Over 500 Jewish children, mainly from Vienna, arrived at Lowestoft on 12 December 1938 as a result of the extraordinary Kindertransport, the operation that saved the lives of over 10,000 children, fleeing the terrors of Nazi Germany.
Between December 1938 and June 1940 children from as far afield as Poland, Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia bravely left their families to start a new life in the UK. Most never saw their relations again as they had perished in the horrific Nazi concentration camps in what came to be known as the Holocaust.
Kindertransport
Following a huge public outcry, as a result of Kristallnacht, many in the UK demanded that the government relax its rules concerning the acceptance of child refugees and the authorities changed the rules and stated that unaccompanied Jewish children under the age of 17 could enter the country.
To gain a place on the train, families had to guarantee payment for their children’s care and the British government, in turn provided the children with temporary travel visas. Where individuals could not afford the fee, organisations, including the renamed Reich Association of Jews in Germany, and the Austrian Jewish Community Organisation and the UK-based Movement for the Care of Children from Germany were instrumental in funding and arranging the trains.
A Thousand Kisses
Organised by the London based, Wiener Holocaust library, this poignant and evocative exhibition looks at the stories of eight children who arrived by train to the UK. Kindertransport means child transport, which in most cases was by train, though a few were able to fly to freedom. Visitors to the exhibition will learn about, among others, Otto Lichtenstein and his arrival in Lowestoft. His identity card, on display, shows he was only 13. From Lowestoft Otto travelled to Broadstairs, then to Dovercourt in Essex. Eventually, he volunteered to join Kitchener camp in Sandwich.
Individual histories
The young people’s lives and histories are sadly quite similar. They had to flee their countries and live among strangers. They weren’t aware of the fate of their loved ones, and they weren’t always sure of a warm welcome when they reached the UK.
A spokesperson from the Wiener Holocaust Library added, “the hundreds of family collections held in The Wiener Holocaust Library contain many undiscovered stories not unlike those of the eight children whose experiences are explored in this important exhibition. They are stories of persecution and migration, of refugees who were made welcome in Britain and those who were turned away.”
Lowestoft Holocaust memorial
It’s 80 years since the Soviet army liberated the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp on 27 January 1945 – with the day now recognised as Holocaust Memorial Day.
On 27 January, Lowestoft will start its commemorations with:
- 09.45: ceremony at East Coast cinema, where a speech will be given by the eminent historian Sir Lawrence Goldman, films will be shown and music from the Jewish performers, Da Marjanbo will be performed.
- 11.00: wreath-laying at Lowestoft station
- 14.30: local school children will light “80 candles for 80 years.
The Thousand Kisses exhibition opens at Denmark Road’s railway station at 13.00 hrs on 27 January and will run until 8 February.
Many thanks to the Wiener library for the images and information.
