Oldal 131 [131]
German Jewish Migrations to Great Britain 1933—1939: Remarks on Cultural Otherness
The Jewish exodus from Germany in the 1930s can easily be divided into sev¬
eral stages, with the first migration wave starting shortly after Hitler came to power.
The second started after the worsening of the legal situation of Jews in Germany,
finding its peak shortly after the terrifying events of Kristallnacht in November
1938. Until then the number of Jewish immigrants arriving in Great Britain had
been relatively small, especially compared to the numbers arriving in Palestine or
the Americas. Between November 1938 and September 1939 these numbers rose
drastically. Out of 100 000-150 000 Jews who left Nazi controlled territory after
Kristallnacht, 40 000 gained permission to go to the British Isles. Most immigrants
considered British ports a transit space on their way across the ocean; they would
apply for their North or South American visas once in Great Britain. Others recog¬
nised Great Britain as the place in which they wished to settle. The outbreak of the
war forced many of the former to stay, and so it has been estimated that approxi¬
mately 80 000 German-Jewish refugees were present in Britain in autumn 1939
(Berghahn 2007: 76). Other researchers, like Yvonne Kapp, claim that the number
was slightly higher—up to 90 000 refugees (London 2003: 11).
Although the estimates appear to be slightly inaccurate, what is certain is that
among the number in question there were nearly 10 000 Jewish refugee children
who arrived in Great Britain with the Kindertransports (see below). Questions arise
again in discussing numbers of immigrants who decided to go back to continental
Europe shortly before the war. Yvonne Kapp and Margaret Mynatt show that the
number might have been as high as 20 000-30 000 (1997: 3). Others, like Louise
London, believe that their numbers did not exceed 10 000 (2003: 11-12). The
reasons for this re-emigration remain unclear, but it can be assumed that they were
multiple and that each re-emigrating person must have considered some of them
important enough to take the risk. British legislation allowed only certain people
to enter the country; many of the immigrants were therefore forced to leave their
relatives in continental Europe. Re-joining the family should be considered the
most important reason. Many Jews also tried to travel back to assist their friends
or relatives in escaping the threat of the Nazi regime. Others decided to travel back
because of homesick and an inability to fit into the new environment.
German-Jewish immigrants also travelled to the territories controlled by Brit¬
ish authorities. Between 1933 and 1939 approximately 140 000 Jews arrived in
Palestine by legal as well as illegal channels. Between 1933 and 1945, the United
States of America took nearly a quarter of a million Jewish refugees from Nazi con¬
trolled areas, although migration to the States was not easy and in many cases the
immigrants were rejected (London 2003: 12). During the interwar period numer¬
ous countries limited the number of immigrants allowed to enter their territory.
In 1924 the US introduced the Immigration and Nationality Act, specifying the
annual number of immigrants according to country of origin. The Act indicated
that in 1939, 27 370 people from both Germany and Austria would be allowed to
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