Tragedy at Évian

How the World Allowed Hitler to Proceed with the Holocaust

Author: Tony Matthews

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In July 1938 the United States, Great Britain and thirty other countries participated in a vital conference at Évian-les-Bains, France, to discuss the persecution and possible emigration of the European Jews, specifically those caught under the anvil of Nazi atrocities. However, most of those nations rejected the pleas then being made by the Jewish communities, thus condemning them to the Holocaust.

There is no doubt that the Évian conference was a critical turning point in world history. The disastrous outcome of the conference set the stage for the murder of six million people. Today we live in a world defined by turmoil with a disturbing rise of authoritarian governments and ultra right-wing nationalism. The plight of refugees is once more powerfully affecting public attitudes towards those most in need. Now, on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the end of the Second World War, it’s time to reflect on the past to ensure we never again make the same mistakes.

Tragedy at Évian also shines a spotlight on some of the astonishing and courageous stories of heroic efforts of individuals and private organisations who, despite the decisions made at Évian, worked under extremely dangerous conditions, frequently giving their own lives to assist in the rescue of the Jewish people.

About the Author

Tony Matthews is a Welsh-Australian author and historian who has dedicated almost his entire adult life to writing and researching Australian and world history. He also writes extensively on military and espionage history with a specific emphasis on both world wars. He is the author of almost forty books, including several novels. While still at school, Tony became distressed for a considerable period when he first learned about the Holocaust. He subsequently discovered that his father, Emrys Matthews, had been one of the British troops who had liberated the notorious Bergen-Belsen concentration camp on 15 April 1945, where thousands of starving survivors, many of them riddled with typhus, were being held after the death-marches from other camps such as Auschwitz. When Tony later discovered that significant Jewish migration from Germany and Austria could have taken place successfully in 1938 and 1939, therefore, mitigating the Holocaust to a considerable degree, he became determined to write a book clearly describing the failure of the international community to prevent, or alleviate, the Nazi genocide.