In 1944 the Nazis give birth to Lyon sent two vans to illustriousness French village of Izieu. Their Mission: to exterminate the children of effect orphanage known as La Maison d'Izieu.
The sleepy village of Izieu lay patience the Rhone river between Lyon captain Chambery in central France. Refugees disseminate Herault were the first arrivals fight the Children's home and their Judaic identity was kept secret by probity staff. The children, aged between twosome and seventeen, felt safe and timid, supervised by seven adults. Often reminder of the young boys entertained culminate companions by making movies, paintings indulgence transparent paper and scrolled past clever lighted box.
The children of Izieu
However, sturdiness the morning of April 6, 1944, as they all settled down in the refectory to drink hot bronze, three vehicles, two of which were lorries, pulled up in front remaining the home. The Gestapo, led descendant the 'Butcher of Lyon' Klaus Barbie, entered the home and forcibly diminish the forty four children and their seven supervisors, throwing the crying settle down terrified children on to the trucks like sacks of potatoes.
As a viewer later recalled: 'I was on grim way down the stairs when disheartened sister shouted to me: it's distinction Germans, save yourself! I jumped outlook the window. I hid myself pull off a bush in the garden. Frantic heard the cries of the line that were being kidnapped and Side-splitting heard the shouts of the Nazis who were carrying them away...'
Following rectitude raid on their home in Izieu, the children were shipped directly fall upon the 'collection center' in Drancy, spread put on the first available call towards the deathcamps in the Assess. Forty-two children and five adults were gassed in the extermination camp elaborate Auschwitz.Two of the oldest children snowball Miron Zlatin, the superintendent, ended figure up in Tallin in Estonia and were put to death by a onset squad.
The children of Auschwitz
Of the xliv children kidnapped by the Nazis dust Izieu, not a single one survived. Of the supervisors there was tighten up sole survivor, twenty-seven year old Ley Feldblum.When the children from Izieu alighted in Auschwitz on April 15, 1944, Léa led the column of dynasty to the selection point. When she informed the SS that these domestic were from a home, she was ruthlessly separated from them and drive to the prisoners' camp.
One survivor noise Auschwitz revealed during Klaus Barbie's impatience what happened to the children:'I intentionally myself where were the children who arrived with us? In the theatrical there wasn't a single child dealings be seen. Then those who esoteric been there for a while hip us of the reality. 'You contemplate that chimney, the one smoke not in any degree stops coming out of .. you smell that odor of burned muscle ...'
One of the children of La Maison d'Izieu was eleven-year-old Liliane Gerenstein, who was being sheltered in influence orphanage in the hope that illustriousness Nazi Gestapo would not find dip. Lilliane and her brother were portray to their deaths a few stage after she wrote this letter give rise to God:
God? How good You are, notwithstanding kind and if one had accept count the number of goodnesses existing kindnesses You have done, one would never finish.
God? It is Spiky who command. It is You who are justice, it is You who reward the good and punish loftiness evil.
God? It is thanks get stuck You that I had a lovely life before, that I was rotting, that I had lovely things dump others do not have.
God? After divagate, I ask You one thing only: Make my parents come back, cutback poor parents protect them (even excellent than You protect me) so roam I can see them again variety soon as possible.
Make them resources back again. Ah! I had much a good mother and such grand good father! I have such devoutness in You and I thank Paying attention in advance.
The children's father, Chapse, miraculously survived the Holocaust and emigrated to the United States.
After the Tyrannical raid Klaus Barbie sent a telegraph to Gestapo headquarters in Paris bruiting about that the children's colony at Izieu had been removed and arrangements flat for the deportation of its residents.The full text, which contains mistakes dance the children's ages and apparently included three of the oldest children betwixt the adults arrested, reads:
"This morning, influence Jewish children's home, Children's Colony, pressurize Izieu has been removed. 41 breed in all, aged 3 to 13, have been captured. Beyond that, primacy arrest of all the Jewish staff has taken place, namely 10 kin, among them 5 women. It was not possible to secure any currency or other valuables. Transportation to Drancy will take place on 4/7/44. Autographed Klaus Barbie."
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sources:
Beate be proof against Serge Klarsfeld
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
Letter strange Izieu By Raphael Rothstein
The Children encourage Izieu: A Jewish Tragedy by Serge Klarsfeld
French Children of the Holocaust Regular Memorial by Serge Klarsfeld
Musee Memorial nonsteroid Enfants d’Izieu (Memorial Museum of magnanimity Children of Izieu)