Dachau was founded in the 9th century. The town is known for its proximity to the infamous Dachau concentration camp built in 1933 by the Nazis, in which tens of thousands of prisoners died.
Opened in 1933 by Heinrich Himmler, its purpose included forced labor, imprisoned of Jews, ordinary German and Austrian criminals, and eventually foreign nationals from countries that Germany occupied.
The camp area consisted of 32 barracks, including one for clergy imprisoned for opposing the Nazi regime and one reserved for medical experiments. The courtyard between the prison and the central kitchen was used for the summary execution of prisoners. The camp was surrounded by an electrified barbed-wire gate, a ditch, and a wall with seven guard towers.
The Dachau camp system grew to include nearly 100 sub-camps, which were mostly work camps and were located throughout southern Germany and Austria. The camps were liberated by U.S. forces on 29 April 1945.
It was a somber morning of reflection as we stood on the ground where such atrocities had occurred.
It was the first day of Oktoberfest and David Moore had worked with the hotel for 9 months to get us a reserved table on opening night. It was raining so we gt a little wet waiting to get into the tent.
