The most important thing, as far as Hitler was concerned, was to exterminate all the Jews in Europe, more so than winning the war. That’s why the Nazis went to a great deal of trouble to perfect their method of gassing. I find this whole subject to be fascinating, so bear with me, dear reader.
Here is a quote from this blog about the gassing of prisoners at Dachau :
The Dachau camp was the prototype for other concentration camps. Although they did not carry out any mass killings here, a gas chamber, masked as a shower, was built on the site. It is believed that it was used to conducted trials, to prefect the method, so the chambers could be introduced at other death camps.
Another quote about the Dachau gas chamber is from this travel blog:
The S.S. had a gas chamber built within the new building [at Dachau], and included the now familiar fake sign indicating it was “showers.” In spite of the gas chamber’s presence, however, there are no mass murders documented here, as there were in the death camps. Some survivors, however, have said there were small groups or individuals killed in the gas chamber, presumably to test its effectiveness.
The Nazis left nothing to chance. They started testing gassing methods even before the “Final Solution” was planned at the Wannsee Conference in January 1942. (more…)
