Ravensbrück concentration camp

Ravensbrück concentration camp was a Nazi prison camp in Brandenburg, Germany, established in 1939 primarily for women prisoners and operated by the SS until liberation in 1945. The site is now a memorial and museum documenting Nazi crimes and victim experiences.

The preserved camp grounds and museum present documentary exhibitions, original infrastructure remains and memorial installations that recount prisoner life, forced labour and the camp’s administration. Visitors encounter interpretive displays, survivor testimony and marked memorial spaces.

Opened in 1939, Ravensbrück initially housed women and later also detained men and children; it was part of the wider Nazi concentration camp system. The camp operated until Allied forces liberated the area in April 1945, after which the site was progressively memorialised and researched.

Located in Brandenburg near the town of Fürstenberg/Havel in northeastern Germany, the memorial is accessible by regional road from nearby towns and from Berlin.

• Operational period and purpose: Established in 1939 as a concentration camp primarily for women, the site also held men and children in later years and was operated by the SS until liberation in 1945.
• Visitor guidance: Guided tours and the museum provide historical context and testimony; visitors are asked to observe the memorial character of the site.

What to See #

• Camp grounds and memorial sites: The preserved camp grounds include the former administrative area, barracks foundations and the site of the crematorium and gas chamber now marked as a memorial.
• On-site museum and exhibitions: A museum on site displays documents, photographs and personal items that document prisoner life and camp administration during the camp's operation.
• Memorials and commemorative structures: A memorial chapel and commemorative stone markers list some victims and provide spaces for remembrance and educational visits.