Since last fall when I attended a one day conference
on the Holocaust presented by the Centre for Jewish Studies at the University
of Toronto, I have received emails from them almost daily announcing the vast
array of lectures, films, and discussions that they arrange on the university
campus, often in conjunction with other groups or faculties. Yesterday’s was
the first I have been able to attend since the fall and it was one of
particular interest to me.
This event was co-sponsored by the Centre for Jewish Studies, the Centre for
European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies at U of T, and, the Azrieli
Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Foundation. Its title was Hungary 1944:
The Fate of the Jews and the Roma. A brief film based on the Azrieli’s newly
published memoir by George Stern called Vanished Boyhood, was followed by a
panel presentation featuring: Laslo Borhi, a visiting professor whose work has
been focussed mainly on the political life of Hungary; Anna Porter, author of
Kasztner’s Train; Susan Papp, who does research related to survivors’ memoirs;
and, Tibor Lukacs, founder of the United Roma of Hamiliton. The panel was ably
chaired by the head of the Centre for Jewish Studies, whose name eludes me at
the moment. Each speaker had 15-20 minutes to present one small piece of the
huge mosaic implied by the event’s title. This year is the 70th
anniversary of the invasion of Hungary by German troops and the rapidly
organized deportation of hundreds of thousands of Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz
where the vast majority were immediately sent to the gas chambers and
annihilation.
I will focus here only on the remarks made by
Professor Borhi because he was able to outline some of the decisions made by
the Hungarian government that had fateful consequences for the Jewish citizens
who had been a part of that society for centuries. After WWI and the Paris
Conference the outlines of Europe were drawn in ways that accentuated the
independence of nation states which had formerly been part of large,
multi-national empires. Hungary had, for example, been an important part of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire. With its dissolution Hungary lost about a third of its
land and with it, a large number of its citizens. As in Germany there was
tremendous bitterness about these losses. The economically straightened
circumstances and ideological upheavals across the continent after the war and
during the 1930s, contributed to the country and its people turning inward.
Losing the previous balance needed in multi-cultural societies for tolerance
and peaceful co-existence, the populous veered more toward nationalism and a
consequent marginalization of those who were considered not to be “truly”
Hungarian. Anti-Semitism found fruitful soil in this climate, though never became the
ideologically driven anti-Semitism which in Germany led to the deliberate
enactment of the Holocaust.
When in 1938 the Munich agreement opened the
possibilities of reclaiming lands taken from countries in Eastern Europe, the
Hungarian government saw an advantage for itself. In 1939 Germany and
the Soviet Union moved to partition Poland. Hungary mobilized at the same time,
taking back some of its own lost territories, thus allying itself to Germany in
the eyes of the western powers. In fact Hungary remained neutral in the early
global war, only entering on the side of Germany when in 1941 Hitler ordered
the invasion of the USSR. During that part of the war Jewish men were called up
for labour service. Battalions were sent to various fronts to build roads,
bridges, or other needed facilities. The conditions under which they were
quartered and cared for were abysmal and about 40,000 of the 50,000 conscripted
died from disease, starvation and cold. Previous to this era Jewish men had fought
alongside other Hungarian soldiers, receiving identical treatment and being
rewarded with medals and promotions. The alliance with Germany and the
right-wing, anti-Semitic climate in Hungary militated against their equal
treatment, but did not degenerate into the establishment of ghettos or
concentration camps for the Jewish population.
By 1943 it was clear to many observers that Germany
could not win the war. Hungary and other countries began secret talks with the
Allies seeking separate peace treaties. An advantage for the Allies in establishing peace
with countries like Hungary and Romania was the possibility of mounting an assault
into Europe through places bordering on or close to the Black Sea. However, plans were already developing to
mount the second front in Normandy. A major concern for the Allies was finding
ways to keep the Axis forces away from the Atlantic coast when the attack would
be launched. Professor Borhi quoted from correspondence among the Allies
revealing that it would be to their advantage if Hitler knew of the secret
peace overtures. Germany could not afford to have that vulnerable area left
open to Allied incursions and would most likely invade the “betraying”
countries. The Allies knew for some time of the death camps in the
east and had been warned that should the Germans invade Hungary its population
of about three-quarters of a million Jews would be placed in extreme jeopardy.
Nonetheless, the “secret” talks were leaked or in some fashion discovered. On
March 19, 1944 German armies marched into Hungary, assuming political and military
control of the country.
With them came Adolph Eichmann and his 300 assistants
to put into effect a prearranged plan to collect and transport Jews to
Auschwitz. Within weeks tens of thousands of Jews were forced into camps; between
the middle of May and the end of June, 1944 over 300,000 had been sent to
Auschwitz. Most were gassed immediately upon arrival; only a few were taken
into forced labour groups. A further 150,000 were sent over the next few weeks.
As the Soviet armies drew closer to Hungary, international pressure placed on
the Hungarian government to stop the deportations had effect by mid-July. The
Germans, under pressure now from several directions, acquiesced.
In the discussion following the presentations
questions about the co-operation of Hungarians in the round-up and deportation
of Jews during this period of German domination were raised. Clearly some
members of the Hungarian military and police were complicit. Some panellists
and people in the audience had family members who had survived the attempts of
the Germans to kill them. These relatives told stories of Hungarians who
betrayed or abused them as well as other tales of Hungarians who protected and
hid them from the Germans. There are no easy demarcations that can be made
within any population in this respect.
The event was well attended; the room at the Jackman
building was full with a dozen or so people standing. Quite a few were
university people – teachers and students – but there were also others like
myself, drawn by their own reasons to attend, being interested in this profound
and disturbing period of our common human history. Being right here in the
heart of the Annex and close to the university, I can easily avail myself of
these opportunities.
I have published this post also on a blog which I recently started to chart my life and adventures in our new living situation in the "South Annex." The link is www.lettersfromtheannex.blogspot.com
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