"On Auschwitz" (47): Functionary prisoners at Auschwitz

On Auschwitz

In the German concentration camps, including Auschwitz, there was a group of so-called ‘functionary’ prisoners, responsible for supervising other prisoners. They were mainly in charge of supervising the work committees, keeping order in the blocks or barracks, but also distributing food among the prisoners.

Being a lageraeltester, a block leader, or a kapo meant almost unlimited power over the prisoners. Sometimes the functionary prisoner became the master of life and death.

Dr. Piotr Setkiewicz, the head of the Auschwitz Muzeum Research Centre, talks about the complex history of this group of prisoners at Auschwitz.