The Ghettos of World War II

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Recommended: The Jews of Europe 1933 1945 ghetto life

When people think of the word ghetto today they think of an impoverished area of a city. The ghettos of World War II have a similar but nonetheless different definition. The ghettos of World War II were small parts of cities sectioned off to keep Jews in a confined area before eventual extermination. The Jews held there were more than just impoverished like today’s residents of ghettos. They were starved, beaten, and overworked. Ghettos were seen as just a step to Hitler’s final solution, or the extermination of Jews from Nazi occupied territory. The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest ghetto in Nazi occupied Europe. It held 400,000 Jews in 1.3 square miles. From the Warsaw Ghetto only 11,500 Jews survived. The Warsaw Ghetto was a place that Jews came to wait for their inevitable death. (“Warsaw” ushmm.org) (“Ghettos” ushmm.org) The Warsaw Ghetto was located in German occupied Poland in the city of Warsaw. The Warsaw Ghetto was established by decree on October 12, 1940. This day was also the same day as the Jewish Day of Atonement called Yom Kippur. The decree stated that the Jewish people of Warsaw were to move to a designated area of the city (“Warsaw” ushmm.org). Schedules to move were posted around billboards around the city. Whole neighborhoods were forced to evacuate. Not only Jewish but Poles were forced from their homes in what was to become the ghetto. German figures stated that 113,000 Poles and 140,000 Jews were to be relocated. The Jewish people were to bring only very little of their possessions ("Ghettos: History & Overview" jewishvirtuallibary.org). Any possessions left behind were seized. There were three types of ghettos open, closed, and destruction ghettos. Open ghettos were marked by signs that stated it was an are... ... middle of paper ... ... death camps. Ghetto leaders were left with the decision of who to deport. They could buy time for some at the cost of others. In Lodz the head of the council Chaim Rumkowski saved the able-bodied and chose to deport the children to the death camps. He reasoned that the best method of survival was if the ghetto became a work camp that would be productive for the Germans. In the Warsaw Ghetto however, Adam Czerniaków tried to save the children and when he could not killed himself. Most residents of the Warsaw Ghetto were killed on arrival at the camps. Only a few select people, the young able-bodied, and women with no children were sent to forced labor camps. Those who were sent to the forced labor camps were killed after they could no longer work. Very few Jews survived the liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto. ("Ghettos: History & Overview" jewishvirtuallibary.org).

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