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Stories Of Holocaust
Stories that you must know.
The man who changed clothes
"Pinchas Rosenbaum was a noble person, for he had put his life at risk while he helped many others."
This is the story of Pinchas Rosenbaum; The Man Who Changed Clothes
Pinchas Rosenbaum put on the uniforms of his greatest enemies so he could save the lives of his people – both friends and strangers.
He was born in Budapest, the capital of Hungary in Eastern Europe, in 1923. He grew up in a family devoted to the Jewish faith and his father was a Rabbi – a holy man who led the people at his local synagogue. It was a mainly peaceful and safe place to grow up.
When the Second World War broke out in 1939, the leaders of Hungary decided to support Hitler and the Nazis, thinking this would be best for their country’s future. For a while, life continued as normal for Pinchas and his family.
But, by March 1944, the Regent who ruled Hungary – Miklos Horthy – had started talking to the Allies about switching sides.
The Nazis found out about this, invaded and took power from the Regent, handing it to the brutal Arrow Cross Party which hated the Jews and admired Hitler.
Until then, the Jews had been able to survive in Budapest. Indeed, refugees from Slovakia had poured into the city believing it would be a safe haven for their families.
All of that changed in 1944. Immediately, restrictions were placed on how Jews could live their daily lives. They could not travel freely. Their telephones and radios were confiscated. Jews were forced to wear a Yellow Star on their clothing – a public sign of their religion, and often an excuse for them to be treated differently and to become targets for racist words or attacks.
Their homes and businesses were seized. By June, all Jews remaining in Budapest were ordered to move to ghettos – certain buildings marked with a Star of David – a sign that only Jews lived in that place. Jews would be fenced in, living in terrible, unhealthy conditions. Often, more than one family would have to live in a single room.
After a few weeks in the ghettos, many of the Jews were put on trains and deported either to transit camps or to the notorious Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Most were murdered on arrival, simply because they were Jews.
Pinchas Rosenbaum, then a young man of 18, was ordered to report to a Nazi work camp but managed to escape. When he got home, he found that his parents had already been taken to Auschwitz.
He had managed to get hold of false identification papers which would have saved his family. He tried to convince his father, Rav Shmuel Shmelke Halev, to use them to get to safety but he refused. A proud man who cared for his people, Rav Schmuel would not take the papers because he said his place was with his people.
[Pinchas never saw him again. His father, mother and five brothers and sisters were murdered in Auschwitz later in 1944.]
During this horrific time, many Jews looked for places to hide in the city. Their plight seemed hopeless but there was help for a few. Many countries had embassies in Budapest, protected from the reach of the Nazis. An embassy is like a piece of foreign soil within another country. Its border cannot be crossed and its residents are protected. People working at embassies were called diplomats – and some of them in Budapest decided to help desperate Jewish families.
Carl Ludz worked at the Swiss embassy. He made a deal with the Hungarian government that 8,000 Jews in the city could be taken to safety in Palestine, a country far away from Europe. Carl knew that wasn’t enough so, instead of 8,000 people, he decided to take 8,000 families. That way, he could save many more. Pinchas went to work for him.
Pinchas was in the habit of carrying a gun. It was a wise move in a city overrun by occupying soldiers who cared little for the rule of law and would shoot and kill someone without warning. One night, in a desperate situation, Pinchas shot and killed two of the hated Arrow Cross soldiers. As they lay dying, he took their uniforms, thinking they might come in useful.
A few days later, he heard that a Jewish family was about to be taken away to a concentration camp. Without considering how dangerous it might be, Pinchas put on the uniform of the Arrow Cross and burst in on the family. He chased them out of their apartment and into a black car which appeared to be an Arrow Cross vehicle. The family were distraught and in tears, thinking they would never see each other or their friends again.
Only after a while, and far away from the enemy, did Pinchas reveal to the family that he was himself a Jew and he was taking them to safety. He took them to the Glass House, a former glass factory in Vadatz Street, Budapest which was under the control of the Swiss government. The Nazis and the Arrow Cross were not allowed to enter and it became the temporary home of thousands of Jews and refugees in 1944.
Hellen Weisel was a 13-year-old Jewish schoolgirl in Budapest. She can remember Pinchas coming to save her family. She said: “They shot a lot from the houses. Many were taken to the ghettos, and that’s when Pinchas Rosenbaum came…and they took us out.” Hellen was taken to the Glass Factory and eventually found sanctuary in an orphanage, thanks to the help of another diplomat called Raoul Wallenberg.
Another night, Pinchas heard that the Arrow Cross were having a party with the Nazis at police headquarters. He again put on the uniform and headed off to mingle with the enemy. While he was there, he listened constantly for any snippets of conversation about the following day’s activities. Which streets would be visited next? Which family was next in line to be taken to the camps?
As soon as Pinchas was sure of the plan, he quietly left the party, went directly to the family in danger, and ensured they were moved away during the night. When the Arrow Cross raided their house the following day, they were shocked to find every room empty.
[Surely Pinchas could not get away with again. He knew that to be captured in an enemy uniform would mean certain death. Still, he did not rest.]
Towards the end of 1944, Pinchas was told that one of his friends, Zeidi, had been captured by the Gestapo, the evil Nazi secret police. Zeidi’s crime had been handing out forged certificates which would have helped Jewish people to safety under the protection of the Swiss.
Zeidi was tortured but still refused to betray others who were working with him. He was so badly treated he had to be taken to a hospital in Vessleny Street. Pinchas and his friends decided Zeidi needed to be rescued that night. This time he put on the uniform of the Gestapo and marched into the hospital demanding to see the prisoner Zeidi. The barely-conscious patient was brought to them: they were able to get him into their vehicle and off to safety, arriving at the Glass House around 4.30 in the morning. Zeidi was saved.
On December 26th, 1944, Budapest was surrounded by Russian and Romanian troops. On February 13th, 1945, the remaining Nazi and Arrow Cross forces surrendered.
Pinchas Rosenbaum had survived the war. He went on to marry and have a family of his life. He lived until 1980 and is buried in Jerusalem. Through his bravery, he saved the lives of hundreds, maybe thousands of Jews in Hungary.
May God bless his soul for the noble deeds that he did.
What noble deed have you done?
Do your noble deed, share this story of a forgotten hero with the world.