Exploring the Legacy: The Haven - Museum of Forced Labor during National Socialism in Weimar
A Yearlong Exhibition Detailing Forced Labor Experiences - A chronicle of a year spent inside a museum's hallowed halls.
Get a glimpse into the harrowing past with the Museum of Forced Labor during National Socialism, now thriving in Weimar. This thought-provoking museum attracts around 1,000 monthly visitors, apart from school groups, adult groups, and special attendees at events.
The museum stands as a Sanctuary for former forced laborers, their families, and descendants, who now have a sacred space to honor their experiences. It’s a poignant place where stories intertwine, and the painful connection to National Socialism reverberates across generations.
Stitched into family narratives
Museum Director Daniel Logemann emphasizes that "the crimes of National Socialism during World War II are woven into millions of family stories throughout Europe." The question, "What does this history have to do with me?" continues to resonate today. Logemann underlines how such shared understanding can unite people with diverse experiences.
A tapestry of collaboration
Weimar institutions are joining forces, notes museum spokesperson Dorothee Schlüter. The museum will participate in the 2025 Kunstfest Weimar with a video installation, working towards extended plans reaching up to 2028. This includes rotating exhibitions, art installations, cultural events, and conferences. An exhibition on Soviet prisoners of war during World War II is slated to open in September.
Educational oasis nestled in a perpetrator's sanctum
Established within the Buchenwald and Mittelbau-Dora Memorial Foundation, the museum is the first to discuss the history of Nazi forced labor on a pan-European level. The museum resides in a building that once served as the headquarters for Gauleiter Fritz Sauckel, who led the forced labor scheme. Millions were compelled into labor under his command, and it's estimated that between 20 and 26 million people were subjected to forced labor within the Reich or occupied territories during World War II.
Commemorative highlights for the Day of Liberation
For the Day of Liberation, the museum has planned special events, including a film night and a reading with dance and music, replaying on May 10. Ute Delimat from Göttingen will share a poignant tale of her mother Wiktoria's wartime ordeal, taken as a 13-year-old Polish girl to Germany for forced labor in 1940.
- Forced Labor
- Weimar
- National Socialism
- Sanctuary
- World War II
- Family Narratives
- Collaboration
- Education
- Europe
- Liberation
- The museum, situated in Weimar, diligently serves as a Sanctuary for former forced laborers under National Socialism, providing a sacred space where their experiences are honored.
- Museum Director Daniel Logemann underscores the profound connection between the crimes of National Socialism during World War II and modern family narratives, prompting the question, "What does this history have to do with me?"
- Institutions in Weimar are collaborating to promote a better understanding of forced labor during World War II, with the museum participating in various events such as the 2025 Kunstfest Weimar and the opening of an exhibition on Soviet prisoners of war in September.
- Established within the Buchenwald and Mittelbau-Dora Memorial Foundation, the museum is designed for education, chronicling the history of Nazi forced labor on a pan-European level and standing on the very ground that once served as the headquarters for one of the chief architects of forced labor, Gauleiter Fritz Sauckel.
- In commemoration of the Day of Liberation, the museum will host special events, including a film night and a poignant reading about the wartime experiences of a 13-year-old Polish girl forced into labor, underscoring the enduring impact of the suffering endured during the dark era of World War II.
