Introduction to Number the Stars The Holocaust and World War II

World War II At the end of World War I, Germany had to give up some of their land and were banned from having any military troops This made them very angry! In 1939, Germany attacked Poland for no reason, and when Germany refused to pull out of Poland, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany There were 61 countries involved in WWII, split into two groups Axis Allies Axis included Germany, Japan, and Italy

World War II Allies included : Lithuania Australia Malta Belgium The Netherlands Brazil New Zealand Canada Norway China Poland Czechoslovakia South Africa Denmark United Kingdom Estonia United States France USSR Greece Yugoslavia India Latvia

World War II The US didn’t actually get involved until 1941 On December 7, 1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, a base outside of Hawaii, which caused the US, Canada, and Great Britain to declare war on Japan within 1 day and Germany soon after

Adolf Hitler After Word War I, Hitler tried to gain control of Germany through the National Socialist German Worker’s Party (shortened to Nazi) He was arrested for treason and put in jail. While in jail, he wrote a book that described his plans for destructively conquering the world and getting rid of the inferior people (Jews, elderly, handicapped, other races…) After getting out of jail, he gained complete control of Germany through the Nazi Party

Adolf Hitler One of the first things he did as a leader was to set up concentration camps He planned to use these like prisons for Jews and other people he didn’t like He began his attempt to exterminate Jews from the Earth on November 9, 1938 when the Nazis arrested German Jews Many Germans were convinced of Hitler’s beliefs and participated in his craziness

Jewish Struggles Within months of invading Poland, Germany also began to invade surrounding countries, including Denmark, Norway, and France Hitler placed Jews in ghettos, which were the run-down sections of cities They were also ordered to wear the Star of David to be identified as a Jew. They lost their jobs, businesses, homes, and possessions, all for simply being Jewish

Jewish Struggles Hitler’s madness had begun spreading across all of Europe, not just in Germany People herded Jews into main squares of cities and separated the men, women, and children Those in good health were forced to work as slaves for the German army Those who were sick or weak were hung, shot, or gassed to death with thousands of others Their bodies were buried in mass graves or burned in large ovens

Jewish Children Jewish children, from infants to teenagers, were arrested and forced to work or were kept as prisoners Many kids became victims of medical experiments and were given germs that caused diseases so that the Nazi doctors could study the response of medicines

Concentration Camps Jews were taken to concentration camps in huge groups on trains, they were shoved in freight cars The train was not well ventilated and they often received no food or water There was usually a single metal pail in the corner for the Jews to use as a toilet Many Jews died even before arriving at the concentration camp due to starvation or suffocation

Concentration Camps Once at the camp, they were forced to live in barracks that simply held beds, often three or four high, and not much else There was a lack of food and water, so many Jews continued to die of starvation, as well as disease from being so tightly packed together in the barracks If the Jews worked hard, they were kept alive but often only fed just barely enough to stay alive

Concentration Camps There were an estimated 1.2 to 1.5 million children killed at these camps The only way children survived is if they were hidden in homes who had concealed rooms or lived with families who kept their identities a secret Over 6 million Jews had been killed by the end of the war – the only time in history this many people were killed simply because of who they were

The End of An Era Allied armies eventually began discovering concentration camps and setting free those who remained in them. Most were sent by trains back to the countries from which they came. Many Jews moved to Israel or America for a new start Life would NEVER be the same for those who survived this horrific event

The Holocaust This is the term used to refer to the death of the Jews during WWII Since the Holocaust occurred, many Nazi officers were put on trial and imprisoned Most who witnessed this event have passed on, but we have books, stories, journals, diaries, and articles that share the traumas and horrors of the Holocaust We can learn from the past and hope that something like this is never repeated!

Manya Kornblit survived 5 concentration camps Helen Korb and Shirley Strozenberg worked as German prisoners in an army barrack Manya Kornblit survived 5 concentration camps Elie Wiesel survived 1 year at a concentration camp and wrote a book, Night, about his experiences in the Holocaust that became a best seller

Picture Credits Slide 1: http://www.numberthestarsmovie.com/

Slide 13: http://erikahigley.blogspot.com/2010_09_01_archive.html