Leon Greenman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Leon Greenman
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| Born | 18 December 1910 Whitechapel, London, England
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| Died | 7 March 2008 (aged 97) |
| Occupation | Anti-fascism campaigner |
Leon Greenman OBE (born December 18, 1910 – died March 7, 2008) was a British man who survived the Auschwitz concentration camp. He became a strong voice against fascism, a type of political belief that is very extreme and often involves racism. Leon often visited schools to share his story about Auschwitz. He also wrote a book called An Englishman in Auschwitz. Today, a special part of the Jewish Museum London tells his important story.
Contents
Leon Greenman's Early Life
Leon Greenman was born on December 18, 1910, in Whitechapel, a part of East End of London. Many Jewish families lived there at that time. Leon had two brothers and three sisters. His mother's family came from Russia. When Leon was only two years old, his mother passed away. At age five, he moved to Rotterdam in the Netherlands to live with his father's parents.
Leon trained as a boxer when he was young. Later, he returned to London and became a barber. He also loved to sing. In the 1930s, he met his future wife, Esther, at a singing club. They got married in 1935.
Life in the Netherlands
After their honeymoon, Leon and Esther settled in Rotterdam. Leon started working in his father-in-law's book business. He often traveled to London for work. In the 1930s, he thought about moving back to England. However, he decided to stay in the Netherlands. This was after he heard British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain promise "peace for our time" in 1938.
Leon's son, Barnett, who they called Barney, was born on March 17, 1940. Less than two months later, on May 10, 1940, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands. This changed everything for Leon and his family.
Surviving World War II
Leon had a British passport. He expected that he and his family would be safely taken away from the Netherlands. But the British consulate staff in Rotterdam disappeared, and they could not escape. Leon still hoped they would be safe. He thought that international rules protected civilians from enemy countries.
He gave his money and passport to a non-Jewish friend for safekeeping. However, the friend worried that the Germans might find out he helped a Jewish person. So, the friend destroyed Leon's passport. On October 8, 1942, Leon and his family were sent to the Westerbork transit camp. This was a camp where Jewish people were gathered before being sent to other places.
Journey to Auschwitz
Leon insisted he was British and should be set free. But in January 1943, he and his family were put on a train with 700 other people. They were sent out of the Netherlands. Proof of his British nationality arrived soon after their train left.
Leon described traveling for 36 hours across Europe. There was no food or water on the train. They arrived at the death camp of Birkenau. Outside the train, the snow was covered with suitcases left by people who had arrived before them.
Life in the Camp
When they arrived, Leon's wife and young son were separated from him. They were killed in the gas chambers almost right away. Leon was sent in a different direction. He was one of 50 men chosen to be forced laborers.
Leon had a prisoner number, 98288, tattooed on his arm. He became a slave laborer. After six weeks, he survived another selection process. He then worked as a barber. He also sang to the camp guards, called kapos, in the evenings. Leon was a short man, about 5 feet 2 inches tall. He believed his physical training and useful skills helped him survive. He made a promise to God that he would live to tell others about the terrible suffering in the camps.
In September 1943, Leon was moved to the Monowitz industrial complex inside Auschwitz. There, he was subjected to medical experiments. In early 1945, the camp was emptied. Leon was forced on a 90-kilometer "death march" to Gleiwitz. Then, he was taken in open cattle trucks to Buchenwald. On April 11, the camp guards at Buchenwald ran away. Soon after, the camp was freed by the American 3rd Army. Out of the 700 people on the train from Westerbork, only Leon and one other man survived.
Leon Greenman's Later Life
After the war, Leon immediately went back to Rotterdam. In November 1945, he moved back to England. He brought back uniforms and other items from his time in the camp. He lived in Ilford and worked at a market stall for 40 years. He also performed as a singer, using the stage name "Leon Maure."
Campaigning Against Racism
In 1962, Leon heard a far-right leader speaking at a rally in Trafalgar Square. This made him decide to share his story with everyone. For the rest of his life, he visited schools to teach about the Holocaust. He would show them his tattoo and tell them what he went through.
He gave photographs and other items to the Jewish Museum in Finchley. In 1995, the museum opened a special area to show his collection. A book about him, Leon Greenman Auschwitz Survivor 98288, was published in 1996. Even into his nineties, Leon was at the museum every Sunday. He would talk to anyone about his experiences. He also guided tours at the Auschwitz camp itself.
Later, the museum's collection moved to the Jewish Museum in Camden. When it reopened in 2010, Leon's items became part of a permanent display called the Holocaust Gallery.
Leon also actively campaigned against extreme right-wing groups. He often received threats because of this. In 1994, his home in London was attacked. In 1993, he joined a protest to close the headquarters of the British National Party. He also strongly supported groups like the Anti-Nazi League and Unite Against Fascism. In 2002, at age 91, he protested against a visit to London by a far-right politician from Austria. In 1988, he received an OBE award for his work against racism.
Leon Greenman never remarried.
His Final Years
In 2006, Leon had a heart attack and received a pacemaker. He passed away in Barnet Hospital after getting pneumonia. This happened after an operation for a broken bone from a fall. He was buried at East Ham Cemetery, near his father and two siblings. People later suggested that a memorial should be built for him in the peace garden at Valentines Park in Ilford.
See also
- Tex Banwell and Jane Haining: other British people who were prisoners in Auschwitz.
