Concentration Camp Uniform

Written by Sarah Mirti

The Luxembourg resistance movement

The picture shows a typical uniform worn by concentration camp prisoners during World War II. This one was worn by the Luxembourgish resistance fighter Jéng Kayser. He was part of the Luxembourgish “Alweraje” resistance movement set up in 1941 by Albert Wingert. In August 1942, about 100 members of Luxembourg resistance organisations, including Kayser, were arrested by the Gestapo and send to concentration camps.[1] Kayser was first deported to Hinzert, then transferred to Natzweiler-Struthof and finally to Dachau, where he was detained until his liberation in May 1945.[2]

Historical information and memories conveyed by the concentration camp uniform

Jéng Kayser’s uniform is typical of the uniforms worn by concentration camp prisoners. In European visual cultures, stripes have long been associated with a loss of freedom, and their pejorative meaning goes back hundreds of years. The stripes had a humiliating function and served to brand all prisoners as criminals. They were also intended to prevent the prisoners from escaping – the fabric of the uniform had stripes printed on both sides.[3]

The uniform is relatively heavy and the tissue is rather stiff. The material of the uniform is most likely cotton drill.[4]

The uniform has a red triangle with the letter L. Badges in different shapes and colours were used to identify prisoners. The red triangle indicated prisoners that were incarcerated for political reasons. The letter “L” stands for Luxembourg.[5]

The uniform has an identification number, “110824”. The fact that Jéng Kayser was given an identification number indicates that he was fit to perform work. In Dachau, prisoners that were not fit for work could be sent as “Invalidentransport” to the death facility at Hartheim Castle in Austria.[6]

The uniform has a pocket on the front side, which is unusual. Generally, the uniforms of concentration camp prisoners did not include pockets. We know from survivor’s testimonies that having pockets was very important. It made it possible to hide a piece of bread, a spoon, or anything small and useful. Hand-stitched secret pockets on the reverse side of the jackets were sometimes added, but machine-stitched pockets on the face of the jacket were probably added in a sewing workshop as a favour to “high ranking” prisoners.[7]

Pictures from Dachau prisoners shows uniforms without pockets:

www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/prisoner-forced-to-stand-as-punishment

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/dachau-color-photographs

Survival and advancement at Natzweiler-Struthof

In Natzweiler-Struthof, most prisoners worked in the quarry, extracting stone or gravel. From the end of 1942 on, they were assigned to repair aircraft engines for the German Air Force.[8] Jéng Kayser’s first employment in Natzweiler was on the Terrassen, probably an area for stone extraction. At a later stage, because of his profession as a machinist and his general craftsmanship, he was assigned to work in a hall where aircraft engines from shot-down aircraft were disassembled so their parts could be reused. One day, the car of the camp commander broke down. Jéng Kayser was asked by the SS supervisor to produce the broken clutch part on a lathe, which he successfully managed to do. From that day on, the situation of the inmates in the hall where Kayser worked improved, also because Kayser manufactured floor lamps for the SS supervisor on a lathe, which the SS supervisor traded for food for his family in Germany.[9]

Transfer to Dachau before the liberation

In early September 1944, as the Allied armies were advancing, the Nazis decided to evacuate the principal camp of Natzweiler-Struthof and most of the prisoners including Kayser were transferred to Dachau.[10] Towards the end of the war, uniforms for prisoners were scarce or generally not available.[11] The uniform Kayser wore until his liberation is probably the uniform he was given during his time at Natzweiler. Considering the work that had to be performed at Natzweiler, extracting stones or working on aircraft engines, the Kayser’s uniform is in very good shape, with little to no wear and no stains from engine oil or other substances. The favourable status that Kayser had gained at Natzweiler probably explains the good quality of his uniform and the fact that he had the privilege of having a pocket. He was probably given permission to wash his uniform or received a regular exchange uniform, which was very rare.[12]

The Dachau concentration camp had under its authority a vast network of 140 sub-camps producing armaments, predominantly in southern Bavaria.[13] It is likely that Jéng Kayser had to perform forced work in the six months he was detained in Dachau. The uniform that he most likely brought from Natzweiler or the new uniform he received (a more unlikely scenario) remained in good condition. He probably had an occupation that did not involve exposure to industrial oil or result in wear and tear of his uniform.

Tribute

Jéng Frank’s uniform is a testimony to his courage and determination as a survivor of three concentration camps. The donation of his uniform to the museum underlines his desire to preserve the memory of the terrifying events related to the Nazi regime and its concentration camps.

See related images 

[1] Limpac, Marc, Kayser, Wir glauben an die Demokratie. Albert Wingert, Resistenzler, Editions d’Lëtzebuerger Land, Luxembourg 2004, p. 122.

[2] Bosseler, Nicolas, Steichen, Raymond, Livre d’Or. De la Résistance Luxembourgeoise de 1940-1945, Esch-sur-Alzette 1952, p. 58 ff.

[3] Fenyvesi, Lizou, Reading Prisoner Uniforms: The Concentration Camp Prisoner Uniform as a Primary Source for Historical Research (11 October 2006), in: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1340&context=tsaconf (retrieved: 23 June 2020).

[4] Hammermann, Gabriele, Pilzweger-Steiner, KZ-Gedenkstätten Dachau. Ein Rundgang in leichter Sprache, Taschenbuch 2018, p. 71 ff.

[5] Berben, Paul, Jewish Virtual Library. A Project of Aice (20 January 2020), in: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/dachau-prisoner-badges (retrieved: June 23,2020).

[6] KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau. Stiftung Bayerische Gedenkstätten (15 May 2014), in: https://www.kz-gedenkstaette-dachau.de/en/historical-site/dachau-concentration-camp-1933-1945/ (retrieved: 22 June 2020).

[7] The Wiener Holocaust Library. The Holocaust Explained (2017), in: https://www.theholocaustexplained.org/the-camps/ss-concentration-camp-system/uniform-and-clothing/ (retrieved: 23 June 2020)

[8] Struthof, The everyday life of the deportees (2019), in: http://www.struthof.fr/en/the-kl-natzweiler/the-deportees-of-kl-na/they-everyday-life-of-the-deportees/ (retrieved: 22 June 2020).

[9] Limpac, Marc, Kayser, Wir glauben an die Demokratie. Albert Wingert, Resistenzler, Editions d’Lëtzebuerger Land, Luxembourg 2004, p. 133.

[10] Limpac, Marc, Kayser, Wir glauben an die Demokratie. Albert Wingert, Resistenzler, Editions d’Lëtzebuerger Land, Luxembourg 2004, p. 143 ff.

[11] The Wiener Holocaust Library. The Holocaust Explained (2017), in: https://www.theholocaustexplained.org/the-camps/ss-concentration-camp-system/uniform-and-clothing/ (retrieved: 23 June 2020)

[12] G. Saidel, Rochelle, KZ-Häftlingskleidung (26 March 2013), in: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/KZ-H%C3%A4ftlingskleidung (retrieved: 23 June 2020).

[13] KZ-Gedenkstätte Dachau. Stiftung Bayerische Gedenkstätten (15 May 2014), in: https://www.kz-gedenkstaette-dachau.de/en/historical-site/dachau-concentration-camp-1933-1945/ (retrieved: 23 June 2020).

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