Today, the Spanish King Felipe and Queen Letizia joined the world royals in Poland to attend the ceremony commemorating the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp in Brzezinka.
Wikipedia
The camp was created in 1940 near Oswiecim, in occupied Poland. Initially, it’s mission was the imprisonment of the Polish detained during the mass raids, but ended up becoming the largest extermination centre for European Jews once deportations began in 1942.
About 1.4 million people who were deported to Auschwitz, about 1.1 million, of which about one million were Jews, are believed to have died there, according to data from the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum.
A video of the couple touring the Museum.
Some 900,000 Jews were killed in the gas chambers immediately after arriving at the camp and their bodies burned in the crematorium. In addition, about half of the 400,000 prisoners registered in the camp perished in it. Separated by ethnic groups, the figure included about 100,000 Jews, 70,000 Polish, more than 20,000 Gypsies and about 14,000 Soviet prisoners of war.
The field was composed of two parts. The so-called Auschwitz I camp, where there were about 15,000 prisoners, and the Birkenau camp, located about three kilometres from Oswiecim, where most of the victims were killed. Birkenau had more than 90,000 prisoners in 1944.
Several days before their release, the Germans forced almost 60,000 exhausted prisoners to march west to move them to other concentration camps. It is estimated that between 9,000 and 15,000 of them perished in that march of death. When the Soviet Red Army released the camp on January 27, 1945, only 7,000 prisoners were found.
Visita de los Reyes al Campo de concentración y exterminio de Auschwitz, antes de asistir a la ceremonia de conmemoración del 75º aniversario de la liberación de Auschwitz-Birkenau. #Auschwitz75 @MAECgob @EmbEspPolonia @AuschwitzMuseum https://t.co/9Jlrtb5DMr pic.twitter.com/25PsoKZHLQ
— Casa de S.M. el Rey (@CasaReal) January 27, 2020
During the visit, Felipe and Letizia were given a brief tour of the camp and were told the stories of horror behind the camp.
The Royal couple laid a wreath at the ‘Wall of the Death’ before joining the other Royals, Government Heads and dignitaries for the commemoration event.
A video of the tribute.
At the end of Ecumenical Prayers at the conclusion of the service, King Felipe and Queen Letizia joined survivors by the railway lines that had been constructed over the Nazi concentration camp’s main gate and was used to brought the prisoners to the camp.
They listened to a series of moving speeches, and then entered the camp to leave memorial candles to honour the millions of people who lost their lives there.
For the day, Queen Letizia opted for her black Carolina Herrera double-breasted coat.
Queen Letizia teamed up the look with a black custom made a headband from Nana Golmar that was based on brand’s this gold wedding headband. Thanks to letizia_de_princesa_a_reina on Instagram for the id.
and wore her BOSS Hugo Boss ‘Staple Bootie 100’ black leather ankle boots that she has in her wardrobe for a long time.
Letizia finished her look with simple gold stud earrings.
Queen was carrying Nina Ricci Marche Chaine Shoulder Bag.
The €1090 bag is a new addition to her wardrobe. The bag was described as, “Marché Chaine’ shoulder bag is perfect for day or night. Crafted from smooth black leather, this sleek design has suede side panels and is accented with gold hardware. The spacious suede interior has plenty of space for all your essentials. Opt to double the chain strap for a shorter drop.”
