German-speaking emigration to Denmark 1933–1945

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The German-speaking emigration to Denmark 1933-1945 was pronounced low. Because of its restrictive foreign policy and its political considerations towards its powerful neighboring country, Denmark was not a preferred country of exile for refugees from National Socialist Germany . Denmark was more important as a transit country.

In 1937 there were 1,512 German emigrants in Denmark; at the time of the German invasion of Denmark on April 9, 1940 , there were 1,550 refugees. The number of those who fled to third countries through Denmark, on the other hand, is estimated at 20,000 to 30,000. The rescue of the Danish Jews , which also made it possible for many German-speaking emigrants to escape, deserves special attention .

State repression

The state repression in Denmark was directed in particular against refugees of Jewish faith and communist convictions. As early as 1933, special “communist conditions” had been enacted, which considerably restricted the freedom of movement of communist refugees and drastically limited their political activities. In October 1938, instructions were given to the border posts to turn away Jewish refugees, and the Danish diplomatic missions abroad were also required to reject corresponding asylum applications. In contrast, social democratic emigrants had to reckon with fewer handicaps; As early as June 1933, a Sopade secretariat was set up in Copenhagen , which from 1936 onwards published a Danish edition of Sopade's reports on Germany.

Despite all the restrictions, Copenhagen was the center of communist exile work in Scandinavia until 1938. Ernst Wollweber headed an international sabotage organization from the Danish capital.

Making work easier for intellectuals

Refugees were not allowed to be a burden to the Danish state and were dependent on material support from aid committees. The most important aid organizations were the committee formed by the Jewish community and the social-democratic-union Materotti committee , which according to Lorenz was also used to discipline the SPD emigration in Denmark.

It was not until 1936 that work permits were made easier, with preference given to social democrats and intellectuals. Individual scientists got good jobs with Niels Bohr , Theodor Geiger founded sociology in Denmark, Julius Hirsch had a great influence on the development of economics in the country. Philipp Scheidemann lived in Copenhagen from 1934, Bert Brecht in Svendborg from 1933 to 1939 and Hans Henny Jahnn lived on Bornholm from 1934 until the end of the war .

In Östrupgaard on Funen, the Östrupgaard school home, managed by Minna Specht and Gustav Heckmann , existed from 1933 to 1938 as a continuation of the Walkemühle country school home, which was forced into exile in 1933 .

See also

literature

  • Einhart Lorenz: Denmark. In: Claus-Dieter Krohn u. a. (Ed.): Handbook of German-speaking Emigration 1933–1945. Special edition, 2nd, unchanged edition, Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2008, ISBN 978-3-534-21999-5 , pp. 204–208.
  • Willy Dähnhardt (Ed.): Exile in Denmark. German-speaking scientists, artists and writers in Danish exile after 1933. Westholsteinische Verlags-Anstalt Boyens, Heide 1993, ISBN 3-8042-0569-0 .
  • Hans Uwe Petersen (ed.): Hitler refugees in the north. Asylum and political exile 1933–1945. Neuer Malik-Verlag, Kiel 1991, ISBN 3-89029-919-9 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ See Einhart Lorenz: Denmark. In: Claus-Dieter Krohn (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Deutschensprachigen Emigration 1933–1945. Special edition, 2nd, unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2008, pp. 204–208, here p. 204.
  2. ↑ Information from Einhart Lorenz: Denmark. In: Claus-Dieter Krohn (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Deutschensprachigen Emigration 1933–1945. Special edition, 2nd, unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2008, pp. 204–208.
  3. ↑ See Einhart Lorenz: Denmark. In: Claus-Dieter Krohn (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Deutschensprachigen Emigration 1933–1945. Special edition, 2nd, unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2008, pp. 204–208.
  4. ↑ See Einhart Lorenz: Denmark. In: Claus-Dieter Krohn (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Deutschensprachigen Emigration 1933–1945. Special edition, 2nd, unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2008, pp. 204–208, here pp. 205 f.
  5. ↑ See Einhart Lorenz: Denmark. In: Claus-Dieter Krohn (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Deutschensprachigen Emigration 1933–1945. Special edition, 2nd, unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2008, pp. 204–208, here p. 206.