LUBLIN, LIPOWA 7. CAMP FOR JEWS - POLISH PRISONERS OF WAR (Lublin, Lipowa 7. Obóz dla Zydów - polskich jenców wojennych (1940-1943))

The labour camp at Lipowa street in Lublin was one of only a few places of isolation and forced labour of Polish Jews held as prisoners of war, a large number of which was transferred by Wehrmacht to SS units. They arrived here between February 1940 and February 1941. They were privates or non-commissioned officers of the Polish Armed Forces, hailing mostly from Polish areas seized by the USSR. They were held in the Lublin camp from February 1940 to November 1943, although in 1940 they typically spent a short time there before being released or moved to other detention centres, whereas from December 1940 the POWs brought here remained in the camp. It is estimated that a total of some 5,200 POWs passed through the camp. Their labour was used inside and outside the camp. Thanks to their determination, the inmates retained a limited POW status. They tried to oppose the strict camp regime, harsh conditions and hard work by organizing a resistance movement. Many tried to escape, with varying success. Despite the protection of life to which they were entitled under international law, most were murdered at Majdanek concentration camp on November 3, 1943, during an operation code-named 'Erntefest'.