British Diplomat in Munich Reports on Conditions in Dachau
(January 5, 1939)
On January 5, 1939, the British Consul-General in Munich, John Carvell, reported to Viscount Halifax about conditions in Dachau. He noted that information leaked out despite warnings to prisoners who were released not to speak about their treatment. Carvell said the account he provided was “based on isolated scraps of information, and so, while there is no reason to doubt that the incidents escribed actually happened, the account should not be read to mean that the treatment meted out was throughout so bad as it would appear. Some of those released have said that their treatment was ‘not so bad,’ and that the camp was efficiently managed. It is probable that the treatment of prisoners varied considerably with the character of individual guards.”