Most historical summaries of the solution to "The Jewish Question" during World War II start with the Einsatzgruppen, giving it short treatment as the initial method of exterminating Jews and other undesirables. Usually it is described as both inefficient and too stressful for those who did the killing. Then the narrative normally shifts to treat the death camps such as Auschwitz, Treblinka, and Sobibor in great detail.
Granted, this is where the greatest numbers of people were exterminated in the shortest time, but it was the work of the Einsatzgruppen that really exhibited the extremes of inhumanity, depravity, and brutality during this period in history. Nor was this operation just a precursor to the subsequent death camps; this extreme brutality continued straight through to the end of the war, especially in the form of "Operation 1005," the cover-up attempted once the Germans understood that they would soon lose the war and be held accountable for these horrors against humanity.
The horrors perpetrated by these death squads cannot be overstated. The massive scale upon which this most extreme horror took place boggles the human mind and soul. Such extremes of mass cruelty, humiliation, torture, and death are beyond the normal understanding. Even the Nazis could not bear to take part in it without constant and copious consumption of alcohol. Further, most of the killing was carried out by non-Germans and even non-Nazis, with the actual Germans normally filling only a supervisory function. The pain reliever of choice for these nationals was once again large amounts of alcohol. Though this dulled their senses, it also removed their inhibitions, causing many to become not only desensitized to the brutality, but even inspiring them to enjoy it. Some even began to get "creative" about how they went about the cruelty and killing.
If you don't know the Einsatzgruppen, you don't know the Holocaust!
Granted, this is where the greatest numbers of people were exterminated in the shortest time, but it was the work of the Einsatzgruppen that really exhibited the extremes of inhumanity, depravity, and brutality during this period in history. Nor was this operation just a precursor to the subsequent death camps; this extreme brutality continued straight through to the end of the war, especially in the form of "Operation 1005," the cover-up attempted once the Germans understood that they would soon lose the war and be held accountable for these horrors against humanity.
The horrors perpetrated by these death squads cannot be overstated. The massive scale upon which this most extreme horror took place boggles the human mind and soul. Such extremes of mass cruelty, humiliation, torture, and death are beyond the normal understanding. Even the Nazis could not bear to take part in it without constant and copious consumption of alcohol. Further, most of the killing was carried out by non-Germans and even non-Nazis, with the actual Germans normally filling only a supervisory function. The pain reliever of choice for these nationals was once again large amounts of alcohol. Though this dulled their senses, it also removed their inhibitions, causing many to become not only desensitized to the brutality, but even inspiring them to enjoy it. Some even began to get "creative" about how they went about the cruelty and killing.
If you don't know the Einsatzgruppen, you don't know the Holocaust!