Transcript Rescue and Resistance

Rescue and Resistance
Rescue in Denmark
 Denmark was the only occupied country that actively resisted
the Nazi regime's attempts to deport its Jewish citizens.
 On September 28, 1943, Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz, a
German diplomat, secretly informed the Danish resistance
that the Nazis were planning to deport the Danish Jews.
 The Danes responded quickly, organizing a nationwide effort
to smuggle the Jews by sea to neutral Sweden.
 With the help of the Danish people, they found hiding places
in homes, hospitals, and churches.
Jewish Partisans
 Jews that managed to escape formed fighting units.
 They hid in forests to kill German soldiers. The most known
is near Lithuanian capital of Vilna.
 Being a Partisan was difficult because you had to rob food
and spend winter freezing, some were lucky and got help
from local villagers.
 They also lived in danger because someone could reveal
their identity to the Germans.
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
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Many Jews in ghettos across eastern Europe tried to
organize resistance against the Germans and to arm
themselves with smuggled and homemade weapons.
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German soldiers capture Jews
hiding in a bunker during the
Warsaw ghetto uprising. Warsaw,
Poland, April-May 1943.
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In the summer of 1942, about 300,000 Jews were
deported from Warsaw to Treblinka. When reports
of mass murder in the killing center leaked back to
the Warsaw ghetto, a surviving group of mostly
young people formed an organization.
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The ghetto fighters were able to hold out for nearly a
month but eventually, it ended.
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Juergen Stroop (third from left),
SS commander who crushed the
Warsaw ghetto uprising. Warsaw,
Poland, between April 19 and May
16, 1943.
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Fighters used a small supply of weapons that had
been smuggled into the ghetto. After a few days, the
troops retreated. This small victory inspired the
ghetto fighters to prepare for future resistance.
Of the more than 56,000 Jews captured, about
7,000 were shot, and the remainder were deported
to camps.
The fighting organization is unified, strategies
are planned, underground bunkers and tunnels
are built, and roof-top passages are
constructed. The Jews of the Warsaw ghetto
prepare to fight to the end.
Killing Center Revolts
 Even though Jews knew they would lose against Germans,
they still chose to die fighting.
 In 1943 when the Jews in Treblinka were gassed, other
Jewish prisoners knew they were about to die, yet they still
revolted.
 After they revolted they tried to escape only 300 of them
actually escaped.
 The same thing happened in another camp.
The War Refugee Board
 Worked with Jewish organizations, diplomats from neutral
countries, and resistance groups in Europe to rescue Jews from
occupied territories. The Rescue was led by Raoul Wallenberg, a
Swedish diplomat.
 Wallenberg helped protect 10,000 of Hungarian Jews from being
deported to Auschwitz by distributing protective Swedish
passports.
 Because Sweden was a neutral country, Germany
could not easily harm Swedish citizens.
Wallenberg also set up hospitals, nurseries,
and soup kitchens for the Jews of Budapest.
Resistance in German Occupied Areas
 Many Jews in Europe attempted armed resistance against the
Germans.
 Jewish units operated mostly in France and Belgium.
 Engaged in both planned and spontaneous oppositions in the
dense forest and ghettos.
 About 20,000 to 30,000 Jews fought in the dense forests of
Eastern Europe.
Ms. Mayfield
English II
23 January 2014
Works Cited
Rescue in Denmark
 Website Title: United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum
 Article Title: Rescue in Denmark
 Publisher: United States Holocaust Memorial Council
 Date Accessed: January 22, 2014
Jewish Partisans
 Website Title: United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum
 Article Title: Jewish Partisans
 Publisher: United States Holocaust Memorial Council
 Date Accessed: January 21, 2014
The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
 Website Title: United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum
 Article Title: The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
 Publisher: United States Holocaust Memorial Council
 Date Accessed: January 22, 2014
Resources
Killing Center Revolts
• Website Title: United States Holocaust
Memorial Museum
• Article Title: Killing Center Revolts
• Publisher: United States Holocaust Memorial
Council
• Date Accessed: January 21, 2014
The War Refugee Board
• Website Title: United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum
• Article Title: The War Refugee Board
• Publisher: United States Holocaust Memorial
Council
• Date Accessed: January 22, 2014
Resistance Inside Germany
• Website Title: United States Holocaust
Memorial Museum
• Article Title: Resistance inside Germany
• Publisher: United States Holocaust Memorial
Council
• Date Accessed: January 20, 2014