Villa of Nazi Commandant Hoess Next to Auschwitz to Open to Public

auschwitz, poland - Former home of concentration camp commander's family, now open for public viewing after 80 years.

Villa Next to Auschwitz

The villa of Rudolf Hoess, former commandant of Auschwitz, will soon be open to the public for the first time in 80 years since the camp's liberation.

The three-story villa with a spacious interior and well-kept garden was the childhood home to Hoess' five children. Despite being located next to the infamous concentration camp, the children were shielded from its horrors by tall trees and a high concrete wall. While their father oversaw the death of hundreds of thousands, the children played in the garden, unaware of the atrocities nearby.

After being privately owned by a Polish family since the liberation of Auschwitz in 1945, the house was recently acquired by the Counter Extremism Project in New York. The organization aims to combat extremism globally and plans to use the house as a center to educate about the dangers of extremism. The house will also be open to the public, coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the camp's liberation on January 27.

Preserving History

The house will feature many belongings of the Hoess family, including diaries and personal items that shed light on their lives next to the concentration camp. These artifacts provide insight into the efforts made by Hoess and his wife to shield their children from the horrors surrounding them.

The story of the family living adjacent to the concentration camp served as inspiration for the film 'The Zone of Interest,' which won an Oscar for its portrayal of life in and around the villa.