Danish fishing boat used for the rescue of Jews during the occupation of Denmark, now on display at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
In 1943, three years after the German occupation of Denmark, the Nazis decided to deport all Jews from the Scandinavian nation. In response, Danish fisherman began to ferry Jews to neutral Sweden in their boats, assisted by ordinary citizens and the Danish police and government. Over 7,700 people were saved.
Denmark (USHMM)
Passengers on the Deck of the St. Louis, 1939
In 1939 a group of German Jews left Hamburg, Germany for Cuba aboard the luxury ocean liner St. Louis. Upon arrival, however, the entrance visas of all but 28 passengers were rejected, and the rest were forced to return to Europe, where they eventually were accepted by France, England, Belgium, and The Netherlands. As the war progressed, only those who ended up in England found relative safety, as the Nazi army spread through the rest of mainland Europe.