Uniform and Shoes

Upon arrival at the concentration camps, Jews and other prisoners usually had their clothing taken away. Confiscated clothing and personal items were sold, or shipped back for use by German civilians.

 

When surrendering their clothes, prisoners further lost their connection to their previous lives as free citizens. Dressed in striped prison uniforms, any prisoners who tried to escape would be easily identified.  

 

Men were given a striped jacket, trousers, and a cap. Women were given a striped jacket, dress or skirt, and a kerchief. Prisoners would trade clothes among themselves to try to get clothes that fit.  Prisoners were given plain wooden clogs or leather and wooden clogs. Unpadded and ill-fitting footwear caused blisters and cuts, which left untended, created sores and infections.

 

Different colored triangle patches, worn on the uniforms, indicated the type of prisoner. The uniforms of criminals were marked with a green triangle, political prisoners with a red triangle, homosexuals with a pink triangle. Jehovah’s Witnesses wore a purple triangle and Roma wore a black or brown triangle. Jews wore a yellow Jewish star.