What do I mean by Travel that Teaches? Simply, it is travel to historical places that may cause sadness and discomfort, but teaches valuable lessons about humanity or the lack thereof. I recently went with a fellow blogger to Eastern Europe and one of our stops was Prague. As a history aficionado, I knew that an important World War II camp was nearby, the town of Terezin, Czech Republic. Allow me to take you on a tour of this haunted landscape, haunted by the hatred and cruelty of the Nazis and the innocents who died at their hands. We must always remember these horrific events in history, only then do we stand a chance of not repeating them. With the rise of hate crime in the United States (up 17% in 2017) and the murder of eleven members of the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, it is more important than ever to remember that these horrors did happen.
The town of Terezin, or Theresienstadt in German, was unique among the concentration camps of Nazi Germany. The town was a fortress and prison built by the Emperor Josef in honor of his mother, Empress Maria Theresa. The townspeople were evicted and the Nazi SS established a ghetto that served two purposes: it was a holding pen for the extermination camps, and a settlement for Prominent Jews to mislead the world about what was really happening “in the east”. Arriving Jews would be asked to write several postcards to their loved ones, telling them about how lovely the town was and how well they were being treated. Of course, many of these people would be sent on to Auschwitz or other extermination camps in the east, but the postcards fooled many as to the whereabouts of their family and friends. For a time.
The most peculiar aspect of Terezin was the “beautification”. Of all nations, only the Danes insisted upon knowing what had happened to their jewish citizens, most of whom escaped to Sweden. There were approximately 450 unfortunate Danish Jews in Theresienstadt, and the Danish government kept requesting a Red Cross visit to ascertain their condition. Finally, the Red Cross was approved to visit by the SS and the “Verschรถnerung” campaign was underway. This small town of 5,000 had grown to over 50,000 and the overcrowding and filth were unimaginable. Dead bodies were left in the street for days before burial, and the death rate was high. Any rule breakers were sent to the Small Fortress, a nightmarish prison fortress. In order to beautify the ghetto, thousands of Jews had to be transported.
To prepare for the visit, a hoax was constructed. Prominents and Danish Jews were housed in private apartments, without overcrowding. 7,503 people were sent to Auschwitz in May 1944 to rid the ghetto of the sick, elderly, and disabled people who had no place in the “ideal Jewish settlement”. A tour route was planned, and along this route the houses, streets, shops and restaurants were cleaned and made to look like new. A town square was constructed for soccer games, libraries were bursting with books and Judaic treasures, instruments were distributed and orchestras were formed. Beautiful clothes were obtained for the Jews along the route, sham stores and shopfronts lined the streets. Well dressed Jews sipped coffee at adorable Coffee Houses along the route. This ideal Jewish settlement fooled the Red Cross, even though just beyond the route conditions were abhorrent. The Red Cross representative reported that no one was deported from Theresienstadt and that conditions were ideal. The Red Cross visitors did not stray from the designated path, and since they were accompanied by armed SS, it isn’t hard to imagine why they didn’t insist on seeing the entire town. This visit spurred the idea of making a film, The Fuhrer Grants the Jews a Town, Der Fรผhrer schenkt den Juden eine Stadt. The film was meant to show happy and healthy Jews enjoying a life of leisure while the Germans were at war, to dispel the rumors of mass murder. It was filmed although not distributed widely as the war was reaching its end. While I was at Terezin, I viewed part of the film in the SS movie theater. I felt sick to be sitting in the seats of Nazis, watching a propaganda film of happy Jews in a beautiful town. The moment the filming ended, those healthy looking people in the film were transported and gassed to keep from telling the real story of the Paradise Ghetto.
Of particular interest to me was an attic apartment where many Jews lived. Within that attic exists the only Synagogue that was not found by the SS. How difficult it must have been to avoid detection!
My next post will take you to the Little Fortress, the prison and fortress of Terezin.
Interesting post!
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Thanks. These travels aren’t fun, but I think all people should experience it.
What a story you tell, especially with the detailed pictures. To treat the Jews horribly and then to tell the world the lie of the opposite, I would call that double jeopardy. Worse, it is a double attack of the knife!
Terezin stands out as the perfect example of the deceptiveness of the Nazis.
This is a very heart-wrenching post, but a very enlightening one. Thx for telling us about Terezin. I had not previously heard of it.
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Terezin, Theresienstadt, is not as well known as the death and labor camps, but to my mind, the lies and cruelty there were of paramount importance. Thanks for reading it.
I think travel that teaches us something is the best form of travel. This trip for you must have been immensely sad though, and would have driven a stake through my heart. What horrors. I never knew about the post-card sending side of things at the Nazi camps – such were the lies that were spun to the world. Oh I hope that by learning about these terrible historical happenings that humanity can prevent history repeating itself.
Sad, yes. Horrifying, yes. But I found myself so angry while I was there. Terezin was unique, and is really worth study.
I remember seeing signs for Terezin when we took the train from Munich to Prague. As an Ashkenazi Jew, seeing the remaining evidence of Nazi atrocities always causes me to shudder and feel physically ill. Unfortunately, the Nazis found willing collaborators in Eastern European countries. An artist friend of my parents put together and published a book called “The Living Witness” which curates art unearthed in Terezin and other ghettos and concentration camps. I find it unbearably sad and chilling at the same time. However difficult it is, you are right that “travel that teaches” must be undertaken, lest we forget.
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Thank you for reading this. I am going to look for The Living Witness, the art in the museum was incredible, and told a story of human experience. I did graduate work on Charismatic Leadership in WWII, Hitler, Churchill, Stalin and FDR, and I am always interested in learning.
The picture itself speaks how the fascinating places are they and thank you for posting it.
You are welcome.
I haven’t visited Terezin, but some of the children’s artwork from Terezin is on display in the Jewish museum in Prague, which is spread over five different former synagogues. So heartbreaking. I visited Auschwitz and ended up, like you, writing two posts about it. Putting it on paper (or online) is a way to deal with the strong emotions this kind of travel brings up. But it’s so important that people visit such places, lest we forget.
I agree, travel like this brings up very strong emotions, and it is important that we remember it happened. And they are happening now in other countries.
I completely agree with you. Some travels are uncomfortable but, until you go, you can’t really appreciate just how horrific places must have been. This is beautifully haunting, and so important that places like these are maintained for future generations.
We aren’t educating people enough…travel can be so important to learning!