Holocaust Memorials - Monuments, Museums and Institutions in Commemoration of Nazi Victims

in detail

For decades there was no trace of the »labour and disciplinary work camp« or »temporary gypsy detention camp« that had existed in St. Pantaleon from 1940-41. Neither local chronicles of St. Pantaleon nor relevant documents on the »Resistance and Persecution in Upper Austria 1934-1945« referred to its existence.

Eventually the Austrian writer Ludwig Laher began research for his novel »Herzfleischtentartung«, which aimed to describe events that took place around the St. Pantaleon-Weyer Reich district camps within the framework of a story about the province of Upper Austria from 1940 to 1955. Based on documents provided by Laher, the St. Pantaleon Work Group for Village and Urban Renewal then came up with a concept for a memorial.

In 2000 a number of prominent guests attended the opening of the memorial, a source of controversy within St. Pantaleon-Weyer itself. Since then, the memorial has been run by the municipality with the support of the Association for the Weyer-Innviertel Camp Memorial, also founded in 2000.

Even after the relatively extensive reconstruction of historic events, the Memorial Association continues to find additional material, and to document and publish it. It has also in particular taken up the cause of the Sinti minority in Upper Austria and is supporting their efforts for recognition, backing and public awareness.

From 1940 the Weyer Camp was a »labour and disciplinary work camp« run by the German Labour Front. After one of the camp's National Socialist doctors accused the camp guards of manslaughter, prisoners were transported to Mauthausen. The guards were charged and the camp was temporarily closed at the beginning of 1941. Afterwards it was used until November 1941 as a »temporary gypsy detention camp« from where the remaining 301 prisoners were deported to the Ghetto in Lodz.

Since 2000 local historical groups have maintained a memorial at the site.