‘A CONSTRUCTIVE FORM OF HELP’: VOCATIONAL TRAINING AS A FORM OF REHABILITATION OF JEWISH REFUGEES IN GREAT BRITAIN, 1939–1948

On 9 May 1945 the unconditional surrender of Germany signified the end of World War II in Europe. One of the greatest challenges faced by the international community was the fate of the refugees, those people who for various reasons could not or did not want to return to their pre-war homeland. An especially significant place within this category was taken by the Holocaust survivors – the last remnants of the ten million strong pre-war Eastern and Central European Jewish community. The relief effort undertaken in helping this group, by mid-1947 numbering around 250,000 people, was a task of unprecedented scale and difficulty. Among the challenges of that time, the education of children and adolescents was of particular importance. Military authorities, non-governmental organizations (both Jewish and non-Jewish) and finally the survivors, all devoted themselves to helping those who lost their childhood and youth in concentration camps, forced labour and in hiding. This article will discuss this issue through the case-study of the Organization for Rehabilitation and Training (ORT) and its undertakings among Jewish refugees in Great Britain. ORT was set up in Russia in St. Petersburg in 1880 as the Society for the Promotion of Trades and Agriculture among the Jews in Russia, a philanthropic organization designed to assist Jewish artisans, workers and cooperatives, by providing them with cheap credit and establishing vocational schools.1 After World War I, ORT expanded into Eastern Central Europe, France and Germany and by the mid-1930s, despite growing anti-Jewish legislations, organized a comprehensive network of trade schools responding to the needs of the Jewish community. The British branch of ORT, set up in 1921, focused for the first years of its existence on fundraising and propaganda. This situation changed abruptly on 29 August 1939, two days before the outbreak of World War II as 104 teenage students and seven teachers from the ORT school in Berlin left Charlottenburg Station on a train heading for London. The school in Berlin (Private jüdische Lehranstalt für handwerkliche und gewerbliche Ausbildung auswanderungswilliger Juden der ORT Berlin), located at Siemensstrasse 15, was one of ORT’s most significant undertakings in the interwar period and a major centre offering vocational training to Jewish youth.2 The school was opened in 1937 as an answer to * Awarded her PhD in history at Royal Holloway, University of London in 2010. Email: Katarzyna. person.2007@live.rhul.ac.uk 1 On the history of ORT see Leon Shapiro, The History of ORT: A Jewish Movement for Social Change (New York: Schocken Books, 1980) and Jack Rader, By the Skill of Their Hands (Geneva: World ORT, 1970). I would like to thank Rachel Bracha and colleagues from the World ORT Archive in London for their help with gathering material for this article. 2 For more on the ORT school in Berlin, see Monica Lowenberg, “The Education of the Cologne Jawne Gymnasium Children and the Berlin ORT School Boys in Germany and England”, German-speaking Exiles in Great ‘A CONSTRUCTIVE FORM OF HELP’ (KATARZYNA PERSON) 85 the rapidly escalating anti-Semitic Nazi policy limiting educational opportunities for young German Jews.3 The Nazi authorities allowed for it to open on the understanding that it would train only Jews who were planning to emigrate, and could confirm that, in order to safeguard its equipment from confiscation, all machinery and tools used in the school officially would belong to the British ORT. Under the protection of the British Government the school remained the only Jewish institution which functioned unaffected by the Kristallnacht, and indeed by late 1938 had enrolled 215 students, offering 3-year courses to adolescents aged 15 to 17 and 18-month training courses to adult students. Yet with the persecution intensifying and the spectre of war looming on the horizon, the leadership of the school decided to ensure the safety of the students by relocating to Great Britain. After negotiations with the British Ministry for Labour and the Home Office, as well as the Gestapo, it was agreed to move the school, together with all its equipment, to Leeds. The transfer, carried out by Colonel J.H. Levey of British ORT, was prepared by ORT together with OSE (Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants – the Organization to Save the Children). As already mentioned, the first group of students (without the equipment, which at the last moment was confiscated by the Nazis) left Berlin on 29 August. The second group, headed by the director of the school, Werner Simon, was scheduled to leave on 3 September 1939. Neither Simon, nor the boys, ever made it out of Berlin. Almost all of them were later murdered in the Holocaust. The 104 teenage boys who reached London on the outbreak of the war could not have anticipated the fate that awaited their families left behind in Germany. Most of those who were in the transport recalled their relocation as a great adventure. It is clear however that parents saying their goodbyes at the station and those who welcomed them in Great Britain were fully aware of the gravity of the situation and, as one of the boys remembered, the group was met in London by weeping Jewish women from the East End.4 As the school in Leeds was not yet prepared for their reception, the boys and their teachers were first accommodated in the Kitchener reception camp at Sandwich, Kent, which housed about 4,000 German and Austrian refugees. Already in November, however, the first group was transferred to Leeds. ORT’s leaflet ‘From Despair to Hope: A Constructive Form of Help’, devoted to the work of the Technical Engineering School in Leeds, recalled its beginnings: A technical school should first be planned and then constructed. In the case of the ORT school there was no time, no money, and no material available for such a project. After a long and arduous search, the most suitable building that could be found, with a floor area of about 12,000 square feet, was rented. It is situated about a mile from the residential hostels. Tools, equipment, and machinery were purchased, and the students, under the guidance of the instructors (all from Berlin), installed the machinery, connected it with the electric power supply, and made all fittings possible in the workshop of the school. The students of the plumbing and sanitary section of the school erected lavatories, wash-houses etc., and within a short time the school was at work.5 Britain: The Yearbook of the Research Centre for German and Austrian Exile Studies 2 (Amsterdam; Atlanta, G.A.: Rodopi, 2000), 82–83. 3 For more on this, see Solomon Colodner, Jewish Education in Germany under the Nazis (New York: Jewish Education Committee Press, 1964). 4 World ORT Archive (WOA) D04a010, Hans W. Futter (interviewed by Sarah Kavanaugh), Memories of ORT Old Boys (12 March 2007). 5 WOA D10a020, The ORT and OSE. From despair to hope: a constructive form of help, 2–3. 86 MELILAH MANCHESTER JOURNAL OF JEWISH STUDIES The school began functioning full time in December 1939. It was divided into five departments: (1) Welding, Turning and Fitting, (2) Sanitary Engineering, (3) Electrical Engineering, (4) Mechanical Engineering, (5) Carpentry and Joinery. There was also a market-gardening section, which organized six-month courses under the supervision of an agricultural director from Palestine. All lessons in school were to be conducted in English, even though, as one of the students remarked on leaving the school, ‘as the Masters are really too busy and old, they cannot be expected to pick up the language as easily as young people.’6 One day of the five day school week was allotted to theoretical classes in mathematics and science. More advanced students also attended classes in the Leeds School of Technology. Students who arrived from Berlin, referred to as the ‘old boys’, continued the studies which they had begun in Germany, but in time the school also began admitting new students, both girls and boys, aged fifteen to eighteen. These were mainly teenage refugees from Eastern and Central Europe who arrived as part of the Kindertransport.7 The majority of students resided in one of five hostels in the school vicinity, each housing 25 to 30 students and staff members of the school. In charge of each hostel was a hostel master responsible for the discipline and conduct of the students. There were two to six students in each room sleeping on bunk beds, with a room leader responsible for rules and regulations being carried out. The school was run by its director, Colonel Levey, with military precision. Students woke up at 6.00 am (6.30 in the winter), and classes lasted from 8.30 am till 12.30 pm and again from 1.30 pm till 4.00 pm. All students had to be back in their rooms by 10.00 pm. Most equipment in the school was constructed by the students, who also did all the redecoration in the building and took turns cleaning the school premises on Sunday mornings.8 The school had a decidedly Jewish character. It was closed on all Jewish holidays and on Sabbath and all food served was strictly kosher. However, as the ORT booklet made clear, the institution was ‘a Technical School and not a religious educational establishment’9 and students were free to carry out whatever religious observance they wished. Attendance in the synagogue was not compulsory and while students were able to participate in Jewish education classes, these were also not compulsory. There was no religious instruction held in the hostels.10 At the same time, the small group of Orthodox students from among the school community was given full support in religious observance and allowed to build a small synagogue on the school’s premises.11 There is no doubt that the leadership of the school placed great importance on the wellbeing of the students. Students were provided with facilities to practice indoor and outdoor sports; there was a student theatre, orchestra and a choi

the rapidly escalating anti-Semitic Nazi policy limiting educational opportunities for young German Jews. 3 The Nazi authorities allowed for it to open on the understanding that it the school remained the only Jewish institution which functioned unaffected by the persecution intensifying and the spectre of war looming on the horizon, the leadership of the school decided to ensure the safety of the students by relocating to Great Britain. After Gestapo, it was agreed to move the school, together with all its equipment, to Leeds. The transfer, carried out by Colonel J.H. Levey of British ORT, was prepared by ORT together with OSE (Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants -the Organization to Save the Children). As by the director of the school, Werner Simon, was scheduled to leave on 3 September 1939. Neither Simon, nor the boys, ever made it out of Berlin. Almost all of them were later murdered in the Holocaust.
anticipated the fate that awaited their families left behind in Germany. Most of those who were in the transport recalled their relocation as a great adventure. It is clear however that parents saying their goodbyes at the station and those who welcomed them in Great Britain were fully aware of the gravity of the situation and, as one of the boys remembered, the group was met in London by weeping Jewish women from the East End. 4 As the school in accommodated in the Kitchener reception camp at Sandwich, Kent, which housed about there was no time, no money, and no material available for such a project. After a long and square feet, was rented. It is situated about a mile from the residential hostels. Tools, equipment, and machinery were purchased, and the students, under the guidance of the instructors (all from Engineering, (4) Mechanical Engineering, (5) Carpentry and Joinery. There was also a agricultural director from Palestine. All lessons in school were to be conducted in English, people.' 6 mathematics and science. More advanced students also attended classes in the Leeds School of Technology.
Students who arrived from Berlin, referred to as the 'old boys', continued the studies which they had begun in Germany, but in time the school also began admitting new students, Eastern and Central Europe who arrived as part of the Kindertransport. The majority of and staff members of the school. In charge of each hostel was a hostel master responsible for the discipline and conduct of the students. There were two to six students in each room out. The school was run by its director, Colonel Levey, with military precision. Students Most equipment in the school was constructed by the students, who also did all the mornings. 8 The school had a decidedly Jewish character. It was closed on all Jewish holidays and on the institution was 'a Technical School and not a religious educational establishment' 9 and students were free to carry out whatever religious observance they wished. Attendance in the synagogue was not compulsory and while students were able to participate in Jewish education classes, these were also not compulsory. There was no religious instruction held in the hostels. At the same time, the small group of Orthodox students from among the school community was given full support in religious observance and allowed to build a small synagogue on the school's premises. 11 There is no doubt that the leadership of the school placed great importance on the wellbeing of the students. Students were provided with facilities to practice indoor and outdoor 6 Letters from past and present students of the ORT technical engineering school, Leeds, 5. The transfer of refugee Jewish children from Nazi Germany and German-annexed territories to Great Britain Kindertransport) has recently been a subject of numerous monographs. For a general Into the Arms of the Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies 8 The ORT and OSE,9. 9 The ORT and OSE, 11. The ORT and OSE,11. 11 Letters from past and present students of the ORT technical engineering school, Leeds,4. society. Lectures and concerts were also arranged 'as far as war conditions permitted.' Yet, even with the best will and dedication of ORT teachers and counsellors, not all problems faced by young refugees could be solved.
The main issue troubling boys in Leeds was the fate of their families left behind in Germany. 13 since I left Austria, I was able to feel and enjoy the comforts of a real home,' 14 while another 15 The boys were allowed to send one letter a month to their real families, but with the progress of the war even such communication became impossible. One of the boys recalled: 'Communication with our our parents very badly, but as war developed in earnest we had to tell ourselves that millions of others were in no better position.' 16 The boys in Leeds were also seriously affected by the way that the Anglo-Jewish organizations perceived the attitude towards refugees prevalent in British society at the time, Deputies of British Jews and the German Jewish Aid Committee, which they were to follow or else face immediate expulsion from the school. A copy of these rules, preserved in the ORT Archive, reveals the everyday reality of life for Jewish refugees in wartime Great Britain. Students were above all encouraged to avoid any actions that might stir anti-refugee emotions from both the authorities and the wider population of the city. Boys were informed: 'DO NOTHING at any time to arouse the slightest hostility, and do not attract conversations in trains, cars, or buses. Do not, at any time in the streets, discuss the war situation.' 18 The rules underlined that Britain was not to be perceived as a place of permanent settlement and that students were to consider themselves to be temporary guests in Leeds.
After arrival the boys automatically became 'enemy aliens' -refugees from states with which Britain was at war -and as such were examined by the Aliens Tribunal set up at the they were categorized as no threat to the state, the boys were reminded in the opening paragraph of the rules and regulations: 'Although you have all passed the Tribunal, you are, in the eyes of the Leeds Christian people, members of an enemy country at war with following the invasion of France, Winston Churchill ordered the mass internment of all after SS 'Arandora Star', heading for Canada with a transport of German and Italian 19 Even boys who were not interned had to report to the Leeds Police for permission to change their address.
As a large portion of the school maintenance was paid by the American Joint Distribution Committee, the school in Leeds lost its funding after the United States entered the war in 1941 and as a result was closed down. Those of the boys who were already trained found jobs and while some were interned as enemy aliens, others went on to serve in the British armed forces, and fought with them in the later stages of the war.
at the time reached the boys who were training in Leeds. There is no doubt, however, that the school's leadership had a relatively clear picture of the Holocaust since, alongside other 1943, when SS squads occupied its premises and ordered the deportation of almost all students to Auschwitz. The school's director, Werner Simon, who masterminded the relocation of the boys to Leeds, was deported to Theresienstadt, and from there to Auschwitz in October 1944, where he was murdered. ORT courses were also being conducted in a number of Eastern European ghettos. The two ghettos where ORT was the most active were Warsaw in Poland and Kovno in Lithuania, where they contributed to the idea of indispensable to the German war economy, thus delaying the destruction of the ghettos. before the heroic but doomed Warsaw Ghetto Uprising started, and the ghetto ceased to exist. Simultaneously, ORT courses for refugees were being established in the countries War II with vocational courses, which were organized in Displaced Persons (DP) camps in Germany, Austria and Italy. Machines and equipment were brought in. Hundreds of instructors were recruited from among surviving ORT personnel, DP engineers, educators and craftsmen. Classes and people were enrolled that year, almost one-tenth of the DP population of the time. 934 -traditional Jewish trades -but also automobile motor repairing, dental mechanics, millinery both in Eastern and Western Europe. In Great Britain ORT ran three projects: a training farm, a training ship where maritime classes were conducted, and a trade school in London.
Hachsharot), usually associated with socialist Zionist youth groups and provided vocational training aimed directly at preparation for emigration and the establishment of kibbutzim in Palestine. Their Palestine for settlement. The Goldington ORT centre was established in association with a Zionist group Hechalutz B'Anglia and provided practical training in general farming, poultry students learned to do their own repairs of farming equipment. The training course lasted two years, and due to limited facilities was based on the premise of short, three to four month courses, enabling pupils to get training in various branches of agriculture. The lectures in general science. There is no doubt that as in similar establishments in DP camps, them at the Institute of Animal Pathology at Cambridge University. Aside from vocational training, all students at Goldington received classes in general topics, with a clear focus on Jewish studies. The curriculum included English and Hebrew language, mathematics, general science, Jewish history and, according to ORT materials, 'such cultural activities as Oneg Shabath, discussions of current affairs, music lessons, excursions, social gatherings etc.' terms of previous education as well as wartime experiences. Among them were both Nazi camp survivors, youth who arrived in Great Britain as part of the Kindertransport and young British Jews. the second they received specialized tuition in a particular branch of technology. The Aside from technical training, students also attended classes in general education subjects such as mathematics and history as well as in English. On full time projects, the school also ran refresher courses for students whose studies were interrupted by the war or those who used to practice their trade before the war. There were 33 Throughout its 34 refugees to immediately begin to support themselves in a country in which they should proved to be impossible to overcome, and Commander Israel gave up his position. The Kensington School in it initial form was closed in July 1949 when it was decided that the vast majority of refugees had already found employment in industries. From August 1949 the London centre was reopened at Belsize Lane in Hampstead in order to conduct evening classes, mainly in tailoring, for older refugees. The school ceased operating in April 1954. The activities of the Goldington training centre also gradually declined after the establishment of the state of Israel, even though it continued (in a much-reduced form) until and thus liberal professions, remained out of reach for the majority of ORT graduates. Their vocational training allowed them, however, to secure employment amidst the retailing, industry and engineering. 35 refugees were clear, its approach towards young Holocaust survivors was not free from British ORT Annual Report 1946 and1947 33 Report on the ORT activities August 1946-July 1947 British ORT Second Post-War Report 1948-1949 Lowenberg, "The Education of the Cologne Jawne Gymnasium Children and the Berlin ORT School Boys", the time, believed that in order to overcome the trauma of the Holocaust their students had ORT observed: Hehalutz group consisting of Anglo-Jewish youth and the continental youth who came over from the continent before the war. The fundamental idea of this scheme was the belief that it is vital for this type of youth who have suffered the horrors of the concentration camps, to live together with other Jewish youth and not to be isolated in closed societies amongst themselves. This scheme has gained the praise of many people and has proved to be successful. During this time the common life between the sides. 36 survivors, who claimed that the place of young people who were not yet granted permission their own people in the camps. Contrary to the Jewish organizations in the West, DPs often through their experiences. As Margarete Myers Feinstein explained: past experiences. They did not stand out as oddities as they would in a normal environment. In performed plays about the ghettos, the partisans, and the concentration camps. DP's poetry, only children who were too old for their grade level, and survivor teachers understood their outbursts, their silences, their difference. Group bonding between child survivors facilitated their adaptation to post-war life. The Belsen Committee wisely recognized that the children could best their language. children and adolescents, which were lobbied for by the British-Jewish agencies. DPs believed decision with the experiences of children who arrived there as part of the Kindertransport. 38 To explain its stance, the Central Committee of Liberated Jews in Bavaria passed a resolution in Public of Great Britain who wish to accept Jewish children from the camps, and that they protest strongly against sending the children to England. The meeting instructs the Central Committee to ensure that not one single child should, under any circumstances, be allowed to emigrate to any other country than to the only possible haven for them -Palestine.' 39 In the end, only children with immediate family members in England were allowed to leave the camps.
the opportunities of British entry visas, even if it went against the opinion of the Zionist leadership. It can be assumed that the majority of those who came to England saw it as a way In reality however, by the time of the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, the majority was rooted strongly enough in on the young people's Jewish identity. 41 On the contrary, it can be claimed that collective living within a Jewish environment provided adolescent survivors with a sense of belonging and re-enforced their Jewish identity. As a result, the vocational schools were not only which they could use them. Discussing the role played by the vocational courses in the life of the DP community, Samuel Gringauz, President of the Congress of Liberated Jews in the U.S. Zone, explained: 'The importance of these schools is not explained by the fact that they supplied valuable vocational training to thousands of uprooted people. The importance of the school centers in the fact that they gave a valuable ideology to thousands of young created the spirit admired by the whole world'. This sense of hope that was instilled in those the educational history of Europe immediately after the end of World War II.
Regulations of the Leeds ORT Technical and Engineering School. ORT Weekly Summary. Letters from past and present students of the ORT technical engineering school, Leeds. The ORT and OSE. From despair to hope: a constructive form of help. Report on the ORT activities August 1946-July 1947