Raoul Wallenberg Essay, Research Paper

Raoul Wallenberg led a one man crusade in saving more than 100,000 Jews. When

researching Raoul Wallenberg it is important to consider his early live, saving the Jews, and mysterious disappearance. He saved Jews in varius methods such as Protective passports and save housing. People thought highly of him for saving so many Jews. Raoul Wallenberg mysteriously disappeared. There have been sightings of him in the soviet prisons, but no one really knows his true fate.

Raoul Wallenberg Sr. died of cancer before his son, Raoul Wallenberg Jr., Was born. He died a few days after his wife’s twenty first birthday (Linne’a 5,6). Maj, Raoul’s mom, married a

health department official named Frederick Von Dardel when Raoul was six years old. Mr. Von Dardel treated him as his own but Raoul knew he would always be a Wallenberg. Raoul’s grand father Gustav Wallenberg, which he called Farfar, was Sweden’s ambassador to Turkey. Farfar told Raoul of his plans to open a world bank and that he would like his help. Farfar told Raoul exiting stories of the Wallenergs in the past. Jacob Wallenberg helped open trade routes to China and Japan. His great grand father, Andre Oscar, went to sea at the age of fifteen and became a steam boat captain not long after. Raoul dreamed of being one of the “Big Men” like the men in his family. He looked at them as fearless Vikings (Linne’a 7,8).

Raoul studied architecture at the university of Michigan in Arbor, Michigan U.S.A. He could learn about banking after collage. He wasn’t good in math this isn’t good for a future banker (Linne’a 15,18). He finished his architecture course in three and a half years which is a four and a half year class. He won a medal awarded to one student out of each class of eleven

hundred students.

“Thirty five years later Dr. Jean Paul Slusser recall at Ann Abor. He was one of the

brightest and best students I think I had in my thirty year experience as a professor of drawing and painting.’”

One of his classmates remembered him as:

A very talented yet modest person who showed great insight if finding simple solutions to complex problems. Neither his conduct not his manner of dress gave anyone who know him the slightest clew to his high station in life as a member of one of Sweden’s most distinguished families (bierman 21).

Wallenberg loved hanging out with friends and doing every day normal things. No one In the United States knew of his family’s importance so he was just your normal college student. Wallenberg liked to draw and paint things. He was good at it, too. One of his professors said he could have a career in art, but Raoul was going into banking with his grandfather. Were ever

Wallenberg went in the summer he hitch hiked. He liked it and got the chance to meet lots of different people (Linne’a 156). On his Summer break of 1935 he worked it a Swedish pavilion making three dollars a day at the Chicago world’s fair. The next summer he and a college buddy drove to Mexico to stay a few weeks with his aunt and uncle who lived on the outskirts of Mexico city (Bierman 21, 22).

Raoul received the assignment of secretary of legislation in the Budapest mission to head the rescue effort for the Jews (Anger 49,50). So Raoul set up hiding places, gave out fake passports of neutral Sweden to those on there way to certain death. He bribed guards, clerks, and police to detain certain people wile Raoul snuck Jews to safety (Cusack). Wallenberg came up with an idea to make protective passports. These were the identification papers in blue and yellow with the three crowns emblem on them. These would aid in the saving of thousands upon thousands of Jews . Different organization funded Wallenberg, but some times the money he spent on these protective passports and safe houses came from his own pocket (Anger 50, 51). Wallenberg always had someone on watch for departing trains. He would show up on a train with long list of protective passport holders and demand that they be let go if any had been mistakenly put aboard. Wallenberg took large numbers of Jews who had no passports at all. This bluff saved many lives (Anger 89,90). Hungary promised passport holders certain buildings at Budapest “Swedish Houses” while waiting for “imigration” to Sweden. Later more jews were moved in with out authorities permission. Soon, the number of Jews in safe houses was more that double the number authorized. Jews could not be transported through Germany. So, they were granted to take off theie yellow star. This gave them more protection and movement. They stayed under Swedish protection in these safe houses until the killing was over (Anger 57, 58).

Using his same old methods of bribery, coercion, and sometimes outright black male, Wallenberg established an impressive private intelligence network that gave him up to the minute information about deportation, raids on protective housing, and now official anti- Jewish measures. It was because of this he was able to turn at the most un expected times and save so many Jewish lives (Bierman 92).

When Wallenberg was picked by the us minister in Stockholm to lead the mission, it was said there was none better for the job. He was a good organizer, unconventional, very inventive, cool-headed, and some thing of a go-getter. He was very good with languages and knowledgeable in Hungarian affairs. He was a great thinker and an all around good person. He knew exactly what it would take to save as many Jews as possible (anger 49,50). There was a rumor going around about his almost super man ability in what seemed to a hopeless situation. He was despised but feared by the arrow cross men. Raoul became the Budapest Jews savior from final execution. He was loved among all the Jews (Anger 91). On September 22, 1981 the U.S. thought so highly of him they granted him honorary citizenship. The House of Representatives voted 396 to 2 in favor of Wallenberg. Honorary citizenship is an extraordinary honor not frequently granted. Congress voted only once before to grant it and that was to Winston Churchill (Cusack).

Wallenberg disappeared into Soviet prisons in 1945. Some experts say his last sightings were in the late fifty and others in the late seventies. There is documented evidence that Wallenberg was seen in prisons of Gulag for years (Rosenthal). Here are some documented sightings of Raoul Wallenberg.

Feb. 1945 Lubyanka prison, Moscow

April 1945 Lefortove prison, Moscow

July 1947 Vladimir prison, Vladimir

Dec.1947 Itna. camp, Arctic Circle

Jan.1948 Lubyanka prison, Moscow

Summer 1948 Kahlmer-Yu camp, Verkuta

Spring 1949 Butyrk prison, Gork

1951 Lubyanka prison, Moscow

1951 Verkhne Uralsk, Vladimir

1953 Vladimir prison, Vladimir

1955 Gork, Transit prison, Gork

1955 Corpus prison hospital block, Vlanimir prison, Vledimir

1959 Vladimir prison, Vladimir

1961 Mental Institution, Mascow

1962 Isolation Barracks, Wrangel island, Arctic Ocean

1963 Lubyanka prison, Mascow

1966 prison, Siberia

1967 Isolation section camp, Irkutsk region

1972 Potma, Mardoria

1975 prison hospital, Gork, central prison

1978 lubyanka prison, mascow

1978 Blagvceschensk special psychiatric prison, Amur regain

1980 Leningrad area prison hospital (Smith 188,189)

Rumors from released prisoner have caused Swedish authorities and other international groups to press the Soviets for information on Wallenberg. The U.S. is expected to join the search for info on the fate and whereabouts of Wallenberg (Cusack).

Even with documented evidence the Russians have refused to admit he was seen in their prisons. The Russians may have thought he was a U.S. agent at first, so they took him as a hostage, but when they found out he wasn’t, his very existence became a great embarrassment to be kept secret (Rosenthal). According to Vladimir Dekansos on January 16th, 1945 Wallenberg was in Soviet hands. On March 8, 1945 the soviet controlled Kossuth Radio in Budapest said

Wallenberg was murdered by Hungarian fascists of by agents of the Gestapo. Alexandra Kollentai, the Soviet ambassador to Sweden, in February, 1945 Raoul is in the USSR. Wallenberg is not in the Soviet Union and is unknown to us says Andre Vyshinsky August 18, 1947. Konstantin Hadionov said the same on August 5, 1953. So did Soviet Foreign Ministry on March 18, 1956. (Smith 189,190). Wallenberg died July 1947 in his jail cell of a heart attack. The body was cremated with out an autopsy. This was in a hand written report from the Lubyanka Prison to victor Abakumon. This says that Wallenberg was a prisoner in the USSR (Smith 190,191). Gorbachev knows and can tell the world if he is still alive or not. And if he isn’t, Gorbachev can say how, when, and where the Savior of the Jews died. It is important for the world to know (Rosenthal).

In conclusion, the man who saved thousands of Jews by himself had a family, education, and hobbies in his early life. He risked his life giving out passports and housing Jews. Then he

disappeared into Soviet prisons. Some think they have seen him there. No one really knows, but his courage and bravery stills stands in the hearts of the thousands of Jews he saved. When researching Raoul Wallenberg it is important to consider his early life, saving Jews and mysterious disappearance.