Photos of Refugees in Vilnius
Vilnius, Lithuania, 1939. Photographs of refugees
On September 1st, 1939 the German Army invaded Poland. England and France, both Poland’s allies, declared war on Germany two days later. Despite heroic resistance, Poland collapsed in weeks, and the Polish government went into exile. Around 15,000 Jewish refugees made their way to Vilnius right after the war broke. Men, especially Jewish men, had been advised to leave Warsaw to avoid falling into the hands of the Germans. These are photos of refugees in Vilnius. The first photo shows people in the crowded waiting room of the Committee for Refugees from Germany, Bohemia, and Moravia. The second photo depicts male refugee students at a meal at the Lubavitcher Yeshiva; older students sit at the front and younger students at the back.
