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

• Many Jews in ghettos across eastern Europe tried to organize resistance against the Germans and to arm themselves with smuggled and homemade weapons.

• 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.• 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.

• The ghetto fighters were able to hold out for nearly a month but eventually, it ended.

• 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.

• Juergen Stroop (third from left), SS commander who crushed the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Warsaw, Poland, between April 19 and May 16, 1943.

• German soldiers capture Jews hiding in a bunker during the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Warsaw, Poland, April-May 1943.

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. MayfieldEnglish II23 January 2014 Works Cited Resources

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

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, 2014The 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, 2014Resistance 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