Henri S. Holocaust testimony

Identifier
HVT 2542
Language of Description
English
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Abstract

Videotape testimony of Henri S., who was born in Aurich, Germany, the younger of two children. He recalls his family's orthodoxy; moving to Norden around 1935; attending a Jewish school; anti-Jewish restrictions; his father's deportation to Buchenwald and his grandfather's arrest on Kristallnacht; their release; smuggling themselves to Brussels via Aachen; German invasion in 1940; hiding with non-Jews during round-ups; his parents contacting the underground to hide him and his sister; placement with a farmer in Grendel; hearing from his sister through a priest (he did not know where she was); each of his parents visiting once; learning they had been deported (he never saw them again); working on the farm; being moved when exposure was threatened; a farmer in Post hiding him, other Jews, and escaped Soviet POWs; bombings during the Battle of the Bulge; arrival of United States troops; hiding when the Germans returned; liberation; living with a non-Jewish family in Arlon; contact with his sister; moving to Brussels; placement in orphanages; a group bar mitzvah with other boys whose bar mitzvahs had not occurred because they were in hiding; his sister's marriage; emigrating in 1947 to join an uncle in the United States; military service; becoming a watchmaker; marriage; and the births of two daughters. Mr. S. discusses the Belgian effort to help Jews, particularly children, and attending a Hidden Children conference.

Extent and Medium

2 videocassettes

Conditions Governing Access

This testimony is open with permission.

Conditions Governing Reproduction

Copyright has been transferred to the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies. Use of this testimony requires permission of the Fortunoff Video Archive.

Rules and Conventions

Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Process Info

  • compiled by Staff of the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies

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This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.