Josef Perl
Encyclopedia
Josef Perl is a Holocaust survivor who dedicated twenty years of his life to educating people about the Holocaust. He was born in Czechoslovakia
and now lives in Bushey
, Hertfordshire
, England. He has received more than 30,000 letters from schoolchildren to whom he has spoken about his experiences.
His story has been published in book form as Faces in the Smoke: The Story of Josef Perl by Arthur C. Benjamin, (ISBN 978-0-9541233-0-7).
, into a deeply religious Jewish family. He lived and grew up in the small town where Jewish and non-Jewish people lived together in harmony.
However, things changed rapidly in 1938 after Germany
signed a peace treaty with Hungary
and the Hungarians took over the administration of the area, under German orders.
In 1940, Josef and some of his family were rounded up and deported to a makeshift camp where they existed for several weeks in appalling conditions. Despite being only ten years old, he managed to escape on a regular basis with a group of boys to find food for his family. Like so many children during the Holocaust, he became the main provider. While he was foraging for food on one of these missions, the camp was cleared.
Josef spent the next eighteen months hiding and trying to find his family. He wandered from town to town foraging for food and shelter, until he was caught and taken to a ghetto
. There he witnessed the murder of his mother, four of his eight sisters and their five children. He escaped from the ghetto but was captured and taken to Kraków-Plaszów
concentration camp where he worked hard as a forced labourer doing many different jobs.
Between 1941 and 1945, Josef went through Auschwitz, Dachau
, Bergen-Belsen
, Gross-Rosen, Balkenhain, Hirschberg
and Buchenwald concentration camps. His life in these camps was mentally and physically exhausting. He worked 12 hour shifts with only one meal a day (which consisted of a minuscule portion of bread and watery soup). Many people died from the lack of food, sleep deprivation, and regular beatings.
Towards the end of 1944, as the Russians approached Balkenhain, Josef and the remaining prisoners, about 5,000 of them, were sent on a death march
to move them further into Germany, away from the advancing armies. They marched for two weeks in freezing temperatures and heavy snow. Eventually, they were loaded onto wagons and taken to Buchenwald. Only 178 people had survived the journey from Balkenhain and Josef was one of them. On April 11, 1945, Buchenwald was liberated by the American forces.
After the war Josef lived in the south of England, where he still lives today with his wife Sylvia. He regularly spoke to students and groups about his experiences, until his retirement in 2009, in the hope that the younger generation will make a difference to the future.
Josef has written his testimony in a book called "Faces in the Smoke".
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and now lives in Bushey
Bushey
Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. Bushey Heath is situated to the south east of Bushey on the boundary with the London Borough of Harrow.-History:...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, England. He has received more than 30,000 letters from schoolchildren to whom he has spoken about his experiences.
His story has been published in book form as Faces in the Smoke: The Story of Josef Perl by Arthur C. Benjamin, (ISBN 978-0-9541233-0-7).
Biography
Josef was born in 1930 in Velicky Bochkov, CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, into a deeply religious Jewish family. He lived and grew up in the small town where Jewish and non-Jewish people lived together in harmony.
However, things changed rapidly in 1938 after Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
signed a peace treaty with Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
and the Hungarians took over the administration of the area, under German orders.
In 1940, Josef and some of his family were rounded up and deported to a makeshift camp where they existed for several weeks in appalling conditions. Despite being only ten years old, he managed to escape on a regular basis with a group of boys to find food for his family. Like so many children during the Holocaust, he became the main provider. While he was foraging for food on one of these missions, the camp was cleared.
Josef spent the next eighteen months hiding and trying to find his family. He wandered from town to town foraging for food and shelter, until he was caught and taken to a ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
. There he witnessed the murder of his mother, four of his eight sisters and their five children. He escaped from the ghetto but was captured and taken to Kraków-Plaszów
Kraków-Plaszów concentration camp
The Płaszów or Kraków-Płaszów concentration camp was a Nazi German labour and concentration camp built by the SS in Płaszów, a southern suburb of Kraków , soon after the German invasion of Poland and the subsequent creation of the General Government.The Płaszów camp, originally intended as a...
concentration camp where he worked hard as a forced labourer doing many different jobs.
Between 1941 and 1945, Josef went through Auschwitz, Dachau
Dachau
Dachau is a town in Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany. It is a major district town—a Große Kreisstadt—of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, about 20 km north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants...
, Bergen-Belsen
Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen was a Nazi concentration camp in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle...
, Gross-Rosen, Balkenhain, Hirschberg
Hirschberg
The German word Hirschberg is composed of Hirsch and Berg . It may refer to:* several places in Europe, including:** Hirschberg, Thuringia, Germany.** Hirschberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
and Buchenwald concentration camps. His life in these camps was mentally and physically exhausting. He worked 12 hour shifts with only one meal a day (which consisted of a minuscule portion of bread and watery soup). Many people died from the lack of food, sleep deprivation, and regular beatings.
Towards the end of 1944, as the Russians approached Balkenhain, Josef and the remaining prisoners, about 5,000 of them, were sent on a death march
Death march
A death march is a forced march of prisoners of war or other captives or deportees. Those marching must walk over long distances for an extremely long period of time and are not supplied with food or water...
to move them further into Germany, away from the advancing armies. They marched for two weeks in freezing temperatures and heavy snow. Eventually, they were loaded onto wagons and taken to Buchenwald. Only 178 people had survived the journey from Balkenhain and Josef was one of them. On April 11, 1945, Buchenwald was liberated by the American forces.
After the war Josef lived in the south of England, where he still lives today with his wife Sylvia. He regularly spoke to students and groups about his experiences, until his retirement in 2009, in the hope that the younger generation will make a difference to the future.
Josef has written his testimony in a book called "Faces in the Smoke".