Kindertransport
The Kinder transport
Jewish Life before WWII
Even before Hitler came into power in Eastern Europe Jewish people were still treated as a separate community, they spoke their own language and lived in predominantly Jewish towns or villages, called shtetls.
They read Yiddish books, and attended Yiddish theater and movies. Although many younger Jews in larger towns were beginning to adopt modern ways and dress, older people often dressed traditionally, the men wearing hats or caps, and the women modestly covering their hair with wigs or kerchiefs.
In comparison, the Jews in western Europe -- Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Belgium -- made up much less of the population and tended to adopt the culture of their non-Jewish neighbors.
They dressed and talked like everyone else, and traditional religious practices and Yiddish culture played a less important part in their lives. They tended to have better education than eastern European Jews and to live in towns or cities.
Jews could be found in all walks of life, as farmers, tailors, seamstresses, factory hands, accountants, doctors, teachers, and small-business owners. Some families were wealthy; many more were poor.
Jewish Life during the WWII
As early as 1933, the Nazis had been sending people to concentration camps. Initially, these camps were located in Germany (like Dachau and Bergen-Belsen) and were used for "undesirable" people. To the Nazis, these undesirable people included Communists, Democrats, Socialists, political prisoners, homosexuals, and Jews.
As the Nazi control spread through Europe, the deportation of Jews to concentration camps and death camps grew. Between 1939 and 1941, Austria, Hungary, and even France (led by the Vichy government) deported Jews.
The ghettos of Poland were another Nazi creation. To get the Lebensraum he wanted from Poland, Hitler needed to clear the Jews from the Polish countryside. To do this, the Nazis forced the Jewish population to sections
Jewish Life before WWII
Even before Hitler came into power in Eastern Europe Jewish people were still treated as a separate community, they spoke their own language and lived in predominantly Jewish towns or villages, called shtetls.
They read Yiddish books, and attended Yiddish theater and movies. Although many younger Jews in larger towns were beginning to adopt modern ways and dress, older people often dressed traditionally, the men wearing hats or caps, and the women modestly covering their hair with wigs or kerchiefs.
In comparison, the Jews in western Europe -- Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Belgium -- made up much less of the population and tended to adopt the culture of their non-Jewish neighbors.
They dressed and talked like everyone else, and traditional religious practices and Yiddish culture played a less important part in their lives. They tended to have better education than eastern European Jews and to live in towns or cities.
Jews could be found in all walks of life, as farmers, tailors, seamstresses, factory hands, accountants, doctors, teachers, and small-business owners. Some families were wealthy; many more were poor.
Jewish Life during the WWII
As early as 1933, the Nazis had been sending people to concentration camps. Initially, these camps were located in Germany (like Dachau and Bergen-Belsen) and were used for "undesirable" people. To the Nazis, these undesirable people included Communists, Democrats, Socialists, political prisoners, homosexuals, and Jews.
As the Nazi control spread through Europe, the deportation of Jews to concentration camps and death camps grew. Between 1939 and 1941, Austria, Hungary, and even France (led by the Vichy government) deported Jews.
The ghettos of Poland were another Nazi creation. To get the Lebensraum he wanted from Poland, Hitler needed to clear the Jews from the Polish countryside. To do this, the Nazis forced the Jewish population to sections