Holocaust Survivor Shares his Story

History and Politics students were recently honoured to welcome Kurt Marx into the School, to listen to his story as a Kindertransport survivor who escaped the Holocaust. Aged just 13, Marx was one of over 10,000 children transported to Britain under the famous rescue programme, a journey which he described as “exciting” when asked by Lower Sixth student Tomi, “What was your main emotion or feeling when travelling to England?”

Marx continued to recount feelings of freedom and safety as he arrived in a country foreign to his own, stating “I was not afraid of the police in London. Up until that point, someone in uniform had been something to be afraid of.” Despite this, he also broached on the subject of childhood innocence and the extent to which himself and his peers often did not understand what was happening in their world around them.

What started as a routine day for Kurt on 10^th November 1938, turned into one of gradual unease and fear. He spoke of his walk to school that morning and how he noticed the smashed windows of a toy shop, but thought little of it. Arriving at school, he was then dismissed by teachers and pleasantly surprised by the unexpected holiday. It was only when he decided to visit his uncle and was met with his empty, destroyed house, that Marx first became frightened and sensed something was not right. Racing home on his bike that evening, Jewish people had already started to be arrested.

Kurt’s story of the escalation from normality to chaos, reflected the absurdity and apprehension of the times.

Claiming “The headmaster of my school is why I am here,” Marx spoke fondly of the man that persuaded his school to be transferred from Germany to London, despite upheaval from the authorities and parents, who did not want their children to be sent away. A recurring and striking theme in Marx’s talk was not the callous actions of people throughout the war, but the many kind acts of those he encountered.

Evacuated from London to the countryside with war imminent, Marx recalled being walked from door to door with his friend, relying on the hospitality of people in the community to home them. For Max in Year 9, it was his remark “I was one of the lucky ones, the family me and my friend had were very good to us,” which stood out, and demonstrated the power of kindness, as Max reflected later in the week.

Max commented “It was really interesting to hear stories from someone who had to live through such terrible times. Looking back at the talk, I can only imagine what it was like to leave home because of your religion and never see your family again. The striking aspect was when Marx had left the terrors of Nazi occupied Germany and to come to England where he still saw the same discrimination.”

In particular, one account of the discrimination which Marx faced was in his workplace. After securing a job in a factory he was soon dismissed by the manager on account of his religion. Kurt simply stated “In the morning I had been a Jewish refugee and in the afternoon I was an enemy alien.”

Through the British Red Cross, Kurt was able to correspond with his parents through 25-word letters, which included the address. The last letter he received from them detailed their movements to the east, where they hoped to work. It stated don’t forget us, and wished him a happy birthday. Sadly, the very next day they were to be taken to Maly Trostinets extermination camp to be tragically murdered, information that took over 50 years to reach Kurt. He has since attended an inauguration and international gathering there, a visit which he described as “very important to me.”

Fearing the world has not learnt from the atrocities that happened during the war, Kurt’s overriding message was to be kind to one another. His talk generated much to reflect on, before GCSE and A Level students make their way to Berlin in Long Leave, to develop their understanding of World War Two and those impacted by it.