The Forgers

The True Story of the Holocaust’s Most Audacious Rescue Operation

Roger Moorhouse

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Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Vintage
05 November 2024

True stories of heroism, endurance & survival; History; The Holocaust; Second World War; Political oppression & persecution; Political activism

An inspirational story of resistance and resilience, of the heroism of ordinary men against overwhelming odds

Between 1940 and 1943, a group of Polish diplomats in Switzerland engaged in a wholly remarkable - and until now, completely unknown - humanitarian operation. In concert with Jewish activists, they masterminded a systematic programme of forging passports and identity documents for Latin American countries, which were then smuggled into German-occupied Europe to save the lives of thousands of Jews facing extermination in the Holocaust.

While the Nazis unleashed their murderous fury, they retained a strange legalism that respected the citizens and passport holders of neutral countries. At first, these Jews were interned, in relative comfort, to be exchanged for German citizens held in these countries. Yet when it became obvious that the Latin American states were unwilling to honour these illegally issued documents, the 'Exchange Jews' gradually lost the protection that had saved them from the death camps.

With the international community failing to act, the operation was one of the largest actions to aid Jews of the entire war. The Forgers tells this extraordinary story for the first time. We follow the desperate bids of Jews to obtain these life-saving documents; we witness their painful uncertainty over whether they will offer the desired protection, as the Nazi death machine draws ever closer. And we witness the quiet heroism of a group of ordinary men who decided to do something rather than nothing and saved thousands of lives.

By: Roger Moorhouse
Imprint: Vintage
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 197mm, Width: 129mm, Spine: 18mm
Weight: 230g
ISBN: 9781529923667
ISBN 10: 1529923662
Pages: 288
Publication Date: 05 November 2024
Audience: General/trade , Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , ELT Advanced , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Roger Moorhouse is a historian and author specialising in modern German history. He is the co-author, with Norman Davies, of Microcosm- Portrait of a Central European City, and the author of Killing Hitler- The Third Reich and the Plots Against the Fuhrer and The Devil's Alliance- Hitler's Pact with Stalin.

Reviews for The Forgers: The True Story of the Holocaust’s Most Audacious Rescue Operation

The Forgers is a well-constructed and agreeably concise book with a clear narrative drive and fascinating detail ... Moorhouse's most laudable achievement is the light he shines on Lados and his team, who saved at least 2,000 Jews from extermination. Until now, they have not received the recognition they deserve * Gerard de Groot, The Times * Among the many remarkable aspects of The Forgers is the fact that the prime movers were Poles, many of whom were notorious for antisemitism ... [Moorhouse] does well to highlight that some Poles displayed admirable compassion. * Max Hastings, Sunday Times * Roger Moorhouse, the leading historian on Poland's war, publishes a full account of Lados's efforts in an excellent book on the passport ring * Daniel Finkelstein, The Times * Absorbing... It is a story that seems not to have been told much outside the academic literature, and it is deeply researched and well reported here * Spectator * In this fascinating book, Roger Moorhouse shines a light on extraordinary, audacious and little-known rescue operation * Mail on Sunday *