Gedenkstätte für Zwangsarbeit Leipzig

About the museum

The memorial is located in northeastern Leipzig on the site of the former main plant of Hugo Schneider AG (HASAG). During the Second World War, the company was the largest armaments manufacturer in Saxony; at the Leipzig plant alone, more than 10,000 civilian forced labourers, prisoners of war and concentration camp prisoners had to work, mainly producing weapons and Panzerfausts. From 1944, a women's subcamp of the Buchenwald concentration camp existed in the north of the site.

Former forced labourers launched the first initiatives as early as the GDR era, but the project only took shape after 1990. A support association founded in 1996 drove the development forward with the support of the Environmental Research Centre and the Buchenwald Memorial, and in 2000 the Leipzig city council acknowledged its responsibility. On December 12, 2001, the memorial opened as the first institution in Germany dedicated specifically to the victims of Nazi forced labour.

It is housed in a small building in what is now the science park of the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research. It is run by the association "Erinnern an NS-Verbrechen in Leipzig", funded by the Foundation Saxon Memorials (Stiftung Sächsische Gedenkstätten) and the City of Leipzig. In addition to the permanent exhibition, the institution collects documents, answers enquiries from those affected and their relatives, and offers guided tours, neighbourhood walks and educational programmes.

Key themes

• Authentic site: former main plant of the armaments company HASAG
• Permanent exhibition on Nazi forced labour in Leipzig
• Free public guided tours and neighbourhood walks
• Digital map of forced labour sites in Leipzig
• Archive and reference library by prior appointment

Permanent exhibition

• NS-Zwangsarbeit in Leipzig und bei der HASAG – The exhibition describes the deployment of civilian forced labourers, prisoners of war and concentration camp prisoners in Leipzig and at the armaments company HASAG, as well as how this was dealt with after 1945.

Founded

2001

Operated by

Erinnern an NS-Verbrechen in Leipzig e. V.

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Free admission; public guided tours and neighbourhood walks are also free of charge.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials
• Audio description: no information

Access to the memorial is wheelchair-accessible; an accessible toilet is available in the main building of the Environmental Research Centre. Tours in simple language on request.

Kids & families

Only partly suitable for kidsRecommended for ages 14+

The educational programmes are aimed at adults and young people; school groups from grade 8 or 9.

Getting there & parking

Access via the main gate of the UFZ (Permoserstraße 15), then keep left and follow the signs; the memorial is the small white building 0.1 next to the brick main building.

Amenities & dining

• Café: not available
• Restaurant: not available

No food and drink available on site; a supermarket is nearby.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit