Deportation of the last German Jews and the Rosenstraße protest in Berlin

The largest protest in the Third Reich

At the beginning of 1943, more than 20,000 Jews and those of mixed heritage were still performing forced labour in German factories, mainly in the arms industry. Seeking to work towards making Germany “free of Jews”, the authorities decided to round up the majority of these people and deport them to Auschwitz or Theresienstadt. The plan was implemented on 27 February 1943; two-thirds of those arriving at Auschwitz from Germany were probably murdered immediately.

Some 2,000 Berliners of mixed heritage or Jews married to “Ayrians” were taken to a transit camp in Rosenstraße near Alexanderplatz. Not prepared to abandon their loved ones to probable death, the spouses and relatives of those planned for deportation gathered in the Rosenstraße on the evening of 27 February to demand their release. Despite threats from the police, several hundred demonstrators remained for days. In the end, almost all of the prisoners were released. To this day, it is unclear whether the authorities had given in to the protests or those released had been detained by mistake.