Nis Concentration Camp

The concentration camp located in the district of Crveni Krst (Red Cross) is one of the few fully preserved fascist camps in Europe. Even today, it provides authentic testimony to the perils of the Serbian, Romani, and Jewish population, communists, numerous supporters of the liberation movement and partisans, who were incarcerated here during the German occupation of Serbia (1941-1945).

The camp complex occupies the surface area of 7 hectares and is surrounded by high barbed wire. It contains two central camp buildings, two supplementary one-storey buildings, two towers, two observation posts, two guard boxes, and a drinking fountain. The central camp building consisted of premises in which inmates lived, premises to house guards, hearing premises, a dispensary, a barber's room, and ten rooms for solitary confinement, with concrete floors, no windows, and a small slit on the top for light and ventilation. One of those rooms had no ventilation whatsoever.

The building was originally constructed in 1930 to be used as a part of the military barracks in the Red Cross, but in the beginning of the war already, in 1941, it was secluded from the barracks by a barbed wire and turned into a camp. During World War Two, about 30,000 people passed through this camp, of whom over 10,000 were shot on nearby Bubanj hill.

Setting aside this camp from others is the fact that on 12 February 1942 there was a massive escape of prisoners here. Out of 147 inmates who attempted to flee, 105 managed to escape, while 82 died along the way. After this successful escape, and another in December 1942, the camp became a real venue of death.

On 12 February 1967, the twentyfive anniversary of the prisoner escape, the camp was turned into the  “12 February” memorial museum.

Address: Bulevar 12. februar

Tel: +381 18 588 889

Ticket price:

• Children: 100,00 rsd - visit to one museum
• 120.00 dinara - visits to 2 or 3 museums
• Adults: 120,00 rsd - visit to one museum
• 150.00 dinara - visits to 2 or 3 museums