With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

The mass escape of Jews from Nazi-occupied Denmark

Seventy years ago this month, an extraordinary mass escape happened from Nazi-occupied Denmark. Tipped off about German plans to deport them to concentration camps, almost the entire Jewish population - several thousand people - fled their homes and left the country.

As he stepped onto the fishing boat that was meant to carry them across the Baltic sea to safety, 14-year-old Bent Melchior feared he might never see his home again.

A week earlier, he had left the home in Copenhagen he shared with his parents and four siblings. It was 8 October 1943 and Denmark was under Nazi occupation. Along with thousands of other Danish Jews, Bent and his family were fleeing the Germans....

Read entire article at BBC News