Housing, Hiding and the Holocaust. Introduction

Abstract

The introduction outlines content and scope of this special issue on "Housing, Hiding and the Holocaust". It points out that during World War II-ccupation accommodation became a scarce commodity, with collapsing housing markets. As a consequence, in those places where the German army (and navy) was stationed, direct contact between the occupiers and the occupied couldn't be avoided. Worst hit by housing restrictions was the Jewish population, even prior to ghettoization. The introduction ends with a short outline of the following chapters, discussing France, the Netherlands, Norway and Poland. They all show profound ruptures in patterns of everyday normality while highlighting that the Jewish populations were doubly threatened: As members of occupied societies and as victims of the Nazi policy of genocide.