Genocide (World at War Episode)
Encyclopedia
"Genocide" is episode 20 of the 1973 Thames Television
documentary series The World at War. It contains first-person testimonies concerning the Holocaust, and features film footage and photographs of the events described. The episode was written by Charles Bloomberg, and was researched by Drora Kass and Susan McConachy. Due to the seriousness of its contents, it was originally, and sometimes subsequently, screened without commercial interruptions.
himself giving a warning to the viewer about the disturbing scenes that are about to be shown in the episode. (This scene precedes the opening Thames logo, and does not appear in all subsequent broadcasts or DVD releases.) It then goes to the rise of a young clerk in the Nazi party hierarchy--Heinrich Himmler
, who will eventually lead the SS, and the impression given by a young recruit at the time--Karl Wolff
, who later became Himmler's adjutant. The episode charts the rise of the SS, the formulation of Nazi policy against the Jews, and its first atrocities, which tend to be messy and inefficient. So a method was searched for exterminating the Jews, which turned out to be gassing. The Wannsee Conference
formulated this "final solution," and camps were built for this purpose near railway lines, especially one named Auschwitz. Once the mechanics were done, the exterminations began until the end of the war--with nothing done to stop it. Subterfuges were employed to hide the truth, including the infamous Theresienstadt camp.
The episode features interviews with three former SS members: Richard Böch, Wilhelm Höttl
and Karl Wolff
. Böch was a lance-corporal based at Auschwitz, and in the program he relates that he saw a gassing first-hand. Höttl was a major and SS administrator, and he testifies that Adolf Eichmann
himself told him that six million Jews had been killed. General Wolff, the adjutant to Heinrich Himmler
, recalled that he once accompanied Himmler on a visit to a camp near Minsk
. Wolff narrates that Himmler witnessed shootings there, and became ill after being accidentally spattered during one execution.
Six Jewish Holocaust survivors also give their accounts: Rita Boas Koupman, from the Netherlands
; Avraham Kochavi and Rivka Yosilevska, from Poland
; Dov Paisikowic, from Hungary
; Rudolf Vrba
, from Czechoslovakia
; and Primo Levi
, from Italy
. Paisikowic worked in several crematoria in Auschwitz, and he saw a number of gassings, including that of a group of Gypsies.
There is also an interview with Lord Avon (Anthony Eden), Winston Churchill
's foreign secretary, in which he describes how evidence of the mass killings reached his office, and his statement to the House of Commons
on the subject at the end of 1942.
The end credits include a notice about Richard Böch, in which his name is spelt differently. It states that:
The Producers wish to make it clear that former S.S. Lance Corporal Richard Böck has been exonerated by investigators of Nazi crimes at Auschwitz. He had been commended for steadfastly refusing orders to take part in the killings.
's decision to organise a Holocaust Denial
conference prompted one of those involved in producing the episode to write to The Guardian
newspaper with some background information:
Thames Television
Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
documentary series The World at War. It contains first-person testimonies concerning the Holocaust, and features film footage and photographs of the events described. The episode was written by Charles Bloomberg, and was researched by Drora Kass and Susan McConachy. Due to the seriousness of its contents, it was originally, and sometimes subsequently, screened without commercial interruptions.
Summary
The programme begins with Laurence OlivierLaurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
himself giving a warning to the viewer about the disturbing scenes that are about to be shown in the episode. (This scene precedes the opening Thames logo, and does not appear in all subsequent broadcasts or DVD releases.) It then goes to the rise of a young clerk in the Nazi party hierarchy--Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
, who will eventually lead the SS, and the impression given by a young recruit at the time--Karl Wolff
Karl Wolff
Karl Friedrich Otto Wolff was a high-ranking member of the Nazi Schutzstaffel , ultimately holding the rank of SS-Obergruppenführer and General of the Waffen-SS. He became Chief of Personal Staff to the Reichsführer and SS Liaison Officer to Hitler until his replacement in 1943...
, who later became Himmler's adjutant. The episode charts the rise of the SS, the formulation of Nazi policy against the Jews, and its first atrocities, which tend to be messy and inefficient. So a method was searched for exterminating the Jews, which turned out to be gassing. The Wannsee Conference
Wannsee Conference
The Wannsee Conference was a meeting of senior officials of the Nazi German regime, held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee on 20 January 1942. The purpose of the conference was to inform administrative leaders of Departments responsible for various policies relating to Jews, that Reinhard Heydrich...
formulated this "final solution," and camps were built for this purpose near railway lines, especially one named Auschwitz. Once the mechanics were done, the exterminations began until the end of the war--with nothing done to stop it. Subterfuges were employed to hide the truth, including the infamous Theresienstadt camp.
The episode features interviews with three former SS members: Richard Böch, Wilhelm Höttl
Wilhelm Höttl
Wilhelm Höttl or Hoettl was an Austrian Nazi Party member, SS officer, secret agent, author and doctor of history....
and Karl Wolff
Karl Wolff
Karl Friedrich Otto Wolff was a high-ranking member of the Nazi Schutzstaffel , ultimately holding the rank of SS-Obergruppenführer and General of the Waffen-SS. He became Chief of Personal Staff to the Reichsführer and SS Liaison Officer to Hitler until his replacement in 1943...
. Böch was a lance-corporal based at Auschwitz, and in the program he relates that he saw a gassing first-hand. Höttl was a major and SS administrator, and he testifies that Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Otto Eichmann was a German Nazi and SS-Obersturmbannführer and one of the major organizers of the Holocaust...
himself told him that six million Jews had been killed. General Wolff, the adjutant to Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
, recalled that he once accompanied Himmler on a visit to a camp near Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
. Wolff narrates that Himmler witnessed shootings there, and became ill after being accidentally spattered during one execution.
Six Jewish Holocaust survivors also give their accounts: Rita Boas Koupman, from the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
; Avraham Kochavi and Rivka Yosilevska, from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
; Dov Paisikowic, from Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
; Rudolf Vrba
Rudolf Vrba
Rudolf "Rudi" Vrba, born Walter Rosenberg was a Slovak-Canadian professor of pharmacology at the University of British Columbia, who came to public attention during the Second World War when, in April 1944, he escaped from the Auschwitz concentration camp in German-occupied Poland with the first...
, from Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
; and Primo Levi
Primo Levi
Primo Michele Levi was an Italian Jewish chemist and writer. He was the author of two novels and several collections of short stories, essays, and poems, but is best known for If This Is a Man, his account of the year he spent as a prisoner in the Auschwitz concentration camp in Nazi-occupied Poland...
, from Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Paisikowic worked in several crematoria in Auschwitz, and he saw a number of gassings, including that of a group of Gypsies.
There is also an interview with Lord Avon (Anthony Eden), Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
's foreign secretary, in which he describes how evidence of the mass killings reached his office, and his statement to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
on the subject at the end of 1942.
The end credits include a notice about Richard Böch, in which his name is spelt differently. It states that:
The Producers wish to make it clear that former S.S. Lance Corporal Richard Böck has been exonerated by investigators of Nazi crimes at Auschwitz. He had been commended for steadfastly refusing orders to take part in the killings.
The making of the episode
In December 2006, IranIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
's decision to organise a Holocaust Denial
Holocaust denial
Holocaust denial is the act of denying the genocide of Jews in World War II, usually referred to as the Holocaust. The key claims of Holocaust denial are: the German Nazi government had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews, Nazi authorities did not use extermination camps and gas...
conference prompted one of those involved in producing the episode to write to The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper with some background information:
- The news that Iran is to go ahead with a conference that will supposedly investigate whether the Holocaust actually happened...is deeply shocking. Thirty years ago when I was working on the Holocaust episode of the ITV series The World At War, my colleagues and I deliberately decided not to stop when we had gathered the first-hand witness evidence we needed for making the programme, but to gather more and put it together to be kept for posterity for use against the day when people or states claiming intellectual respectability might try to claim that the Holocaust did not happen. Sadly, it seems that day may now have arrived. We did not only collect the evidence of those who were victims in Hitler's Final Solution, but from people who held senior positions in its planning, administration and execution. All this material is stored in the Imperial War MuseumImperial War MuseumImperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
, is available and will, I hope, now be used to show that those who would now deny the Holocaust happened are wrong...
- Michael DarlowMichael DarlowMichael Darlow is a television director. His works include Genocide and Bomber Harris.-External links:...
- Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts