The rescue of the Danish Jews occurred during Denmark's occupation by Nazi Germany during World War II. When German authorities in Denmark ordered that Danish Jews be arrested and deported to Germany in October 1943, many Danes and Swedes took part in a collective effort to evacuate the roughly 8,000 Jews of Denmark by sea to nearby Sweden. The rescue allowed the vast majority of Denmark's Jewish population to avoid capture by the Nazis and is considered to be one of the largest actions of collective resistance to repression in the countries occupied by Nazi Germany. As a result of the rescue, most of Denmark's Jewish population survived the Holocaust. Headquarters of the Schalburgkorps, a Danish SS unit, after 1943. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... The Jewish community of Denmark constitutes a small minority with a known history back to the 17th century. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... National Socialism redirects here. ... This article is becoming very long. ...

The "model protectorate"

Denmark, along with Norway, was invaded by German armed forces on April 9, 1940. Realizing that armed resistance would be futile and faced with the threat of aerial bombing of Copenhagen, the Danish government surrendered after a few skirmishes on the morning of the invasion. Operation Weserübung was the German codename for Nazi Germanys assault on Denmark and Norway during World War II and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign. ... April 9 is the 99th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (100th in leap years). ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... For other uses, see Copenhagen (disambiguation). ...

At the time of invasion, the German government stated that its armed occupation of Denmark was an "act of protection" and that Germany did not intend to disturb the political independence of Denmark.^[1] Because the Danish government promised "loyal cooperation" with the Germans, the occupation of Denmark was thus relatively mild at first. German propaganda even referred to Denmark as the "model protectorate".^[2] King Christian X retained his throne, and Denmark's Parliament, government, and the courts continued to function. Even censorship of radio and the press was administered by the Danish government, rather than by the occupying German civil and military authorities. Headquarters of the Schalburgkorps, a Danish SS unit, after 1943. ... Christian X of Denmark (Christian Carl Frederik Albert Alexander Vilhelm) (September 26, 1870 – April 20, 1947) was King of Denmark from 1912 to 1947 and of Iceland between 1918 and 1944. ...

During the early years of the occupation, Danish officials repeatedly insisted to the German occupation authorities that there was no "Jewish problem" in Denmark. The Germans recognized that discussion of the Jewish question in Denmark was a possibly explosive issue, which had the potential to destroy the "model" relationship between Denmark and Germany and, in turn, cause political and economic consequences for Germany. As a result, when officials in Berlin recommended instituting anti-Jewish measures in Denmark, even ideologically committed Nazis, such as Reich Commissioner Werner Best, followed a strategy of avoiding and deferring any discussion of Denmark's Jews. Berlin is the capital city and one of the sixteen states of the Federal Republic of Germany. ... Werner Best (1903-June 23, 1989), was a German Doctor in Law and Nazi official, serving during World War II. SS-Obergruppenführer (Lieutenant-General), department head in the SS-Gestapo within the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA) and deputy of Reinhard Heydrich from 1939 to 1940, Best was one...

In late 1941, upon the visit of Danish Foreign Minister Erik Scavenius to Berlin, German authorities there (including Hermann Göring) insisted that Denmark could not avoid its "Jewish problem". A Danish anti-Semitic newspaper used these statements as an opportunity for a slanderous attack on Denmark's Jews; shortly thereafter, arsonists attempted to start a fire at Copenhagen's synagogue. The Danish courts handed down stiff fines and jail time to the editors and would-be arsonist, and the Danish government took further administrative action. The Danish government's punishment of anti-Semitic crimes during occupation by Germany were interpreted by the German authorities in Denmark as signaling the Danish view toward any future measures taken against Denmark's Jews by the occupiers. For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... Erik Scavenius with German plenipotentiary of Denmark, Dr. Werner Best. ... Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also Goering in English) (January 12, 1893 – October 15, 1946) was a German politician and military leader, a leading member of the Nazi Party, second in command of the Third Reich, and commander of the Luftwaffe. ... The Skyline Parkway Motel in Afton, Virginia after an arson fire on July 9, 2004. ...

In mid-1943, Danes saw the German defeats in the Battle of Stalingrad and North Africa as an indication that having to live under German rule was no longer the long-term certainty it had been in 1940. At the same time, the Danish resistance movement was becoming more vocal in their underground press and with their increased sabotage activities. During the summer, several nationwide strikes led to armed confrontations between Danes and German troops. In the wake of increased resistance activities and riots, the German occupation authorities presented the Danish government with an ultimatum prescribing a ban on strikes, a curfew, and punishing sabotage with the death penalty. Deeming these terms unacceptable and a violation of Danish sovereignty, a state of emergency was declared, and the Danish government resigned on August 28. The result was direct administration of Denmark by German authority; the "model protectorate" had come to an end — and with it, the protection the Danish government had provided for the country's Jews. 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... Combatants Germany Italy Hungary Romania Slovakia Soviet Union Commanders Maximilian von Weichs Friedrich Paulus # Erich von Manstein Hermann Hoth Italo Garibaldi Gusztav Jany Petre Dumitrescu Constantin Constantinescu Vasiliy Chuikov Aleksandr Vasilyevskiy Georgiy Zhukov Semyon Timoshenko Konstantin Rokossovsky Rodion Malinovsky Strength German Sixth Army German Fourth Panzer Army Romanian Third Army...  Northern Africa (UN subregion)  geographic, including above North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, generally divided by the formidable barrier of the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa. ... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... The Danish Resistance Movement was an underground insurgency movement to resist the German occupation of Denmark during World War II. Due to the unusually lenient terms given to Denmark by the Nazi occupation authority, the movement was slower to develop effective tactics on a wide scale than in some other... German supply train blown up by the Armia Krajowa during World War II Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening an enemy, oppressor or employer through subversion, obstruction, disruption, and/or destruction. ... August 28 is the 240th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (241st in leap years), with 125 days remaining. ...

The deportation order and rescue

Without the recalcitrant Danish government to impede them, Denmark's German occupiers began planning the deportation of the 8,000 or so Jews in Denmark to Nazi concentration camps. On 28 September 1943, Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz, a German diplomat, after secretly making sure Sweden would receive Jewish refugees, leaked word of the plans for the operation against Denmark's Jews to Hans Hedtoft, chairman of the Danish Social Democratic Party, who in turn contacted the Danish Resistance Movement and the Jewish community, whose head was C.B. Henriques and whose acting chief rabbi was Dr. Marcus Melchior. At the Rosh Hashanah services on 29 September, Danish Jews were warned of the German action and advised to go into hiding. Prior to and during World War II Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps (Konzentrationslager or KZ) throughout the territory it controlled. ... September 28 is the 271st day of the year (272nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz (September 29, 1904, in Bremen - February 16, 1973) Context On the 9th of April, 1940, Denmark was invaded by German forces. ... Hans Hedtoft (21 April 1903 - 29 January 1955) was Prime Minister of Denmark from 13 November 1947 to 30 October 1950 as the leader of the Cabinet of Hans Hedtoft I and again from 30 September 1953 to 29 January 1955 as the leader of the Cabinet of Hans Hedtoft... The Social Democrats (Socialdemokraterne), is a Danish political party. ... Marcus Melchior (1897-1969) was acting chief rabbi of Denmark in 1943 at the time of the rescue of the Danish Jews. ... This article is about the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah. ... September 29 is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

The improvisational nature of the early phases of the rescue was particularly notable. When Danish civil servants at several levels in different ministries learnt of the German plan to round up all Danish Jews, they independently pursued various measures to find the Jews and hide them. Some simply phoned friends and asked them to go through telephone books and warn those with Jewish-sounding names to go into hiding. Most Jews hid for several days or weeks before being smuggled to Sweden, which offered asylum to Danish Jews who reached its shores. A civil servant or public servant is a civilian career public_sector employee working for a government department or agency. ...

The Jews were smuggled out of Denmark by transporting them by sea over the Øresund from Zealand to Sweden, a passage of approximately 10 miles. Some were transported in large fishing boats of up to 20 tons, but others were carried to freedom in rowboats or kayaks. Some refugees were smuggled inside freight cars on the regular ferries between Denmark and Sweden, this route being suited for the very young or old who were too weak to endure a rough sea passage. The underground had broken into empty freight cars sealed by the Germans after inspection, helped refugees onto the cars, and then resealed the cars with forged or stolen German seals to forestall further inspection. Northern Öresund Oresund (Öresund in Swedish or Øresund in Danish) or The Sound, is the strait that separates Zealand from Scania, and thereby Denmark from Sweden. ... Map showing location of Zealand within Denmark. ...

Some of the fishermen assisting in the rescue charged money to transport Jews to Sweden, while others took payments only from those who could afford passage. Some profiteers took advantage of the confusion and fear during the early days of the escape, but as time passed, the Danish underground movement ousted them and took an active role in organizing the rescue and providing financing, mostly from wealthy Danes who donated large sums of money for the rescue.

During the first days of the rescue action, Jews swarmed into the many fishing harbors on the Danish coast for rescue, but the Gestapo became suspicious of activity around harbors (and on the night of October 1-2, eighty Jews were caught hiding in the loft of the church at Gilleleje, their hiding place betrayed by a Danish girl in love with a German soldier). Subsequent rescues had to take place from isolated points along the coast. While waiting their turn, the Jews took refuge in the woods and in cottages away from the coast, out of sight of the Gestapo. The   (contraction of Geheime Staatspolizei; Secret State Police) was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. ... Fishing boats in Gilleleje harbor Gilleleje is the main city of the Græsted-Gilleleje municipality in Denmark. ...

Some of the refugees never made it to Sweden; some were captured by the Gestapo en route to their point of embarcation, some were lost at sea when vessels of poor seaworthiness capsized, and some were intercepted at sea by German patrol boats. However, the Danish harbor police and civil police generally cooperated with the rescue operations. During the early part of the rescue operation, the Gestapo was undermanned. The German army and navy were called in to reinforce the Gestapo in its effort to prevent the transports, but by and large proved to be uninterested in the operation.

Only around 450 Danish Jews (some 7% of Denmark's Jewish population) were captured by the Germans, and most of these were sent to the Theresienstadt concentration camp in occupied Czechoslovakia. After these Jews' deportation, the Danish government persuaded the Germans to accept packages of food and medicine for the prisoners; furthermore, Denmark persuaded the Germans not to deport the Danish Jews to the extermination camps. This was achieved by Danish political pressure, using the Danish Red Cross to frequently monitor the condition of the Danish Jews at Theresienstadt. Some 51 Danish Jews — mostly elderly — died of disease at Theresienstadt, but in April 1945, as the war drew to a close, the 400 or so surviving Danish Jews were turned over by the Germans to Count Folke Bernadotte of the Swedish Red Cross (see White Buses). The casualties among Danish Jews during the Holocaust were smaller than any other country in occupied Europe. Location of the concentration camp in the Czech Republic Gate Concentration camp Theresienstadt was a concentration camp set up by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city Terezín (German name Theresienstadt), located in what is now the Czech Republic. ... It has been suggested that Internment be merged into this article or section. ... Location of the concentration camp in the Czech Republic Gate Concentration camp Theresienstadt was a concentration camp set up by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city Terezín (German name Theresienstadt), located in what is now the Czech Republic. ... Count Folke Bernadotte af Wisborg (January 2, 1895 - September 17, 1948), is noted for his negotiation for the release of prisoners from the German concentration camps in World War II. He was the son of Oscar Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg (formerly Prince Oscar of Sweden) and his wife, née... Swedish Red Cross buses, possibly near their field headquarters Friedrichsruh White Buses was a humanitarian effort headed by the Swedish count Folke Bernadotte that by the end of the second world war saved thousands of Norwegian and Danish resistance fighters from German concentration camps. ...

The myth of the Danes and the yellow star

It has been popularly reported that the Nazis ordered Danish Jews to wear an identifying yellow star and that (in some versions of the legend) King Christian X opted to wear such a star himself and the Danish people followed his example, thus making it impossible for the Nazis to implement this order. Not only did the Danes not do this, Jews were never given the order to wear a yellow star in Denmark. This legend may have originated in a contemporary cartoon depicting the King asserting to his prime minister that, if the order to wear the star was imposed on Denmark's Jews, "We'll all have to wear yellow stars."^[3] The legend appeared in Leon Uris' novel Exodus and in its movie adaptation. It persists to the present, but it is unfounded. The Danes did much better by their Jewish neighbors than did other Europeans, and the story is highly appealing, but it didn't happen. In fact, the German occupation authorities never issued a decree requiring Jews to wear the star, as they had done in other countries, so it was never possible to identify Jews "by inspection" and round them up. Eventually, civilians ferried Danish Jews to Sweden; the Nazis only rounded up a few hundred, all but 51 of whom survived the Holocaust. Erik Scavenius with German plenipotentiary of Denmark, Dr. Werner Best. ... Leon Uris (August 3, 1924 - June 21, 2003) was an American novelist, known for his historical fiction and the deep research that went into his novels. ... Exodus is a novel written in 1958 by American novelist Leon Uris about the founding of the state of Israel, based on the name of the 1947 immigration ship Exodus. ... For other uses, see Jew (disambiguation). ...

Righteous among the nations

The Danish resistance movement as well as the German attache Duckwitz, for their aid to Danish Jews during World War II, have been honored at Yad Vashem in Israel as being part of the "Righteous Among the Nations."^[4][5] The Danish Resistance Movement was an underground insurgency movement to resist the German occupation of Denmark during World War II. Due to the unusually lenient terms given to Denmark by the Nazi occupation authority, the movement was slower to develop effective tactics on a wide scale than in some other... An exterior view of the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial museum in Jerusalem. ... Righteous Among the Nations (Hebrew: חסידי אומות העולם, Hasidei Umot HaOlam), in contemporary usage, is a term often used to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust in order to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis. ...

In Popular Culture

Fred Small's album "I Will Stand Fast" contains the song Denmark 1943

The Newbery Medal-winning book Number the Stars is a fictional account of the rescue of a Danish Jewish family. Number the Stars is a novel about the Holocaust of the second world war by Lois Lowry. ...

Peter S. Beagle mentions the myth of the Danes and the yellow star in his song Ballad of King Christian X. Leon Uris also refers to it in his novel "Exodus", as did the film of the same name. Peter Soyer Beagle (born in 1939) is an American fantasist and author of novels, nonfiction, and screenplays. ... The rescue of the Danish Jews occurred during Denmarks occupation by Nazi Germany during World War II. When German authorities in Denmark ordered that Danish Jews be arrested and deported to Germany in October 1943, many Danes and Swedes took part in a collective effort to evacuate the roughly... Leon Uris (August 3, 1924 - June 21, 2003) was an American novelist, known for his historical fiction and the deep research that went into his novels. ... Exodus is a novel written in 1958 by American novelist Leon Uris about the founding of the state of Israel, based on the name of the 1947 immigration ship Exodus. ...

Elliot Arnold's popular novel "Night of Watching" describes the rescue, and many of the characters are the actual German officers who were thwarted, e.g. Werner Best and Adolf Eichmann. Werner Best (1903-June 23, 1989), was a German Doctor in Law and Nazi official, serving during World War II. SS-Obergruppenführer (Lieutenant-General), department head in the SS-Gestapo within the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA) and deputy of Reinhard Heydrich from 1939 to 1940, Best was one... Adolf Eichmann in Germany in 1940 Otto Adolf Eichmann (known as Adolf Eichmann; March 19, 1906 – May 31, 1962) was a high-ranking Nazi and SS Obersturmbannführer (Lieutenant Colonel). ...

Explanations

Different explanations have been advanced to explain the success of efforts to protect the Danish Jewish population in light of less success at similar operations elsewhere in Nazi-occupied Europe.

• The German Reich Commissioner of Denmark, Werner Best, knew about the rescue and looked the other way, as did the Wehrmacht (which was guarding the Danish coast), in order to preserve Germany's relationship with Denmark.^[6]

• Logistically, the operation was relatively easy. Denmark's Jewish population was small, both in relative and absolute terms, and most of Denmark's Jews lived in or near Copenhagen, only a short sea voyage from neutral Sweden. Although hazardous, the boat ride was relatively short and its covert nature was easier to conceal than a comparable land journey.

• Since the mid-nineteenth century, a particular brand of romantic nationalism had evolved in Denmark. The traits of this nationalism included emphasis on the importance of "smallness", close-knit communities, and traditions — this nationalism being largely a response to Denmark's failure to assert itself as a great power and its losses in the Gunboat War and the Second War of Schleswig. Some historians, such as Andrew Buckser, believe that the Danish form of non-aggressive nationalism, influenced by Danish philosopher Nicolai Grundtvig, encouraged the Danes to identify with the plight of the Jews, even though small-scale anti-Semitism had been present in Denmark long before the German invasion.

• Denmark's Jewish population had long been almost completely integrated into Danish society, and some members of the small Jewish community had risen to prominence, e.g. Nobel prize laureate Niels Bohr. Consequently, most Danes perceived the Nazis' action against Denmark's Jews as an affront to all Danes, and rallied to their countrymen's protection.

• The deportation of Jews in Denmark came one year after the deportations of Jews in Norway. That created an outrage in all of Scandinavia, alerted the Danish Jews and pushed the Swedish government to declare that it would receive all Jews that managed to escape the Nazis.^[7]

Werner Best (1903-June 23, 1989), was a German Doctor in Law and Nazi official, serving during World War II. SS-Obergruppenführer (Lieutenant-General), department head in the SS-Gestapo within the Reich Security Main Office (RSHA) and deputy of Reinhard Heydrich from 1939 to 1940, Best was one... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... One of the hallmarks of contemporary Great power status is permanent membership on the United Nations Security Council. ... Battle between the frigate HMS Tartar and Norwegian gunboats near Bergen in 1808 The Gunboat War (1807-1814) was the naval conflict between Denmark-Norway against the British navy during the Napoleonic Wars. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Nicolai Frederik Severin Grundtvig (September 8, 1783, Udby, Sjælland, Denmark, –September 2, 1872, Copenhagen) was a Danish teacher , writer, poet, philosopher, historian, priest, and even politician. ... The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ... The Nobel Prizes (Swedish: ) are awards in physics, chemistry, literature, peace, and physiology or medicine. ... Niels (Henrik David) Bohr (October 7, 1885 – November 18, 1962) was a Danish physicist who made fundamental contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum mechanics, for which he received the Nobel Prize in 1922. ...

Notes

1. ^ Goldberger, Leo (ed.) (1987). The Rescue of the Danish Jews: Moral Courage Under Stress. New York University Press. ISBN 0-8147-3010-8. 
2. ^ Shirer, William L. (1956). The Challenge of Scandinavia. London: Robert Hale. 
3. ^ http://www.snopes.com/history/govern/denmark.htm
4. ^ http://yad-vashem.org.il/righteous/index_righteous.html
5. ^ http://yad-vashem.org.il/visiting/temp_visiting/temp_index_boat.html
6. ^ http://www.jewmus.dk/mitzvah_1.asp?language=uk
7. ^ http://www.judiska-museet.a.se/grund/grund.htm

References

• Buckser, Andrew. "Rescue and Cultural Context During the Holocaust: Grundtvigian Nationalism and the Rescue of the Danish Jews." Shofar 19(2), 2001.
• Goldberger, Leo (ed.) (1987). The Rescue of the Danish Jews: Moral Courage Under Stress. New York University Press. ISBN 0-8147-3010-8. 
• Lampe, David (1957). The Danish Resistance. New York: Ballantine Books. 
• Lampe, David (?). The Savage Canary. ?: ?. 
• Pundik, Herbert (1998). In Denmark It Could Not Happen: The Flight of The Jews to Sweden in 1943. Hewlett, N.Y.: Gefen. 
• Stræde, Therkel (1993). October 1943: the rescue of the Danish Jews from annihilation, with H. Rovsing Olsen., Copenhagen: Royal Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Museum of Danish Resistance 1940-1945. 
• Werner, Emmy E. (2002). Conspiracy of decency: the Rescue of the Danish Jews during World War II. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press. 
• Yahil, Leni (1969). Rescue of Danish Jewry; test of a democracy, Morris Gradel (tr). 
• Herbert Pundik: Die Flucht der dänischen Juden 1943 nach Schweden. Husum 1995, ISBN 3-88042-734-8
• Ulrich Herbert: Best. Biographische Studien über Radikalismus, Weltanschauung und Vernunft 1903–1989. Habilitationsschrift. Dietz, Bonn 1996, ISBN 3-8012-5030-X

External links

• Rescuers during the Holocaust This bibliography includes a number of books about the Danish rescue of Jews during the Nazi occupation of Denmark.