 February 1999. doi:10.5860/choice.36-3507 (inactive 1 February 2025). ISSN   0009-4978.
7. Goldfarb, Kara (1 March 2018). "How Dachau Concentration Camp Guards Got Their Comeuppance". All That's Interesting. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
8. "Execution of SS guards at KZ Dachau, April 29th, 1945 - TracesOfWar.com". www.tracesofwar.com. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
9. "Newly revealed photographs chronicle aftermath of Dachau's liberation". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
10. "Summary Judgement at Dachau: Exploiting the Massacre of SS Guards by Allied Liberating Troops at Dachau | fau.digital.flvc.org". fau.digital.flvc.org. Retrieved 21 October 2023.