“You Couldn’t Grasp It All”: American Forces and the Liberation of the Nazi Camps

In the early spring of 1945, American troops entered and liberated several Nazi concentration camps. What they encountered defied comprehension. Since those fateful months, the names of hellish places like Dachau, Buchenwald, Mauthausen, and Dora-Mittelbau have become parts of our collective memory. This lecture from Dr. Jason Dawsey of the National WWII Museum and Arizona State University highlights the role of the United States in the liberation of the SS-run camps and how American servicemembers swung into action to save the lives of inmates.