Zyklon-B facts for kids

Zyklon-B was the trade name for a very dangerous chemical. It was first created to kill insects and other pests, like bugs that destroy crops. However, during The Holocaust, the Nazis used this chemical to kill millions of people, including Jewish people and prisoners they captured from other countries.

How It Was Invented

A chemist named Fritz Haber invented Zyklon-B. He was born in Poland and was Jewish, but he lived in Germany as an adult. Haber was a very smart scientist and even won the Nobel Prize. He won it for finding a way to make ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen.

Ammonia is a chemical used for many things. People used it to make fertilizer for plants, which helps crops grow better. It was also used to make explosives and even chemical weapons. Later, the Nazis took one of the pesticides made from Haber's work and used it in a terrible way to kill their prisoners.

How It Was Used by the Nazis

The Nazis used Zyklon-B in gas chambers at their concentration and extermination camps, like Auschwitz-Birkenau. They tricked prisoners into thinking they were going to take showers. Instead, the gas was released, killing everyone inside. This was a central part of the Nazis' plan to murder millions of people during the Holocaust.

Images for kids

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  A team working to kill pests in New Orleans, 1939. You can see Zyklon canisters.

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  Empty Zyklon B canisters found by the Allies at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1945.

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  Rudolf Höss at his trial in Poland, 1947. He was the commandant of Auschwitz.

See also

In Spanish: Zyklon B para niños