Ghettos Flashcards
How were the ghettos justified?
As a safety measure and part of the war effort
When did the Germans invade Poland and how many Jews came under their authority when they did?
September 1, 1939 and 2,000,000 Jews
When did the German assault on the Soviet Union begin and how many Jews did it bring under German authority?
June 1941 and 3,000,000 Jews
Which were the largest ghettos?
Warsaw and Łódź
Who was made Governor of the General Gouvernement?
Hands Frank
How were the ghettos murderous?
Conditions were not conducive to survival
What did Friedrich Uebelhoer say about the ghettos in December 1939?
That they were a provisional measure but that the Jewish problem needed to be lanced like a festering boil
What did Michael Bernbaum argue about the ghettos?
That the transitional function of the ghettos is clear in hindsight but it was not clear to the inhabitants
What did Christopher R. Browning argue about ghettoisation?
That it should not be seen as a prepatory step towards the final solution
What did Lawrence Langer talk about in relation to the ghettos?
The choiceless choice
What did Raul Hilberg argue the main function of the ghettos was?
To separate the Jews from the Aryan population
What did Philip Friedman argue the purpose of the ghettos was?
To impoverish Jews
How did Goebbels describe the ghettos?
As death caskets
Why did Nazi propaganda about Jews being diseased pick up after the start of the war?
Wartime meant that a healthy population was needed to fight and win the war
What were the Judenräte trying to do?
Continue functioning society within the ghettos
When was the decree ordering the establishment of the Judenräte issued?
November 28, 1939
What did Hannah Arendt suggest about the Judenräte?
That they contributed to the deaths of Jews by not resisting the orders they were given by the Nazis
What did Doris Bergen argue about the Judenräte?
That they were another example of the Nazi policy of divide and rule
From when did the members of the Judenräte receive pay?
From 1940
How many Polish Jews died in the ghettos?
500,000-600,000, about 1/5 of the total
What evidence is there that Jewish leaders wanted to believe there was life after the ghettos?
They educated the children and healed the sick
When was the Nisko plan developed?
September 1939
Why was the Nisko plan abandoned?
Because Frank did not want any more Jews being sent to the General Gouvernement
When was the Madagascar Plan suggested?
June 1940
What did the Madagascar Plan suggest?
That 1,000,000 Jews per year would be deported to the island and controlled in an SS police state
When and why was the Madagascar Plan scrapped?
In 1942 when the decision was made to exterminate the Jews
Who started the archive in the Warsaw ghetto?
Emmanuel Ringelblum
When was the Warsaw ghetto formed?
October 1940
How many people lived in the Warsaw ghetto?
500,000
How many Jews died of starvation in the Warsaw ghetto between January and June 1940?
10,000
How many people did each room and house in the Warsaw ghetto contain?
On average there were 13 people to a room, 393 people per house
How many calories a day did the Jews in the Warsaw ghetto receive?
300
How many flats in the Warsaw ghetto were unheated in the Winter of 1941-1942?
718 out of 780 flats were unheated
How many people were there per square kilometre in the Warsaw ghetto?
110,880 people per square kilometre
How many Jews had been deported from the Warsaw ghetto by July 1942?
300,000 of 400,000 Jews had been deported
Who was the leader of the Warsaw ghetto and what did he do?
The leader was Adam Czerniaków and be committed suicide
Who was the head of the police force in the Warsaw ghetto?
Jozef Szerynski
When was the Łódź ghetto established?
April 1940
How many Jews were living in the Łódź ghetto in April 1940?
155,000
Why did the Łódź ghetto last so much longer than others?
Because it was productive
Who was the leader of the Łódź Judenrat?
Chaim Rumkowski
What did Rumkowski say about the people he chose for deportation?
That he would only choose those who deserved it
When was the Łódź ghetto liquidated?
In August 1944, when the remaining 60,000 Jews were deported to Auschwitz
How many people on average occupied each room in the Łódź ghetto?
7
Who did the Jews in the Bialystok ghetto turn to for help?
The Red Army
Who did the Jews of the Chełmno ghetto turn to for help?
They believed God was the only one who could save them
Why was the hunger not so desperate in the Vilna ghetto as elsewhere?
Because the population of 60,000 was cut down to 12,000 in 6 months
Who was the leader of the Vilna ghetto and how did he try to save the Jews?
Jacob Gens was the leader and believed productivity was the best method to ensure survival
When was the Vilna ghetto liquidated?
1943
When were most of the Jews of the Lublin ghetto murdered?
1942
How many work camps were there in Lublin?
50
When did Heydrich issue the order to begin ghettoisation?
September 21, 1939
What is the broad goal of Heydrich’s instructions to begin ghettoisation?
To remove the Jews from Europe, but extermination is not yet the fixed goal
Where did Heydrich order that Jewish populations should be concentrated?
Near train lines, showing ghettoisation was not the ‘Final Solution’ envisaged even in 1939
When was compulsory labour for Jews ordered?
It was ordered by Governor Frank on October 26, 1939
When was the death penalty put in place for all Jews who tried to leave the ghettos and their helpers?
October 15, 1941
