Gathering The Voices Scotland

Testimonies of Holocaust survivors who settled in Scotland

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The Holocaust Timeline June 1941

The Holocaust Timeline

From 1941 to 1945

Go back to January 1940

June 1941

German Army invades Russia Mass murders of Jews begin in Soviet territories


When the Germans came in they made him head of the Judenrat and then of course he was supposed to choose the usual thing, 50 people to go and do some work, dig trenches basically intended for the graves of the people.

…..He apparently said to the officer “You want to do the dirty job do it yourself”. So the man took out a pistol and shot him. So my father was in fact the first man to be shot in our town by the Germans.

Extract from Moniek Garber

September 1941

Mass Extermination

The First mass extermination at Auschwitz takes place. 900 inmates killed by gas.

December 1941

United States Enters the War

Japanese navy attacks US base in Pearl Harbour; The United States enters the war

January 1942

The Wannsee Conference

The Final Solution to the Jewish question is decided. The Jews of German-occupied Europe are to be deported to Poland and exterminated.

March 1942

Deportation Starts

Train loads of Jews arrive at concentration camps from all over Nazi occupied Europe and Russia

Now, the train was roughly, it was a train for cattle to be transported.

It was from the last lot of cattle, there was an awful lot of dirt around and you had very little room. It was just about as much room as to sit down in, the family to sit together. And there were roughly 70-80 people. I remember this just, whether it was so or not I don’t know but somebody must have said it, per carriage.

Extract from Judith Rosenberg

February 1943

First Big defeat of Germany army

The German Army suffers its first big defeat, surrending to the Russian Army at Stalingrad,

May 1943

Judenfrei (free of Jews)

Nazis declare Berlin to be Judenfrei ( free of Jews)

August 1943

Treblinka

Murder by gassing ceases at Treblinka after about 870,000 deaths

March 1944

Germany Army occupies Hungary

Soon after the Nazis start sending Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz

So they occupied Hungary on 15th March 1944 and it shows you for instance in the Warsaw Ghetto if you think about it, it took years for people to be sent to Auschwitz or any other of the death camps, but in Hungary from 15th March the Germans came in and by 17th or 18th June I was in Auschwitz so three months and three days, you know the speed of it.

Extract from Susan Singerman

January 1945

Russian Army liberates Auschwitz

About 960,000 Jewish men, women and children were killed there.

And, because this was, we all seen, all the 500. So we were liberated, all the 500 of us. And I think it was one of the very few camps who were liberated without anybody dying

Extract from Judith Rosenberg

May 1945

Germany surrenders unconditionally


And I suddenly felt I can shout it from the rooftops, “I am Jewish!” And if I were in a room that was full of people and somebody said, “Any Jews stand!” I would not even hesitate because I am so proud of my Jewish birth and that I had a Jewish mother that bore me.

Extract from Edith Forrester

Holocaust Statistics
Pre War

Pre War 1938

Pre-War (1938) Jewish Population of Germany and the territories later conquered in Euripe and Russia number 8,861,800 people

Post War

Post War 1945

67% of European jews had been Killed – 5,933,900 victims

There were a lot of people shot and unfortunately I have nowhere to go to know where my parents actually were murdered.

Extract from John Subak-Sharpe

Back to Start of timeline

The Holocaust Timeline November 1938

The Holocaust Timeline

1938 to 1940

Go back to 1933

November 1938

Kristallnacht
(Night of Broken Glass)

This is a co-ordinated attack on Jews and their property thought Germany

Now I realise it was probably the most dangerous thing I’ve ever done in my life, but nobody paid any attention to me, and of course when I saw what was happening, I went home. But I saw the synagogue was burning, the fire had spread to the roof of the school, and the fire brigade standing by making sure that none of the non-Jewish property was on fire,

….and everybody looking at it and enjoying themselves. The non-Jews I mean. And I just went back home. It wasn’t until later that I discovered that this had been part of a, a major attack on the Jewish…

Extract from Isi Metzstein

December 1938

Kindertransport

First Group of Kinder transport children arrive at Harwich, Great Britain

The British Parliament was approached by the ‘Movement for the Care of Children of Germany’ to hasten the travel permits.

The funds were to be found to guarantee £50.00 (roughly £1000.00 in today’s money) for every child brought to this country by Kindertransport. By the time the war started in September ’39 it is estimated that 10,000 children were brought to safety in this country.

Considering that the average wage at that time was under £3.00 per week, this was a truly momentous fundraising exercise.

Extract from Bob Mackenzie

January 1939

Hitler Announces in the Reichstag that the outbreak of war will mean the end of European Jewry

September 1939

Germany invades Poland

German invades Poland

The Army invades Poland. Start of Second World war. Jewish citizens of Poland number 3.3 million, about 10% of the total population

And so we never went home from the holiday house we went east, variously by train to begin with and then by horse and cart and in various ways. And being bombed on the way by the German planes, you know coming down and finally we got to this estate where my Aunt was.

Extract from Marion Camrass

June 1940

Global War

France is conquered in June 1940
Russia is attacked in June 1941
USA enters war in Dec 1941
Hungary occupied from March 1944

As I said, the speed at which things were going. 15th March they came in and 16th March you already had to wear the yellow star and then you had to move to what was called the ghetto

Extract from Susan Singerman

January 1940

Oswiecim (Auschwitz)

Nazis choose town of Oswiecim (Auschwitz) in Poland as site for new concentration camp

Go to June 1941

Holocaust survivor relives the moment he arrived in Glasgow after fleeing Nazi Germany to educate kids

Henry returned to Central Station to educate secondary school pupils (Image: PA)

A Holocaust survivor has relived the memory of arriving in Scotland after escaping Nazi Germany to educate school pupils about the Second World War.

Henry Wuga, 98, returned to Glasgow Central Station to share his story with youths.

He joined Poppyscotland and Gathering the Voices to help launch new lessons for Scottish schools, based on his story and that of other young refugees during World War Two.

Mr Wuga escaped Nazi Germany in 1939, aged just 15, leaving his parents behind in Nuremberg, and went to Glasgow on the Kindertransport.

The Jewish refugee made Scotland his home, marrying Ingrid, who also escaped via the Kindertransport, and managing his own catering business.

Henry Wuga, Holocaust survivor (Image: PA)

Read the story on the Daily Record website: Holocaust survivor relives the moment he arrived in Glasgow after fleeing Nazi Germany to educate kids – Daily Record

Learning about the Holocaust

Learning about the Holocaust

Learning about the Holocast

East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire’s 2020 Holocaust Memorial Day Event

Howard Singerman, one of the founder members of Gathering the Voices, was the keynote speaker at East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire’s 2020 Holocaust Memorial Day event, which this year was commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz Concentration Camp.

It was a powerful ceremony with local school pupils playing a major role and setting the scene musically.

The other speaker, Arnesa Buljušmić-Kustura, spoke movingly of her experiences and losses as a young child growing up in Bosnia at the time of the civil war in Yugoslavia.

Howard Singerman

Howard then, with great dignity, told his mother’s story from the time she and her family were deported from Hungary in June 1944 to Auschwitz Concentration Camp. He spoke of the nearly four hundred and thirty thousand Hungarian Jews who were murdered at Auschwitz-Birkenau in a period of just two months, and of the need to remember and learn from the horror of the Holocaust. He read two of the poems he has written in honour of his mother and her murdered family. His speech was very powerful and touched the hearts of all who were present.

After the ceremony the guests were invited to Carmichael Hall for tea, and also had the opportunity to view the Anne Frank Exhibition and learn more about the Gathering the Voices project.  

Saskia Tepe in Southern Arizona

On 5th December, and 9th and 26th January I spoke at three separate 55+ communities in Southern Arizona, to a total of over 150 residents ranging in age from 55 to 80, in order to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and introduce the concept and aims of International Holocaust Memorial Day.

Audiences were very receptive, interested in the idea of oral databases like Gathering the voices as they felt personal stories of survival were a wonderful way of accessing history and learning lessons from the past.

Of course, my mother’s story continues to inspire and I am proud that I can continue to share it here in the USA.

Learn more from Saskia Tepe Testimonial