Mittelwerk

Mittelwerk was a German rocket production plant established during World War II, located in Mittelbau-Dora, a labor camp in the Harz Mountains, Germany. The facility was designed to produce V-2 rockets, a type of ballistic missile used by the German military.

Mittelwerk was established in 1943, and construction was carried out using slave labor from concentration camps. The plant was divided into several buildings and underground tunnels, with a total of 19,000 workers employed at its peak. Conditions in the plant were extremely harsh, with workers subjected to overwork, malnutrition, and poor sanitation.

Despite the challenging conditions, Mittelwerk played a significant role in the German military's rocket program. The facility produced over 5,200 V-2 rockets during the war, with many being used in combat against Allied targets. However, the plant's role in producing rockets also contributed to its notorious reputation, as it was responsible for the deaths of countless workers through exploitation and mistreatment.

After the war, the plant was liberated, and many of its former workers were imprisoned and tried for their involvement in war crimes. In 1948, the plant was converted into a production facility for the Soviet Union, producing aircraft and other equipment. However, the plant's association with war crimes and exploitation made it a source of ongoing controversy, with many calling for a more complete reckoning of the facility's history.

Today, Mittelwerk is remembered as a symbol of the atrocities committed during World War II, and efforts are ongoing to acknowledge and document the facility's complex and troubled past.