Post by tufta on Jun 25, 2009 18:33:10 GMT 1
The story of how Jews came to be on trains to Auschwitz is one of the most shocking and surprising in the history of the Nazis' "Final Solution."
The people on these trains were from Slovakia - many from the capital, Bratislava. Slovakia was a new country. Created only in 1939 and the majority of the Slovaks were now fiercely nationalistic.
The President, Jozef Tiso, was a Catholic priest. And the Prime Minister, Vojtech Tuka, was also deeply religious. They had implemented a series of anti-Semitic measures chiefly born of religious and cultural intolerance. And at the forefront of tormenting the Jewish population were the nationalist Hlinka guard.
Before the war Slovakia had a thriving Jewish community of around 90,000...
The people on these trains were from Slovakia - many from the capital, Bratislava. Slovakia was a new country. Created only in 1939 and the majority of the Slovaks were now fiercely nationalistic.
The President, Jozef Tiso, was a Catholic priest. And the Prime Minister, Vojtech Tuka, was also deeply religious. They had implemented a series of anti-Semitic measures chiefly born of religious and cultural intolerance. And at the forefront of tormenting the Jewish population were the nationalist Hlinka guard.
Before the war Slovakia had a thriving Jewish community of around 90,000...
