Overview

From August 1942 to April 1945, Siemens & Halske AG maintained its own so-called production facility adjacent to the Ravensbrück women's concentration camp, where up to 2,300 female prisoners were deployed in forced labor. This volume contains excerpts from letters, witness statements, arrest reports, diaries, compensation claims, autobiographies and interviews from Ravensbrück survivors who were forced to work in the armaments factory. The texts shed light on the system of forced labor in the context of the concentration camp, questions of discouragement and hope as well as the women's will for self-assertion and resistance

Full Product Details

Author:   The International Friends Association (IFK)
Publisher:   Berghahn Books
Imprint:   Berghahn Books
ISBN:  

9781836954422

ISBN 10:   1836954425
Pages:   354
Publication Date:   01 March 2026
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

List of Figures List of Abbreviations Acknowledgments Preface to the English Edition Andrea Genest, Director, Ravensbrück Memorial Preface to the 2017 German Edition Preface to the 2017 German Edition Insa Eschebach, former Director, Ravensbrück Memorial Prologue Peter Plieninger, International Friends Association of the Ravensbrück Memorial Introduction Chapter 1. Siemens is now looking for prisoners: Establishment and Beginning of Production Chapter 2. Siemens had a clever, sophisticated sSystem: Power Relations and Working Conditions Chapter 3. The stomach always empty, the head sleepy: Living Conditions Chapter 4. The whole assembly line had come to a standstill: Resistance and Sabotage Chapter 5. Air raid alarm was one of the happiest moments: Liquidation and Liberation Afterword Short Biographies of the Eyewitnesses Glossary Index of Persons Sources and References

Reviews

""I hope that this book, following the success of the previous german an italian edition, will also be widely read by English-speaking audiences, contributing to awareness of the exploitation of female forced labor within Siemens at Ravensbrück and the industrial history of Nazi Germany. It will also help to pass on this knowledge to future generations."" - Ambra Laurenzi, President of the International Ravensbrück Committee

“I hope that this book, following the success of the previous german an italian edition, will also be widely read by English-speaking audiences, contributing to awareness of the exploitation of female forced labor within Siemens at Ravensbrück and the industrial history of Nazi Germany. It will also help to pass on this knowledge to future generations.” • Ambra Laurenzi, President of the International Ravensbrück Committee

Author Information

The International Friends Association (IFK) supports and promotes the work of the Ravensbrück Memorial. The Association cultivates contacts to survivors and their relatives, restores and manages artefacts relating to Ravensbrück, and is committed to the preservation of the site, which was the largest women’s concentration camp in Germany. To this end, the IFK invites the participation of all people, irrespective of nationality, who share our view that memory is indispensable for understanding both our history and our present, and is important in shaping our future.

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