How a Nazi and anti-Semite during WWII helped save Jews in Denmark

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

While Jews were purposefully exterminated throughout Europe during the Holocaust, Denmark has passed this sorrowful cup. Or rather, it was the only country occupied during the Second World War, where they actively resisted the deportation and extermination of the Jewish population. And it was very successful, although it was very difficult to do it.

Fascist Germany occupied Denmark on April 9, 1940. It only took one day. Unlike most other conquered territories, Nazi Germany granted Denmark limited autonomy, and the Danish monarchy and government were not touched. In turn, Denmark was supposed to supply Germany with food and other goods. One of the points of the mutual agreement was that the Germans would not touch the 8,000 Jews who lived in Denmark.

Most of the local Jewish population continued to live as before. Most of them were Danish citizens, while the rest were refugees from other parts of Europe. They never had to wear the distinctive yellow stars. They were not taken to ghettos and concentration camps like Jews in most of Europe. It can be said that Jews in Denmark were under the protection of the government.

By 1943, the war against Germany was in full swing, and the Danes were tired of the Nazi military presence in the country. Resistance movements began to emerge, and cases of sabotage of military targets and labor unrest increased. At the end of August, martial law was introduced in the country. In protest, the Danish government resigned and the country lost its limited autonomy.

Within days, a request was made to Berlin to take action against Danish Jews. Hitler quickly approved the deportation of all Jews from Denmark. The deportation was scheduled for October 1, 1943.

During this time, Georg Ferdinand Dukwitz, a Nazi naval officer, was serving as the military attaché of the German embassy in Denmark. For reasons not entirely clear, when Dukwitz found out about the impending deportation, he reported it to the Danish Social Democrats, who then warned Jewish leaders, including the Chief Rabbi of Denmark, Markus Melchior. Melchior called on members of the Jewish community to go into hiding immediately.

Danish resistance groups, as well as ordinary citizens, helped to hide most of the Jews, who were mainly concentrated in the capital of the country, Copenhagen. People were hid in homes, churches, hospitals and schools for several days.

Then they were secretly taken to the coast, where they began to ferry them on fishing boats and other ships along the canal to neutral Sweden. The boatmen were well paid for this, because if they were caught smuggling Jews into a safe zone, they would most likely be shot. Although these flights were quite fast, they were very dangerous and therefore only took place at night.

When the deportations began, some Jews who had not yet been transferred to Sweden were nevertheless found in their hiding places. In total, less than 500 people were found and sent to the Theresienstadt ghetto. As protests from Denmark over interference in the country's internal life (despite the loss of autonomy) continued, Jews were never taken to concentration camps in Eastern Europe.

But as in small Denmark so many people were saved, while in the rest of Europe they were exterminated. There are various reasons. It is believed that the opposition of the Danish population against the German persecution of the Jews played a decisive role. The opposition of King Christian H. of Denmark was also effective. The Monarch and his government repeatedly defended the Jews of Denmark and insisted that they not be harmed.

Germany considered Denmark an exemplary protectorate during the war. The Nazi leadership wanted to show that it could maintain peaceful relations with the conquered territory. Therefore, the Germans "turned a blind eye" to the small Jewish population of the country, so as not to spoil relations with Denmark. Many other European countries under Nazi rule were indifferent to the deportation of Jews, and some even helped in it. But strong Danish opposition to this persecution of Jews has proven effective.

Dukvits's help made many people wonder why he did something like that. According to the surviving records, Dukwitz was a patriotic member of the Nazi party and a notorious anti-Semite. Perhaps one of the reasons for his action was that Dukwitz liked living in Denmark, and he realized that Germany was likely to lose the war. Perhaps it was a calculated step in order to ultimately win and gain the support of the local population.

Whatever the reason, the salvation of Jews in Denmark during World War II was of paramount importance. It showed that persistence and determination can save many lives.

Today a photographer colorizes photographs of the crimes of the Holocaust to remind young people that Nazism is scary.