The Wiener Holocaust Library’s founder, Dr Alfred Wiener, had three daughters: Mirjam (right), Eva (left) and Ruth (middle). In 1943, the three girls were imprisoned with their mother in Westerbork and were later deported to Bergen-Belsen in 1944. They were released on a rare prisoner exchange scheme in 1945. Wiener Holocaust Library Collections.
Designed with the British school curriculum in mind, the content is clearly organised across nine easy-to-navigate topic areas. It is an extremely popular online resource with both teachers and students alike, with over a million-page views every year from users across 140 countries.
The Holocaust Explained key features include:
• Video recordings of Holocaust survivor testimony
• Multimedia content with a variety of new and original maps, photographs, documents and diagrams to help explain key concepts and events
• A glossary of over a thousand words helping to explain difficult vocabulary and specialist terms
• Content written by teachers, historians and Holocaust specialists
• Advanced content for those who have already achieved a good basic understanding of the topic and wish to explore more in greater depth
• Engaging tools for browsing and searching content
• Free, open-platform access. No password, login or subscription required
Over the past two years, The Wiener Holocaust Library has been reviewing and revitalising the content on the website, with unique documents from the Library’s archive integrated along with the introduction of new interactive features. Irreplaceable documents from the Library’s collections are showcased throughout the site to help visualise the content.
Roxzann Baker, Project Coordinator, who has been in charge of researching and rewriting The Holocaust Explained said: “We are thrilled to be relaunching The Holocaust Explained. The Holocaust is one of the darkest chapters of human history and having an engaging resource that delicately explores this topic in a reliable and accessible way for children is essential. The outreach potential of this website is endless, and I hope that the site continues to grow and showcase the compelling and rare documents in The Wiener Holocaust Library’s archives to vast new audiences.”
An election poster supporting Adolf Hitler from the 1932 Reichspräsident elections. This poster plays on the German people’s fear of poverty and misery, presenting Hitler as a strong leader. Wiener Holocaust Library Collections.