Camp II for "strict detention"

In addition to the main camp, a second camp (Camp II) was set up for prisoners that were placed in “strict detention". It was located in an empty timber mill which no longer exists, in close vicinity of the concentration camp. Occasionally, such prisoners were also placed in the prison of the district court in Osthofen.

The final decision on the imposition of this punishment rested with Dr. Werner Best, State Commissioner for the police in Hesse. Usually, he imposed it against prisoners who had been arrested multiple times or had been active in fighting the Nazis.

Conditions in “strict detention" were much harsher than in the main camp. Some prisoners were locked in a kennel where they had to sleep without straw mattresses and blankets on diagonally mounted wooden planks. In addition the lights were never turned off, so that it was impossible to sleep normally. The food consisted of watery soup and occasional small rations of bread.