Gulag: A History

Chapter 19 captures the impact of World War II on the Soviet Union’s prison camp system and its inmates, offering a look at the harsh realities faced by prisoners during this period. The chapter begins by differentiating the perception of the war’s onset between the collective Western memory and the Russian historical consciousness, emphasizing the dramatic shift in the lives of Soviet citizens and, more specifically, the Gulag prisoners following Hitler’s Operation Barbarossa. Applebaum describes the initial reactions within the camps, the heightened repression of political prisoners deemed potential fifth columns, and the immediate measures taken by camp authorities to curb communication, further isolate prisoners, and enforce stricter controls, painting a picture of an already brutal system made more desperate and repressive in the face of war.

Applebaum explores how, as the war progressed, conditions in the Gulag became harsher, with increased work demands, treason charges for refusal to work, and a devastating rise in prisoner mortality rates. Desperation and hopelessness pervaded the camps, exacerbated by the indefinite extension of sentences for political prisoners and the separation of families. Many prisoners were executed or died of illness due to the harsh conditions. The juxtaposition of these stories against the backdrop of a broader Soviet society also suffering under the war emphasizes the Gulag’s role in the wider