Holocaust Survival Differentials in the Netherlands, 1942–1945: The Role of Wealth and Nationality

Almost all of the 140,000 Jews living in the Netherlands when the German occupation began were sent to transit camps and eventually to death camps, but not on the same timetable. According to the Jews themselves, social-economic class and (pre-war) nationality played an important role in determining when and whether people were sent to meet their death. However, data from the province of Overijssel reveal that Jews from the highest social economic class were, in general, transferred to Westerbork transit camp at a later date than were Jews from lower social-economic classes. Although the usual assumption is that Jews who had more time to find a safe hideout had a better chance to survive the Holocaust, the analysis reveals otherwise. The results for nationality are similar. German Jews from Overijssel were, in general, deported from Westerbork transit camp to the death camps in the East later than were Dutch Jews from the same province. Even though this delay reduced the likelihood that German Jews were sent to a concentration camp that had a survival rate even worse than the one at Auschwitz, German Jews did not survive the Holocaust to a greater extent than did Dutch Jews.