A new exhibition is opening in Swansea that tells the story of Jewish refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe who came to live in South Wales during the turbulent years before the Second World War.
The exhibition tells the moving stories of Jewish adults and children from Central and Eastern Europe who arrived in South Wales after the rise of Hitler in 1933. They came from different countries and different backgrounds but they were all fugitives from Nazism.
The exhibition is called Jewish Refugees in South Wales 1933 to 1945 and will be available in the Civic Centre foyer from January 10 to February 5. It’s been organised by the West Glamorgan Archive Service as part of Swansea Council’s commemoration of Holocaust Memorial Day – an event held every year in the UK on January 27.
Part of the exhibition is dedicated to the history of the Kindertransport, the government-sanctioned mission to rescue Jewish children from Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia.
Approximately 10,000 children were helped by concerned groups in the UK to flee the Third Reich before the outbreak of war in 1939.
After their arrival at reception camps on the east coast of England, the children were then sent to homes across the UK where they were placed with foster parents – many of whom lived in South Wales. Many of these children never saw their birth parents again.
Another part of the exhibition describes the contribution of Jewish refugees to the economy and cultural life of South Wales. It tells the story of some of the Jewish entrepreneurs who were encouraged by the British Government to establish factories on the Treforest Industrial Estate near Pontypridd and how these firms created jobs in an area of mass unemployment.
The exhibition also celebrates the contribution of Jewish medical refugees who practiced as doctors, dentists and nurses in South Wales. These medical refugees helped raise the standard of health care in Wales following the creation of the National Health Service in 1948.
The influence of émigré artists like Heinz Koppel and Josef Herman on the artistic community of South Wales is also explored.
A grant from the Welsh Government has helped make the exhibition possible.
Cllr Graham Thomas, Swansea Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Recreation and Tourism, said: “Part of the refurbishment of the former County Hall building into the Civic Centre a few years ago was aimed at developing a space where members of the public could view interesting exhibitions about our shared heritage.
“This exhibition is extremely thought-provoking and poignant but it’s also an inspiration because it shows what a positive impact refugee communities can have on the place that offers them sanctuary.
“This is just as relevant in this day and age as it was in the 1930s and 1940s.”
Contact County Archivist Kim Collis at the West Glamorgan Archive Service for more information on 01792 636760.
