The purple triangle was a
concentration camp badge used by the
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
to identify
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...
in Nazi Germany. The purple triangle was introduced in July 1936 with other concentration camps such as those of
Dachau and
Buchenwald
Buchenwald (; literally 'beech forest') was a Nazi concentration camp established on hill near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within Germany's 1937 borders. Many actual or su ...
following in 1937 and 1938. In the winter of 1935–36, before the onset of the war, Jehovah’s Witnesses have been reported to make up 20–40% of the prisoners in concentration camps. Although Jehovah's Witnesses made up the vast majority of those wearing the purple triangle (over 99%), a few members of other small pacifist religious groups were also included.
Background
Jehovah's Witnesses came into conflict with the Nazi regime because they refused to use the
Hitler salute
The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute (german: link=no, Hitlergruß, , Hitler greeting, ; also called by the Nazi Party , 'German greeting', ), or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. T ...
, which conflicted with their beliefs. Because refusing to use the Hitler salute was considered a crime, they were arrested, and their children attending school were expelled, detained and separated from their families. When Germany made military enlistment mandatory, they were persecuted because they refused to bear arms. Being politically neutral, they also refused to vote in the elections.
[King, Christine. "Leadership Lessons from History: Jehovah's Witnesses." The International Journal of Leadership in Public Services 7, no. 2 (2011): 178–185. .]
Based on
Nuremberg Laws
The Nuremberg Laws (german: link=no, Nürnberger Gesetze, ) were antisemitic and racist laws that were enacted in Nazi Germany on 15 September 1935, at a special meeting of the Reichstag convened during the annual Nuremberg Rally of th ...
, those who were also classified as ethnic Jews wore a badge comprising a purple triangle superimposed on a yellow triangle.
See also
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Identification in Nazi camps
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Nazi concentration camp badge
Nazi concentration camp badges, primarily triangles, were part of the system of identification in German camps. They were used in the concentration camps in the German-occupied countries to identify the reason the prisoners had been placed ther ...
s
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Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Nazi Germany
Jehovah's Witnesses suffered religious persecution in Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945 after refusing to perform military service, join Nazi organizations, or give allegiance to the Hitler regime. An estimated 10,000 Witnesses—half of the num ...
*
Religion in Nazi Germany
A census in May 1939, six years into the Nazi era and after the annexation of mostly Catholic Austria and mostly Catholic Czechoslovakia into Germany, indicates that 54% of the population considered itself Protestant, 41% considered itself Ca ...
References
External links
Jehovah's Witnesses Stand Firm Against Nazi AssaultUS Holocaust Memorial Museum summary
* ttps://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09637490600624691 "Jehovah's Witnesses in National Socialist concentration camps, 1933–45 by Johannes S. Wrobel, Religion, State and Society vol. 34, no. 2 (June 2006), 89–125
Purple Triangles: A Story of Spiritual Resistance
by Jolene Chu, originally published in '' Judaism Today'', No. 12, Spring 1999
Purple Triangle: An Untold Story of the HolocaustThey Triumphed Over Persecution
''The Watchtower
''The Watchtower Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom'' is an illustrated religious magazine, published by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. Jehovah's Witnesses distribute ''The Watchtower—Public Edition'', along with its compa ...
'' March 1, 2003
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Purple Triangle
Terminology of Nazi concentration camps
Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses
Symbols introduced in 1938
Triangles