Memorial "Mühlviertler Hasenjagd"

On February 2, 1945 about 500 prisoners of war, mostly Russian officers, made an escape attempt from Mauthausen concentration camp.

More than 300 prisoners succeeded in their attempt. The others, captured in their escape or too weak to get out, were immediately executed.

The SS organized a hunt for the prisoners. It took 3 weeks with SS, Wehrmacht, police, the Volkssturm and Hitler Jugend and also citizens involved. The the idea was to bring no one back to the camp alive.

The executed prisoners were stacked in Ried Ried an der Mark.

Members of the Volkssturm who had left prisoners alive were abused. Ultimately, more than 300 prisoners were seized again. Of these, just 57 were returned alive to Mauthausen.

Just 11 officers have survived the hunting. They stayed in the woods and got food of forced laborers and some farmers. A few months later the war was over.

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Source

• Text: Fedor de Vries
• Photos: Wikimedia Commons