Oskar Schindler
Oskar Schindler, a known member of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party, saved the lives of 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust. This was not the normal thing for Nazi's to do considering that they were notorious for the crimes that they committed against Jews. They were known to imprison Jews in concentration camps and malnourish them, along with shooting them and even poisoning them in gas showers. Nazi's were and still are considered to be evil people by a majority of the world. There is one Nazi who is known to have went directly against protocol and went out of his way to save the lives of Jews. That Nazi was named Oskar Schindler. Oskar Schindler was a good Nazi who turned into a good person.
Schindler was very good at blending into Nazi society. According to “Oskar Schindler” United States, Schindler joined the Nazi Party in February of 1939. He worked as a part of the Nazi Party's military counterintelligence agency, known as the Abwehr, as a spy (“Oskar Schindler” Encyclopedia). Schindler's wife, named Emilie, stated that he was pressured to join the Nazi Party. She was quoted as saying, “Not every German was a Nazi ... but the pressure to conform was intense, and very few dared to be themselves. Hitler had been very clear: 'whoever is with me will be able to live in a great Germany. But whoever is against me will find instant death” (“Oskar Schindler” People). Schindler spent a lot of time with SS officials (SS is short for Shutzstaiffen, which was Hitler's personal body guards and the guards at the labor camps and ghettos) and even held parties for them in order to strengthen his position within the group (“Oskar Schindler” People). Part of the reason that Schindler was able to get to such a position of power was because he was a successful business man.
Schindler, a known Nazi, bought a Jewish owned enamelware factory named Rekord Ltd. He renamed it Deutsche Emalwarenfabrik Oskar Schindler and nicknamed it “Emalia” in November of 1939 (“Oskar Schindler” United States). Emalia was used to make pots and pans for the German Army and it is how Schindler gained his money (“Oskar Schindler” People). Emalia was located right next to the Krakow Ghetto, which was a walled in section in Krakow, Poland where all of the local Jews were sent to live during the Holocaust (“Oskar Schindler” People). At one point, Schindler even made Emalia into a subcamp of the nearby Plaszow Concentration Camp, which was ran by Amon Goth, another local Nazi (“Oskar Schindler” Encyclopedia). Oskar Schindler used his power, money, and his “subcamp” to save the lives of 1,200 Jews.
Schindler used Emalia to employ Jews from the Krakow Ghetto, resulting in them not being sent to actual concentration camps. According to “Oskar Schindler” People of the Holocaust, Schindler kept his Jewish workers safe by keeping false records. The Nazi's considered young and old workers to be useless and would send them to concentration camps, so Schindler listed his old workers as twenty years younger and his young workers as twenty years older so that they could work at his factory. Schindler also listed lawyers, doctors, and engineers as metalworkers in his factory so that they too would be considered essential to the war effort. Schindler had enough power within the Nazi community that no one really looked into his factory enough to notice the false records.
Schindler had developed a love for his Jewish friends and no one really knows why or how it started. “Oskar Schindler” Encyclopedia claimed that Schindler had initially employed two Jews to his work staff, Itzhak Stern and Abraham Bankier. Apparently Bankier, who was Schindler's factory manager, originally convinced Schindler to employ more Jews. The Krakow Ghetto was just down the road so this was convenient for Schindler. In March of 1943 when the Krakow Ghetto was being liquidated, Schindler allowed his workers to spend the night at Emalia. He had developed a sense of compassion for his Jews, and was even quoted as saying,”I knew the people who worked for me. When you know people, you have to behave towards them like human beings” (“Oskar Schindler” People). There are many more stories of Schindler's compassion for his Jewish workers. When he moved Emalia from Krakow to Brunnlitz, he sent some of his workers to the new factory ahead of him. Instead of being taken to the factory, they were instead taken to Gross-Rossen and Auschwitz, two concentration camps notorious for their harsh conditions. Schindler himself went to Gross-Rossen and demanded his worker's return and he sent his secretary to Auschwitz to do the same. Schindler ended up getting his workers to his factory in Brunnlitz safely (“Oskar Schindler” The Righteous).
Oskar Schindler passed away in October of 1974 and was buried by some of his former Jewish factory workers in the Catholic Cemetery of Jerusalem. His gravestone reads “The unforgettable rescuer of 1,200 Jews” (“Oskar Schindler” The Righteous). Oskar Schindler had been the unlikeliest of heroes to emerge during World War II. He wasn't an Allied Soldier or even a German citizen that was willing to hide Jews in his house. Instead, Schindler was a Nazi. Schindler could have been killed for falsifying records and ultimately saving Jews from the atrocities and possible death at concentration camps, but he continuously did it. Somewhere down the road Schindler developed a compassion for his Jews that made him willing to fight for their survival, even if it meant breaking the rules. In total, he saved the lives of around 1,200 Jews. That is why Oskar Schindler was a good Nazi who transformed into an even better person.
Works Cited
Crowe, David. "Oskar Schindler." Encyclopaedia Judaica. Ed. Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2007. Biography in Context. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
"Oskar Schindler." People of the Holocaust. Gale, 1998. Biography in Context. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
"Oskar Schindler - The Righteous Among The Nations - Yad Vashem." Oskar Schindler - The Righteous Among The Nations - Yad Vashem. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2014.
Oskar Schindler, a known member of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party, saved the lives of 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust. This was not the normal thing for Nazi's to do considering that they were notorious for the crimes that they committed against Jews. They were known to imprison Jews in concentration camps and malnourish them, along with shooting them and even poisoning them in gas showers. Nazi's were and still are considered to be evil people by a majority of the world. There is one Nazi who is known to have went directly against protocol and went out of his way to save the lives of Jews. That Nazi was named Oskar Schindler. Oskar Schindler was a good Nazi who turned into a good person.
Schindler was very good at blending into Nazi society. According to “Oskar Schindler” United States, Schindler joined the Nazi Party in February of 1939. He worked as a part of the Nazi Party's military counterintelligence agency, known as the Abwehr, as a spy (“Oskar Schindler” Encyclopedia). Schindler's wife, named Emilie, stated that he was pressured to join the Nazi Party. She was quoted as saying, “Not every German was a Nazi ... but the pressure to conform was intense, and very few dared to be themselves. Hitler had been very clear: 'whoever is with me will be able to live in a great Germany. But whoever is against me will find instant death” (“Oskar Schindler” People). Schindler spent a lot of time with SS officials (SS is short for Shutzstaiffen, which was Hitler's personal body guards and the guards at the labor camps and ghettos) and even held parties for them in order to strengthen his position within the group (“Oskar Schindler” People). Part of the reason that Schindler was able to get to such a position of power was because he was a successful business man.
Schindler, a known Nazi, bought a Jewish owned enamelware factory named Rekord Ltd. He renamed it Deutsche Emalwarenfabrik Oskar Schindler and nicknamed it “Emalia” in November of 1939 (“Oskar Schindler” United States). Emalia was used to make pots and pans for the German Army and it is how Schindler gained his money (“Oskar Schindler” People). Emalia was located right next to the Krakow Ghetto, which was a walled in section in Krakow, Poland where all of the local Jews were sent to live during the Holocaust (“Oskar Schindler” People). At one point, Schindler even made Emalia into a subcamp of the nearby Plaszow Concentration Camp, which was ran by Amon Goth, another local Nazi (“Oskar Schindler” Encyclopedia). Oskar Schindler used his power, money, and his “subcamp” to save the lives of 1,200 Jews.
Schindler used Emalia to employ Jews from the Krakow Ghetto, resulting in them not being sent to actual concentration camps. According to “Oskar Schindler” People of the Holocaust, Schindler kept his Jewish workers safe by keeping false records. The Nazi's considered young and old workers to be useless and would send them to concentration camps, so Schindler listed his old workers as twenty years younger and his young workers as twenty years older so that they could work at his factory. Schindler also listed lawyers, doctors, and engineers as metalworkers in his factory so that they too would be considered essential to the war effort. Schindler had enough power within the Nazi community that no one really looked into his factory enough to notice the false records.
Schindler had developed a love for his Jewish friends and no one really knows why or how it started. “Oskar Schindler” Encyclopedia claimed that Schindler had initially employed two Jews to his work staff, Itzhak Stern and Abraham Bankier. Apparently Bankier, who was Schindler's factory manager, originally convinced Schindler to employ more Jews. The Krakow Ghetto was just down the road so this was convenient for Schindler. In March of 1943 when the Krakow Ghetto was being liquidated, Schindler allowed his workers to spend the night at Emalia. He had developed a sense of compassion for his Jews, and was even quoted as saying,”I knew the people who worked for me. When you know people, you have to behave towards them like human beings” (“Oskar Schindler” People). There are many more stories of Schindler's compassion for his Jewish workers. When he moved Emalia from Krakow to Brunnlitz, he sent some of his workers to the new factory ahead of him. Instead of being taken to the factory, they were instead taken to Gross-Rossen and Auschwitz, two concentration camps notorious for their harsh conditions. Schindler himself went to Gross-Rossen and demanded his worker's return and he sent his secretary to Auschwitz to do the same. Schindler ended up getting his workers to his factory in Brunnlitz safely (“Oskar Schindler” The Righteous).
Oskar Schindler passed away in October of 1974 and was buried by some of his former Jewish factory workers in the Catholic Cemetery of Jerusalem. His gravestone reads “The unforgettable rescuer of 1,200 Jews” (“Oskar Schindler” The Righteous). Oskar Schindler had been the unlikeliest of heroes to emerge during World War II. He wasn't an Allied Soldier or even a German citizen that was willing to hide Jews in his house. Instead, Schindler was a Nazi. Schindler could have been killed for falsifying records and ultimately saving Jews from the atrocities and possible death at concentration camps, but he continuously did it. Somewhere down the road Schindler developed a compassion for his Jews that made him willing to fight for their survival, even if it meant breaking the rules. In total, he saved the lives of around 1,200 Jews. That is why Oskar Schindler was a good Nazi who transformed into an even better person.
Works Cited
Crowe, David. "Oskar Schindler." Encyclopaedia Judaica. Ed. Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2007. Biography in Context. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
"Oskar Schindler." People of the Holocaust. Gale, 1998. Biography in Context. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
"Oskar Schindler - The Righteous Among The Nations - Yad Vashem." Oskar Schindler - The Righteous Among The Nations - Yad Vashem. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2014.