Jews and other foreigners : Manchester and the rescue of the victims of European fascism, 1933-1940

Between 1933 and 1940, Manchester received between seven and eight thousand refugees from Fascist Europe. They included Jewish academics expelled from universities in Germany, Austria, Spain and Italy. Around two hundred were children from the Basque country of Spain evacuated to Britain on a temporary basis in 1937 as the fighting of the Spanish Civil War neared their home towns. Most were refugees fleeing Nazi persecution in Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia. As much as 95% of the refugees from Nazism were Jews threatened by the increasingly violent anti-Semitism of the Nazi regime. The rest were Communists, Social Democrats, Pacifists, Liberals, Confessional Christians and Sudeten Germans. There have been several valuable studies of the response of the British government to the refugee crisis. This study seeks to assess the responses in one city—Manchester—which had long cultivated an image of itself as a ‘liberal city’. Using documentary and oral sources, including interviews with Manchester refugees, it explores the work of those sectors of local society that took part in the work of rescue: Jewish communal organisations, the Society of Friends, the Rotarians, the University of Manchester, secondary schools in and around Manchester, pacifist bodies, the Roman Catholic Church and industrialists from the Manchester region. The book considers the reasons for their choices to help to assesses their degree of success and the forces which limited their effectiveness. 'Between 1933 and 1940, Manchester accepted almost eight thousand refugees from Fascist Europe. Among these were Jewish academics expelled from universities across Germany, Austria, Spain and Italy. Around two hundred were children from the Basque country, temporarily evacuated to Britain in 1937, as the fighting of the Spanish Civil War neared their home towns. Most were refugees fleeing Nazi persecution in Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia. 95% of the refugees from Nazism were Jews threatened by the increasingly violent anti-Semitism of the Nazi regime. The rest were Communists, Social Democrats, Pacifists, Liberals, Confessional Christians and Sudeten Germans. Several valuable studies have been written on the response of the British government to the refugee crisis. Yet this study is the first to assess the responses in of a single city; Manchester, which had long cultivated an image of itself as a 'liberal city'.Using documentary and oral sources, including interviews with Manchester refugees, Jews and other foreigners explores the work of those sectors of local society which took part in rescue work, including industrialists from the Manchester region, pacifist bodies, the University of Manchester, secondary schools in and around Manchester, Jewish communal organisations, the Society of Friends, the Rotarians, and the Roman Catholic Church. It considers the reasons for their choices to help, and assesses their degree of success, as well as the forces which limited their effectiveness.Though Jews and other foreigners has no specific reader in mind, it will be of particular interest to those studying the role of philanthropy and the Christian churches in Manchester society, the role of Zionism during the Second World War, the history of the British Jewish community, Britain's attitudes to immigrants and refugees, and issues surrounding the settlement and acculturation of newcomers to British society' --Back cover Between 1933 and 1940, Manchester accepted almost eight thousand refugees from Fascist Europe. Among these were Jewish academics expelled from universities across Germany, Austria, Spain and Italy. Around two hundred were children from the Basque country, temporarily evacuated to Britain in 1937, as the fighting of the Spanish Civil War neared their home towns. Most were refugees fleeing Nazi persecution in Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia. 95% of the refugees from Nazism were Jews threatened by the increasingly violent anti-Semitism of the Nazi regime. The rest were Communists, Social Democrats, Pacifists, Liberals, Confessional Christians and Sudeten Germans. Several valuable studies have been written on the response of the British government to the refugee crisis. Yet this study is the first to assess the responses in of a single city; Manchester, which had long cultivated an image of itself as a 'liberal city'. Using documentary and oral sources, including interviews with Manchester refugees, Jews and other foreigners explores the work of those sectors of local society which took part in rescue work, including industrialists from the Manchester region, pacifist bodies, the University of Manchester, secondary schools in and around Manchester, Jewish communal organisations, the Society of Friends, the Rotarians, and the Roman Catholic Church. It considers the reasons for their choices to help, and assesses their degree of success, as well as the forces which limited their effectiveness. Though Jews and other foreigners has no specific reader in mind, it will be of particular interest to those studying the role of philanthropy and the Christian churches in Manchester society, the role of Zionism during the Second World War, the history of the British Jewish community, Britain's attitudes to immigrants and refugees, and issues surrounding the .. Front matter Contents Abbreviations Glossary Preface Introduction: Jewish refugees in Manchester Speak no evil: Manchester Jewry and refugees, 1933–1937 ‘Displaced scholars’: refugees at the University of Manchester ‘Refugees and Eccles Cakes’: refugee industrialists in the Manchester region ‘Something ought to be done’: Manchester Quakers and refugees, 1933–1937 The forgotten refugees: Manchester and the Basque children of 1937 ‘The work of succouring refugees is going forward’: the Manchester Jewish Refugees Committee, 1939–1940 ‘Serious concern’: the Manchester Quakers and refugees, 1938–1940 ‘Our remaining comrades in Czechoslovakia’: the Manchester branch of the KPD ‘Not because they are Jews’: the Catholic Church in Salford and refugees ‘Inspired idealism’: Rabbi Dr Solomon Schonfeld and Manchester The Harris House girls: girls from the Kindertransport in Southport, 1938–1940 ‘A haven of safety’: refugees and the Manchester Women’s Lodge of B’nai Brith ‘Outposts of Jewish Palestine’: young Zionist refugees in Manchester ‘The most difficult boys to handle’: refugees at the Stockport hostel, 1939–1940 ‘By the grace of the Almighty’:refugees and the Manchester Yeshiva ‘From slavery and persecution to freedom and kindness’: refugees at the Manchester Jewish Home for the Aged ‘Bright young refugees’: refugees and schools in the Manchester region ‘Humanitarianism of the greatest value’: Manchester Rotarians and refugees The saved and the trapped: refugees and those they left behind ‘The Dutch orphans’: war refugees in Manchester Pacifism and rescue: the case of Lionel Cowan 23 Conclusion: the victims of Fascism and the liberal city Bibliography Index Drawing on a wide range of documentary and oral sources, including interviews with refugees, this book explores the responses in Manchester to those threatened by the rise of Fascism in Europe. By exploring the responses of particular segments of Manchester society, from Jewish communal organisations and the Zionist movement to the Christian churches, pacifist organisations and private charities, it offers a critical analysis of the factors which facilitated and limited the work of rescue and their effect on the lives of the seven or eight thousand refugees – Spanish, Italian, German, Austrian and Czech – who arrived in Manchester between 1933 and 1940. This book explores the responses in Manchester of particular segments of the city's society to those threatened by the rise of Fascism in Europe to offer a critical analysis of the factors which facilitated and limited the work of rescue and their effect on the lives of the seven or eight thousand European refugees who arrived in Manchester between 1933 and 1940