Transcript Night/Holocaust Timeline

Night/Holocaust
Timeline
Honors English 9
“Why are we studying the
Holocaust…again?”
• The Holocaust provides one of the most
effective subjects for examining basic moral
issues.
• It also addresses one of the central mandates
of education in the United States, which is to
examine what it means to be a responsible
citizen.
“Why are we studying the
Holocaust…again?”
• By studying these topics, students will (hopefully) come to
realize that:
• Democratic institutions and values are not automatically
sustained, but need to be appreciated, nurtured, and
protected.
• Silence and indifference to the suffering of others, or to the
infringement of civil rights in any society, can—however
unintentionally—perpetuate these problems.
• The Holocaust was not an accident in history; it occurred
because individuals, organizations, and governments made
choices that not only legalized discrimination but also allowed
prejudice, hatred, and ultimately mass murder to occur.
• The Holocaust was a watershed event, not only in the 20th
century but also in the entire course of human history.
“Why are we studying the
Holocaust…again?”
• Studying the Holocaust also helps students to:
• Understand the roots and ramifications of prejudice, racism,
and stereotyping in any society.
• Develop an awareness of the value of pluralism and an
acceptance of diversity.
• Explore the dangers of remaining silent, apathetic, and
indifferent to the oppression of others.
• Think about the use and abuse of power as well as the roles
and responsibilities of individuals, organizations, and nations
when confronted with civil rights violations and/or policies of
genocide.
• Understand how a modern nation can utilize its technological
expertise and bureaucratic infrastructure to implement
destructive policies ranging from social engineering to
genocide.
1928
• On September 30, Elie Wiesel is born in Sighet
(See-get), Transylvania, which is now a part of
Romania
Part of the Jewish population of Sighet in front of a wooden synagogue.
1933
• Adolf Hitler is appointed Chancellor of
Germany and the Nazi party takes control of
Germany’s government. The first permanent
concentration camp, Dachau (dah-kou), is
established.
1935
• Nuremberg Race Laws against Jews are
decreed, depriving Jews of German
citizenship.
The Nuremberg laws defined a
Jew as anyone who has three or
four Jewish grandparents – even
if that person had converted to
another religion.
1936
• The SS renames its
units deployed at
concentration camps
as the “Death’s Head
Units,” later known as
the “Death’s Head
Battalions.”
• Heinrich Himmler is
appointed chief of the
German Police.
1938
• Kristallnacht [kRees-tahl-nahKHt] known as the
night of broken glass: a government organized
massacre against Jews in Germany, Austria,
and parts of Czechoslovakia results in
widespread destruction of synagogues,
businesses, and homes and the loss of at least
91 lives.
1939
• Germany invades Poland in September,
starting WWII in Europe.
• Great Britain, France, and British Dominions
declare war on Germany.
• In November, the first ghetto is established in
Poland.
• Jews in occupied parts of Poland are forced to
wear armbands bearing the Star of David for
identification.
1940
• Germans conquer Denmark, Norway, France, Belgium,
Luxembourg, and the Netherlands
• Auschwitz concentration camp is established.
• Italy declares war on Britain and France.
• Romania is compelled to cede northern Transylvania,
including Sighet, to Hungary.
• Elie Wiesel and his family become residents of Hungary.
The sign, “Arbeit macht frei,” at the
entrance of the camp translates to “Work
makes you free.”
1941
• July 31: Nazi Security Police chief
Reinhard Heydrich is given
authorization to plan and coordinate
a “total” and “final” solution of the
“Jewish Question.”
• Construction of Auschwitz-Birkenau
(Auschwitz II) begins
• U.S. enters WWII on Dec. 8, a day
after Japan attacks U.S. naval base
at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
• On Dec. 8, the first of the killing
centers in Poland begins
• 12-year-old Elie Wiesel begins
studying the Kabbalah.
1.2
MILES
1942
• A conference in Berlin ensures the full
cooperation of all state, Nazi party, and SS
agencies in implementing the “Final Solution”
– a plan to murder the European Jews.
1943
• Jews in the Warsaw ghetto rise up against
their oppressors. By the end of the year, the
Germans and their Axis partners have killed
more than four million European Jews.
1944
• Elie Wiesel is fifteen years old when he and
his family are deported in May from Sighet to
Auschwitz. He was deported with his
mother, father, and three sisters.
1944
• Germany occupies Hungary in March
• On June 6, D-Day, Anglo-American forces
establish the first Allied beachhead in western
Europe on the Normandy coast.
• On June 22, Soviet forces begin a massive
offensive and advance to the outskirts of Warsaw
in six weeks.
• Heinrich Himmler orders a halt to the “Final
Solution” in Nov. 1944 and orders the destruction
of the gas chambers at Auschwitz-Birkenau.
1945
• Soviet troops liberate
Auschwitz on January 27.
• Wiesel had already been
transferred to Buchenwald
concentration camp
(pictured).
• U.S. troops liberate
Buchenwald (where Wiesel
was) on April 11.
• Germany surrenders on
May 7.
1945
• WWII in Europe ends on
May 8.
• On September 2, Pacific
War ends with the
surrender of Japan after
U.S. drops atomic bombs
(Hiroshima and
Nagasaki) in August.
• On Nov. 20, the
Nuremberg trials begin
in order to try 22 of the
top Nazi leaders (Hitler
and Himmler had
committed suicide in
May).
1946
• Eighteen of the 21
defendants are
convicted by the
International Military
Tribunal. Twelve are
sentenced to death.
• In the following years
(1947-49), thousands
more Nazi
perpetrators are
tried.
1948
• The State of Israel
is created. It is
established in
accordance with
the United Nations
Partition Plan that
proposed the
partition of
Palestine into two
states: an Arab
state and a Jewish
state.