King smiles as he meets Jewish Kindertransport refugees during synagogue visit
King Charles has met with Jewish refugees in London who escaped from Nazi Germany on the 85th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
The refugees escaped persecution and possible death through a British Kindertransport rescue mission. The King talked to some of those who made it to the UK during his visit at the Central United Synagogue in the West End.
King Charles met with people from the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR) along with Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis and Lord Lieutenant for London, Sir Kenneth Olisa. The synagogue’s president Michael Goldstein, its senior rabbi Barry Lerer, AJR trustees chair Michael Karp and AJR chief executive Michael Newman also met the Monarch.
The King met Jewish refugees who escaped Nazi Germany (PA)Kristallnacht took place on November 9, 1938, in Germany, when Nazis burned 267 synagogues and destroyed thousands of Jewish homes and businesses, smashing windows. The Kindertransport scheme saved the lives of more than 10,000 Jewish children.
He chatted with the Kindertransport refugees (PA)During his visit, Charles unveiled a plaque to mark the anniversary. The AJR was formed in 1941 as a group to help refugees who were escaping Germany and some of the earliest members of the group were at the special occasion. The anniversary comes at a difficult time with tensions high due to the Israeli-Hamas war in the Middle East and protests in many cities around the world.
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The event commemorated the 85th Anniversary of Kristallnacht (PA)One survivor of the holocaust, Albert Lester has told of the horror that was taking place 85 years ago in Germany. In his mind, he was back in Germany as a terrified little boy, running faster than he thought his legs could ever carry him to escape marauding Nazi thugs.
Charles talked to people who shared the experiences of escaping the Nazis (PA)His heart breaks for his 11-year-old self, who hid for hours in woodland, a penknife clutched tightly in his palm. And he knows only too well the sense of panic and fear that Israeli Jews would have felt a month ago when they fled from Hamas terrorists – because he felt exactly the same on that fateful night also known as ‘The Night of Broken Glass’.
A total of 91 Jewish people were killed and more than 30,000 were rounded up and sent to prison camps. Albert, now 96, was at school near Stuttgart when the Nazis arrived to smash the windows, break down the doors and arrest the teachers.
The anniversary takes place with tensions currently very high in the Middle East (PA)H described how he and his fellow pupils ran for their lives. Albert recalls: “We ran through the kitchen, through the garden, over the wall… I was terrified, absolutely terrified. I didn’t know what was going on, we were just running.” He continued: “They were a bunch of thugs with big clubs and sticks, although curiously no uniforms – they wanted to give the impression that this was an uprising of the people.”
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