Lampertheim displaced persons camp opens

Adolf Hitler died by suicide as the Red Army fought through Berlin. Nazi rule was collapsing, but killings, death marches, and camp evacuations continued in the war’s final days. The defeat of the...

US troops reached Mauthausen as the camp system disintegrated. Survivors faced severe illness and the loss of family and community; many could not safely return to their prewar homes.

Germany’s unconditional surrender took effect in Europe, ending the war there. About six million Jews had been murdered by Nazi Germany and its allies and collaborators; survivors faced family loss,...

The White House released Earl Harrison’s report on Jewish displaced persons. Based on his August visit, it criticized Allied treatment, urged improved conditions and distinct recognition of Jewish...

The International Military Tribunal began trials of leading Nazi officials on charges including crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The proceedings established a postwar...

Local residents and members of Polish security forces attacked surviving and returning Jews in Kielce; 42 Jews were killed. The pogrom drew on entrenched antisemitism and blood-libel allegations and...

The UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 96(I), declaring genocide a crime under international law and calling for an international convention. Raphael Lemkin’s work and postwar debates drew on Nazi...

More than 4,500 Jewish displaced persons and Holocaust survivors sailed from France toward British-mandate Palestine aboard the Exodus 1947. British naval forces intercepted the ship on July 18 and...

The State of Israel declared independence as the British Mandate ended. Holocaust survivors were among those who sought refuge and rebuilt lives there, after years of blocked routes and...

The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Polish-Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin had campaigned to name and prohibit...