Nach Holocaust und Zwangsarbeit: Britische humanitäre Hilfe in Deutschland: Die Helfer, die Befreiten und die Deutschen

Abstract

Abstract in English, text in German. After the Second World War, British voluntary organisations were among the first in the field of international humanitarian assistance in Europe. To begin with, British help was directed only to the survivors of the Holocaust and the German forced labour system, but in late 1945 it was extended to German civilians, in particular to children and refugees. Based on British and German archival material, the monograph examines the interrelations between British humanitarian assistance and British occupation policy in Germany. Special emphasis has been given to the work of British voluntary organisations and the interdependencies between governmental and non-governmental efforts. The study contributes to research on British civil society as well as to the ongoing Opferdebatte (debate on Germans as victims of the war) in Germany. The book is divided into seven chapters: Chapter one is dominated by an analysis of British and international war-time planning; the foundation of the 'United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration', the 'Council of British Societies for Relief Abroad', and the training of welfare workers are examined. Chapter two looks at humanitarian assistance in Europe during the final stage of the war, with a particular focus on the liberation of Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Chapter three concentrates on the organisation and structure of British humanitarian assistance in Germany, the appeals for funds in Britain and their distribution in Germany. Chapters four and five analyse the help provided for Displaced Persons and the problems of repatriation. Chapter six focuses on the field of German welfare, the reconstruction of German voluntary organisations, and the cooperation between relief teams and the Military Government. Chapter seven examines how NGOs and relief workers viewed their work in Germany, and how they perceived the Displaced Persons and the German population.