Commons, and the Political History Commons

In March 1942 the fate of the Jews of Slovakia seemed sealed. As a protectorate of Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic ordered the deportation of the region’s Jews to “resettlement camps ” in Poland. Yet only seven months later, the deportations had completely ceased and did not resume for two years. How did a country so eager to be rid of its Jewish population that it initially paid Germany to deport Jews change policy to such a radical degree?1 Germany desired to present Slovakia as a successful and independent country and the liberal relationship it established with Slovak politicians was an essential component in diverting the objective to murder Slovakia’s Jewish population. Existing scholarship on these events has yielded several explanations for the two-year cessation of Jewish deportations. Joan Campion asserts that the bribery of Slovak and German officials by the underground Working Group was responsible for the halt in deportations.2 Further, John Conway presents the theory that pressure from the Vatican and other religious leaders in Slovakia turned public opinion against the deportations.3 On this subject, Ivan Kamenec emphasizes the importance of a series of exemptions put in place by the Slovak government to effect the halt.4 Each of these authors makes a compelling argument in support o