Michael Brooks
During World War II, the Nazis brutally suppressed the Catholic Church in Poland, closing, seizing, or destroying thousands of churches and monasteries. As a result, many works of religious art and objects were lost, and church leaders were targeted as part of an effort to destroy Polish culture. Thousands of Catholics were killed at Auschwitz, including Franciscan Saint Maximillian Kolbe, who was murdered at Auschwitz-Birkenau after offering his life to save a fellow prisoner. Dachau concentration camp was also used for Catholic clergy, with 1,034 Catholic priests dying there. Many thousands of Catholic men, women, and children died in concentration camps, SS and Gestapo torture chambers, or in fields and villages across Europe.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Catholics killed at Auschwitz | Approximately 75,000 Polish Catholics were killed at Auschwitz. However, this was for reasons unconnected to their religious identity, such as political beliefs. |
| Catholic Clergy Killed at Auschwitz | It is estimated that at least 3,000 Polish priests were sent to concentration camps, including Auschwitz. |
| Catholic Clergy Killed at Dachau | 1,034 Catholic priests died at Dachau. |
| Catholic Clergy Killed at Buchenwald | Otto Neururer, a parish priest, was executed at Buchenwald concentration camp in 1940. Blessed Engelmar Unzeitig, a Czech priest, died of typhoid at Buchenwald in 1945. |
| Catholic Clergy Killed at Mauthausen | 780 Catholic priests died at Mauthausen. |
| Catholic Clergy Killed in Germany | 259 Jesuits were killed in Germany, including 152 who died in Nazi concentration camps. |
| Catholic Clergy Killed in Poland | At least 1,811 members of the Polish clergy were murdered in Nazi concentration camps. An estimated 3,000 members of the Polish clergy were killed in total. |
| Catholic Clergy Who Survived Auschwitz | Father Wladyslaw Grohs, Adam Kozlowiecki, Father Adam Zieba, Cardinal Adam Kozlowiecki |
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What You'll Learn
Catholic prisoners secretly practised sacraments
Although most deportees to Auschwitz were Jews, the camp also took in Catholic resistance fighters from France, Germany, Belgium, and other countries. In total, there were about 400,000 registered prisoners at Auschwitz, of which 200,000 were Jewish. Of the remaining 200,000 non-Jewish prisoners, 80.4% were Catholic. This equates to approximately 161,200 Catholics.
All religious practices were forbidden at Auschwitz, and participation in services, prayer, and possession of religious objects was severely punished. Despite this, some inmates risked their lives to participate in clandestine religious practices. Priests would even celebrate holy mass in hiding, using sacramental wine and hosts smuggled into the camp by civilian workers. Inmates also sought opportunities to confess, which provided great relief and consolation.
Some inmates went to great lengths to conceal liturgical and devotional objects, such as rosaries made of dried bread. In 1944, the Nazi administrators attempted to deter Christmas observances by installing a decorated Christmas tree surrounded by dead bodies in the camp's assembly yard. However, one priest, Father Wladyslaw Grohs, celebrated Mass and heard confessions in his cell.
The clergy from the surrounding parishes were also involved in assisting the camp prisoners. They provided inmates with food, liturgical vessels, and hosts, and those who escaped received aid in the form of civilian clothing. To better organize these activities, the clandestine Committee for Carrying Aid to the Political Prisoners of the Auschwitz Camp was formed, with Canon Jan Skarbek as its honorary chairman.
In addition to the Catholic inmates, several Catholic priests and clergy members were also held as prisoners in Auschwitz. Some of these priests were killed, including Father Cyrek, a Jesuit from Kraków, and Father Marian Morawski, a professor of theology at the Jagiellonian University. Others, such as Father Konrad Szweda, survived their imprisonment and went on to share their stories.
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Catholic prisoners risked their lives to celebrate Christmas
During World War II, the Nazis brutally suppressed the Catholic Church in Poland, closing, seizing, or destroying thousands of churches and monasteries. As a result, many works of religious art and objects were lost forever. At least 1,811 members of the Polish clergy were murdered in Nazi concentration camps, with estimates placing the figure at 3,000. Hitler's plans for the Germanization of Eastern Europe did not include Catholicism, and the actions taken against Polish Catholicism were part of a broader effort to eradicate the existence of the Polish people.
Despite this brutal suppression, Catholic prisoners at Auschwitz-Birkenau risked their lives to celebrate Christmas. In her study, historian Teresa Wontor-Cichy notes that Catholic prisoners showed "great determination" in concealing liturgical and devotional objects like rosaries made of dried bread. In 1944, the Nazis attempted to deter Christmas observances by installing a decorated Christmas tree surrounded by dead bodies in the camp's assembly yard. However, one priest, Father Wladyslaw Grohs, celebrated Mass and heard confessions in his cell. Carols were sung in many places around the camp, lifting people's spirits and giving them hope.
The first Christmas Eve in the camp, on December 24, 1940, was particularly tragic. The SS set up a Christmas tree with electric lights in the roll-call square, placing the bodies of prisoners who had died while working or frozen to death at roll call beneath it. In 1942, the Nazis repeated this macabre display, stacking a heap of corpses under the Christmas tree. Despite the horror of their situation, prisoners tried to celebrate in their blocks, singing carols and exchanging warm embraces.
The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum Archives contain eyewitness accounts of these Christmas celebrations, providing a glimpse into the resilience and determination of Catholic prisoners in the face of unimaginable adversity.
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Catholic priests were targeted for especially brutal treatment
During World War II, the Catholic Church in Poland faced brutal suppression by the Nazis. This suppression was most severe in German-occupied areas of Poland, where thousands of churches and monasteries were closed, seized, or destroyed. The Nazis' efforts to destroy Polish culture included the targeting of Catholic Church leaders, resulting in the murder of at least 1,811 members of the Polish clergy in concentration camps. An estimated 3,000 members of the clergy were killed in total.
The persecution of the Catholic Church extended beyond Poland, with Dachau Concentration Camp becoming the centre for the imprisonment of clergymen. Of the 2,720 clerics recorded as imprisoned at Dachau, 2,579 (94.88%) were Roman Catholics. 1,034 Catholic priests died at the camp. Notable Catholic clergy who perished at Dachau include Blessed Gerhard Hirschfelder, who died of hunger and illness in 1942, and Blessed Engelmar Unzeitig, a Czech priest who died of typhoid in 1945.
The Nazis' persecution of the Catholic Church also involved the confiscation of church properties, the closure of Catholic organizations, and the suppression of religious life for Catholics. Catholic priests were arrested, imprisoned, and subjected to brutal treatment, including torture and execution. The Gestapo rounded up and brutalized many members of Christian trade unions and the Catholic Center Party. Hundreds of priests were arrested for speaking out against anti-democratic changes and the persecution of Jews.
The Vatican used its press and radio to bring attention to the terrorization of the Polish people and the brutal restrictions on the religious life of Polish Catholics. The Nazis' actions against the Catholic Church in Poland were part of their plan to eradicate the existence of the Polish people, which included the elimination of the country's political, intellectual, and military classes. The Church in Poland was a source of hope and encouragement for Polish culture, learning, and independence.
While the exact number of Catholics killed at Auschwitz is unknown, it is estimated that over 400,000 prisoners were held at the camp, with approximately 200,000 being non-Jewish prisoners. Of the non-Jewish prisoners, it is estimated that 80.4% were Catholic. This would suggest that a significant number of Catholics perished at Auschwitz, though the exact figure may never be known due to incomplete records and the omission of data from certain periods.
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Catholic priests were murdered en route to camps
During World War II, thousands of Catholic priests were arrested, imprisoned, tortured, and murdered by the Nazis. Many were killed en route to concentration camps, while others died within the camps. The exact number of Catholic priests murdered on their way to camps is not known, but it is estimated that thousands of priests were killed during the Nazi regime.
The Nazis targeted the Catholic Church and its clergy as part of their effort to destroy Polish culture and suppress opposition. The German invasion of Poland in 1939 marked the beginning of a brutal campaign against the Catholic Church in the country. The Nazis instigated a policy of genocide against Poland's Jewish minority and murdered or suppressed Polish elites, including religious leaders. Mass executions were carried out, and many priests were among those killed.
As the war progressed, the Nazis continued their persecution of the Catholic Church. Catholic priests were arrested and sent to concentration camps, where they faced harsh conditions, torture, and death. Dachau became the centre for the imprisonment of clergymen, with 2,579 out of 2,720 clerics imprisoned there being Catholic. Of these, 1,034 Catholic priests died at the camp.
The "Death Books" of Auschwitz provide some insight into the religious denominations of the prisoners. However, the "religious denomination" field is missing or incomplete in many records. It is estimated that out of the 400,000 registered prisoners at Auschwitz, about 200,000 were non-Jewish, and among these, 80.4% were Catholic. This suggests a significant number of Catholic prisoners at Auschwitz, but the true figure may be even higher as the Death Books do not include all prisoners.
The Nazis' persecution of the Catholic Church extended beyond Poland. In Germany itself, an estimated one-third of German priests faced reprisals, and 400 priests were sent to the Priest Barracks of Dachau. Across occupied Europe, Catholic priests played a crucial role in resisting the Nazis and protecting Jews from persecution. Many priests gave their lives to help Jews escape deportation and hide from the Nazis.
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Catholic clergy were incarcerated for opposing the Nazi regime
During the German occupation of Poland (1939–1945), the Nazis brutally suppressed the Catholic Church, particularly in German-occupied areas. Thousands of churches and monasteries were closed, seized, or destroyed, and church leaders were targeted as part of an effort to destroy Polish culture. The Nazis also sought to dismantle the Church in the annexed territories, arresting, exiling, and murdering its leaders.
In 1933, almost 40% of Germany's population was Roman Catholic. Initially, many German Catholic clergy were suspicious of Nazism, and some openly opposed it. However, neither Catholicism nor Protestantism was willing to openly defy the Nazi state. The Catholic Church, in particular, was not as sharply divided by ideological factions as the Protestant church and never underwent an internal struggle. Instead, the Catholic Church engaged in a bitter war of attrition with the regime, receiving the backing of millions of churchgoers.
The Nazis responded to this growing anti-Nazi sentiment by arresting and imprisoning clergy who opposed them. Dachau became the centre for the imprisonment of clergymen, with 2,579 out of 2,720 clerics recorded as imprisoned there being Roman Catholics. Over 1,000 Catholic priests died at Dachau, including Saint Titus Brandsma, a Dutch Carmelite who died of a lethal injection in 1942, and Blessed Bernhard Lichtenberg, who died during transport to the camp in 1943.
In addition to Dachau, priests were also sent to Buchenwald concentration camp, where Blessed Otto Neururer, a parish priest, was executed in 1940 for conducting a baptism. He was the first priest killed in the concentration camps. Clergy were also among the first major components of the German Resistance, and their support was crucial in providing protection to those at risk. Saint Maximillian Kolbe, a Franciscan who was murdered at Auschwitz-Birkenau, is one such example. He provided shelter to 2,000 Jews in his friary in Niepokalanów and offered his life to save a fellow prisoner who had been condemned to death.
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Frequently asked questions
It is estimated that 75,000 Polish Catholics were killed at Auschwitz. However, this was not due to their religious identity but rather for other reasons such as their political beliefs.
Yes, there were Catholic priests at Auschwitz. Some priests who were imprisoned at Auschwitz included Father Wladyslaw Grohs, Father Adam Zieba, and Cardinal Adam Kozlowiecki.
While it is not known how many Catholic priests were killed at Auschwitz, it is known that priests were imprisoned and killed at other concentration camps such as Dachau and Buchenwald.
