Would you be willing to give up money, fame and influence to be able to save others? This was a question Oskar Schindler answered with a resounding “yes” during one of the darkest chapters of our history.
Oskar Schindler was a son of Hans Schindler and Franziska Luser. He was born on April 28, 1908 in Svitavy or German Zwiattau in Moravia, Czech Republic. Given the wit on business venture, he worked after class as commercial salesman. Later on, he married Emilie Pelzl on March 6, 1928. It was a childless marriage.
Sometime in 1930’s, he began to have several jobs. In 1935, he became a member of separatist block of the Sudeten German Party. In Abwehr, he began his work as a military intelligence agent for the Germans. Also, he joined Nazi Party in 1939. Nazi documents pointed out that Oskar continued working for the Abwehr which led to German attack launched against Poland.
One of the great men during the Holocaust was Oskar Schindler. He saved almost 1, 200 Jews during this tragic event in world history. He made the Jews work in his enamelware and ammunitions factories located in what is now Poland and Czech Republic. This he did to save their lives.
Because of his exceptional deeds during the war, he was recognized through the book entitled “Schindler’s Ark” in which he was the subject. Later in 1993, a film was made based on this book, “Schindler’s List”.
Holocaust: The Rise of Hitler Adolf Hitler, a German politician, established a dictatorship, which was commonly characterized as fascist or totalitarian government. He made himself powerful through public exposure and persuasive speeches. He pursued aggressive policy after taking control of the Lebensraum. Hitler caused the triumphant military conquest of Poland in 1939.
During this period, Schindler gained business advantage from the German Invasion of Poland. Through influence, he managed to own an industrial factory in Krakow from Nathan Wurzel who was a Jewish industrialist then.
Oskar changed the name of the factory to Deutsche Emaillewaren-Fabrik, or DEF as advised by Wurzel. This factory manufactured enamelware. His laborers were reached more or less a thousand Jews. The Jewish Itzhak Stern, who was Oskar’s accountant, helped him to get hold of his Jewish slave laborers.
As a businessman who acted favorably for money, he hid wealthy Jewish investors for a consideration during the crisis. Later, however, he started protecting his workers from brink of death. Shortly after 1939, Hitler and his forces began murdering people whom he believed to be as inferior to the Aryan race. Thousands of Poles were killed. City ghettoes were built for Jewish Poles. Thousands of them were likewise killed and starved to death. And thousands of innocent people followed the same fate.
In the late July 1941, Hitler decided to extend the systematic killing of Jews to all German-occupied Europe. It was observed by the Nazis, however, that killing people became traumatic to the German police officers and soldiers. Thus, the Nazi- Germans built death camps in Poland where Jews and other prisoners from all over Europe were brought in. From there, transported prisoners were killed easily in less stressful manner. Through the large gas chamber built in the camps, the slaughter of the prisoners was effortless and impersonal for they were killed by the poison gas. This mass killing of Jews and prisoners was known as the Holocaust. Approximately one-third of the 18 million Jews were killed without mercy during the Holocaust.
Schindler’s Concern When Schindler witnessed the 1942 raid in the Krakow ghetto, he felt an inner drive to do what he must do. As soldiers shipped inhabitants to the concentration camps at Plaszow, he made his best effort to protect his workers. This he did even it meant putting danger into his own life.
As reported, Schindler began to transport young Jews out of the Nazi-established ghetto at his expense. He brought the youngsters to Polish nuns and were claimed to be Christian orphans so that they might be spared from the clutches of the Nazi forces. He likewise made arrangement with Amon Goth, military head of Plaszow, to cause the transferring 700 Jews to a nearby factory compound which spared them from the ravages of the German police. In all of these efforts, he had to bribe officials to insure impunity and success.
Furthermore, Oskar every effort to convince SS-officials to permit him to transfer his industry’s 1, 100 workers, later on referred as Schindler Jews, to Brnenec (German: Brünnlitz), Czechoslovakia to save them from mass extermination.
In Brnenec, he obtained another factory. There, he tried producing ammunitions but was unsuccessful. This, however, did not actually matter as the effort was mere front to his primary intention.
After the War: The Fall of Hitler A series of losses to the Allies and failure to defeat the Soviets had left Hitler’s armies severely weakened. Hitler made more defenses against Americans as he launched his last reserves west into the Ardennes country of Belgium and Luxembourg in the Battle of the Bulge 9 December 1944 to January 1945. Until he realized that neither of his hopes would work, he appointed Karl Donitz, the head of the navy and a devoted Nazi, as his successor. Then Hitler finally committed suicide with his wife, Eva Braun in Berlin on April 30, 1945.
After the fall of Hitler and majority of the Nazi forces, Schindler freed his workers.
While at the mercy of bankruptcy, he did not accept any assistance from the Jewish organizations. He went to Argentina sometime in 1948. In 1958, Oskar returned to Germany and tried to establish businesses but all proved as great failures. Schindler moved to live with his friends in Hildesheim, Germany in 1971. Due to heart ailment, he was brought to the Sankt Bernward Hospital in Hildesheim on September 12, 1974. He died on October 9 at the age of 66. He was buried at the Catholic cemetery, Mount Zion, Jerusalem.
His Legacy
Schindler was the only former member of the Nazi Party who was recognized for his great deeds of risking his life to save Jews during darkest days of Nazi rule. In honor of him, he was recognized as the Righteous among Nations.
Poldek Pfefferberg, a Holocaust survivor, retold Schindler’s story in the form of novel, Schindler’s Ark which was later renamed as Schindler’s List, written by Thomas Keneally. Steven Spielberg came out with the movie, Schindler’s List in 1993. The film won the Best Picture in the Academy Awards. The film gave prominence to Schindler who was generally perceived as a good man. The film depicted Schindler as a man who was amoral, at times opportunistic, but at best with a heart for Jews.
During the autumn of 1999, a suitcase belonging to Schindler was found by his friends. It contained thousands of photographs and documents including his farewell speech when the Schindler’s Jews were set free and the now famous Schindler’s List. This was reported in Sttuttgarter Zeitung newspaper. These documents were placed at Israel’s Holocaust Museum of Yad Vashem.
Oskar Schindler is perhaps one of the best examples of lives changed by the harshness and mercilessness of war. His life exemplifies that in times of darkness mankind can rely on the heart of kind men and women who are willing sacrifice everything for the good of all.
Study Guide1. Who is Oskar Schindler? Discuss the impact of his decision which relates to risking his life to save the Jews.
2. Make a timeline of the significant events during this period in Schindler’s life.
3. What could have led Oskar to do what he did?
4. Did he ask for anything in exchange of what he did for the Jews?
5. Would you consider him a good role model? Why?
6. If you were Oskar would you do the same thing? Why?
7. Relate Oskar’s life to a saying or proverb you know and make a brief discussion about how they are related.
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