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Article:
Dinur, Benzion, "Problems Confronting 'Yad Vashem' in its Work of Research"

Published in:
Yad Vashem Studies 1 (1957) 7-30

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Problems Confronting 'Yad Warhem'
in its Work of Research
By BENZION DINUR
I
THE INITIAL PROBLEM confronting Yad Washem in its
work of research into the catastrophe which engulfed European
Jewry during the Second World War and into Jewish re-
sistance in this period, is that of defining and delimiting its
objectives. It is essential at the very outset to clarify the nature
of these objectives in keeping with the general purpose and
functions of the Memorial Authority-Yad Washem as de-
fined in the relevant Act of Knesset.
The "Memorial to the European Jewish Catastrophe and
Jewish Resistance-Yad Washem Act" was drafted after care-
ful study in a number of bodies,-a special Committee of the
Ministry of Education and Culture, a special Cabinet Com-
mittee, the Cabinet Legislative Committee, a Joint Committee
comprising members of the Knesset Committees for Education
and Culture and for Law, Legislation and Justice, and finally
by the Israel Knesset. The minutes of these various committees
and the Knesset Record (Divrei Haknesset) provide adequate
testimony that the most meticulous care was invested in the
drafting and terminology of the Act, not only in respect of
their immediate meaning but also taking into account their
wider implications. If we wish to understand the function that
devolves on Yad Washem under this Act and the means by
which the Memorial Authority must carry out its responsibili-
ties, we must first carefully study the Act itself. We must elu-
cidate the functions which have been entrusted under the Act
7
BENZION DINUR
to Yad Washem and which the Memorial Authority has been
instructed to implement. We must also determine the functions
which come within the competence of Yad Washem, because
of their nature and importance, but which it is not legally
obliged to carry out.
I believe that it is necessary before proceeding to discuss
the functions and aims of Yad Washem in conducting research
into the European catastrophe and Jewish resistance, to clarify
the explicit responsibilities devolving upon it.
II
The objectives of Yad Washem have been set forth in Para-
graph 2 of the Act, dealing with "The functions and com-
petence of Yad Washem." It reads as follows: "The function
of Yad Washem is to gather into the homeland all comme-
moratory material regarding members of the Jewish people who
fell, fought and rebelled against the Nazi enemy and German
satellites, to establish a memorial for them and for the commu-
nities, organizations and institutions, which were destroyed be-
cauSe they belonged to the Jewish people."
The Hebrew term med in this Act is zekher deriving from
the root meaning "to record something known, that it should
be remembered for a long time", "what is preserved in the
human mind of something seen or heard in the past". For
this reason, indeed, the word zekher is often used in the
Bible as a synonym for shem i.e. name. The use of the
phrase "to gather into the homeland all commemoratory mate-
rial" implies primarily the collection and preservation of the
names of all those "members of the Jewish people who fell,
fought and rebelled against the Nazi enemy". The initial
duty of Yad Washem accordingly is to inscribe the names of all
those who lost their lives in the course of the European cata-
strophe, and of all those who fell in the struggle against the
Nazis.
In addition it is the duty of Yad Washem to inscribe the
8
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
names of all the communities, organizations and institutions
that were destroyed.
The Act does not specify the manner in which the names
of the victims of the catastrophe and the resistance must be
inscribed. The method to be adopted is left to the discretion
of the Directorate of Yad Washem. However the Act is un-
ambiguous about the first duty of Yad Washem as set forth
above.
III
Yad Washem is the Memorial Authority for the European
catastrophe and for Jewish resistance. It is by no means for-
tuitous that the terms zekher and zikkaron are repeated in
the various articles of the Act. Yad Washem was entrusted
with the task of implementing the function of commemoration
in its diverse implications. These terms have at least three other
connotations, besides that already referred to. These are: 1.
"An act deliberately performed with the purpose of the pre-
serving something in the heart, to call attention to it constantly
and to publicize it"; 2. "A record in which all details of
testimony collected are preserved, an exact written record";
3. "Attention and study; thought and study of something with
a view to learning a lesson therefrom for future generations."
The legislators kept all these connotations before them in
drafting the Act and incorporated in Article 2 the initial terms
of reference of Yad Washem; as follows: "For this purpose
it shall be authorized:
1. To establish memorial projects upon its own initiative
and under its own direction;
2. To collect, investigate and publish all testimony regard-
ing the catastrophe and to pass on to the people the
lessons to be learned therefrom;
3. To establish the observance of the day set aside by the
Knesset as a Day of Memorial for the European cata-
strophe and for Jewish resistance, and to foster a unified
9
BENZION DINUR
form of commemoration of the heroes and martyrs of
the Jewish people.
Paragraph 2 accordingly deals with the functions of Yad Wa-
shem in conducting research into the catastrophe which over-
whelmed European Jewry, and enumerates four categories of
activities:
1. collection; 2. research; 3. publication; 4. inculcation of
the lesson to be learned from this testimony.
I shall endeavour to explain more fully each of these func-
tions and its peculiar problems.
IV
The first field of competence under the Act is the collection
of testimony dealing with the years of the catastrophe. For
this reason the "Memorial Authority-Y ad Washem" must
engage primarily in the task of collecting historical and other
material dealing with this period, regarding the destruction
of the communities and the extermination of the Jews, the
Jewish resistance and the struggle against the Nazis in all its
forms. This function must, in the nature of things, be the first
to be performed for it provides the basis for other work of
research.
The collection of the material is no easy task and it involves
many problems stemming from the nature, the volume, and
dispersion of the material that must be collected.
This material can be classified into five categories:
1. Documentary material, directly bearing upon the deve-
lopments of the period.
2. Testimony, comprising mainly evidence collected after
the catastrophe, some of its verbal taken during the
examination of witnesses, describing events and incidents,
connected with a definite time and place.
3. Memoirs and reminiscences put down in writing by wit-
10
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
nesses on the basis of their recollection and not as a result
of questions put to them.
4. Literary material. All the many and varied publications
dealing with the years of the catastrophe, the causes and
results of the latter, appearing in all countries and lan-
guages and in all classes of literature.
5. Museum material, relics of the period of catastrophe, of
life in the Ghettoes, of the horrors and atrocities in the
Camps and of all formere of resistance to the Nazis.
Obviously the work of collection of each category of material
has to cope with specific problems. Each calls for special meth-
ods and the employment of diverse experts, e.g. contemporary
historians, bibliographers and archivists, sociologists and jurists.
The problems of the scope, the variety and the dispersion
of the material required are common to all categories enume-
rated. We must bear in mind that in conducting research into
this period we cannot confine our collection of material only
to the category relating to the Nazis and their satellites, the
organizers and perpetraters of the mass slaughter. We must
also seek out material touching upon their victims, the Jewish
people during the years of this national disaster, both in those
countries where the Jewish communities were engulfed by the
Nazi cataclysm and beyond, and the reactions in the outside
world which had a direct and powerful influence upon the
course of events.
Thus documentary material can be classified according to
its source and character into three sub-categories: a. material
relating to the Nazis and their satellites; b. material dealing
with the Jews, their institutions and organizations; c. general
material dealing with the Jews and the persecution they suffer-
ed in other countries and among other peoples (both bellige-
rents who fought against Hitler and neutrals), their institutions
and organizations, insofar as they had any connection with the
existence and fate of the Jews.
11
BENZION DINUR
Each of these sub-categories, again, presents special problems
in regard to the collection of the relevant material. The first
category includes mainly official documents. None of the "ex-
planations" put forward -by the neo-Nazis, and by the large
variety of Nazi collaborateurs and apologists, can alter the
indisputable fact that the extermination of the Jews was a
planned and deliberate attempt at genocide, organized by the
Nazi authorities, in which the entire administrative machine
of the German Reich and the German Army participated, in
one way or another. Despite the "double-talk" utilized and
the extensive destruction of relevant documents-and it must
be admitted that the Germans have been successful in con-
ceiling much of the material relating to this period-the vast
dimensions of the work of extermination, the careful organiza-
tion of such a protracted operation, and also the extent of the
Nazi defeat prevented the destruction of the bulk of the docu-
mentary material. I believe that I shall not be guilty of any
exaggeration in saying that there have been few crimes in
history, of which the guilty men left behind so much docu-
mentary evidence. The Nazi authorities insisted upon detailed
reports from those responsible for the work of extermination,
regarding the "progress" made in the performance of their
"duties". Millions of documents recording the course of the
work of destruction have been salvaged, bearing mute testimony
to the vast extent of the mass murder organized and carried
out by the Nazis. The importance of this material lies in the
assistance it gives in establishing the facts, but because of its
official character it sometimes also provides details regarding
the identity of the victims and the manner in which they met
their death.
The second category of documentary material-the Jewish
material-is important not only because of its content but
because of its quantity. The desire of the Jews to provide testi-
mony for future generations regarding the horrors of this pe-
riod was a characteristic manifestation. It seems that this urge
12
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
to record their testimony was inspired by their wish to place
their case before some Divine Tribunal. Both of these pheno-
mena call for much further research, as a reaction of a "people
conscious of being condemned to death" -a state of mind
into which we have not yet succeeded in penetrating, let alone
understanding.
This urge to give testimony has supplied us with many docu-
ments regarding the Jewish communities, the ghettoes and the
camps, and also of organizations, institutions, of families and
individuals. All this material is of immense importance, both
from the point of view of the historian and as a vital national
relic of the calamity, the lessons of which must be preserved for
future generations.
We must bear in mind, however, that there were important
aspects of Jewish life in this period, regarding which, in the
nature of things, no documents could remain. We refer s p e c i f i ~
cally to the Jewish Resistance, to the underground and various
other forms of active opposition to the Nazis. The only docu-
ments are the testimony and reminiscences inscribed after the
event. It must be assumed also that there will be little docu-
mentary evidence regarding the participation of the Jews in
the war against Hitler, in the various underground movements
which operated in the countries of Europe and in the national
liberation forces, which were established both in Eastern and
in Western Europe. The Nazis sought to denigrate the forces
fighting against them by charging them with conducting "Jew-
ish" warfare. This charge indeed underlay their propaganda both
before and during the war. The attitude of the belligerent powers
was similar, though in the reverse direction, for they sought to
minimize the participation of the Jews in their ranks. In the early
period of the Jewish emancipation, it may be recalled, Jews
serving in the diverse armit's often adopted Christian noms-de-
guerre so as to avoid molestation at the hands of their Christian
fellow-soldiers. One hundred and fifty years later a number
of nations were very circumspect about publicizing the parti-
13
BENZION DINUR
cipation of the Jews in the national liberation forces often
using non-Jewish noms-de-guerre for Jewish organizations. The
collection of whatever documentary material dealing with this
aspect that has remained must be among the most important
functions of Yad Washem. The major task of the latter, how-
ever, must be the recording of testimony and the ingathering of
the indirect evidence available in the press and in literature, in
official regulations, in the grant of medals, in casualty lists and
the like.
The third category of documentary material dealing with
this period is that preserved in archives in foreign countries,
and particularly in countries engaged in the struggle against
Hitler and the satellites of the Nazis. To the best of our know-
ledge the Netherlands is the only country which has establish-
ed an official scientific institution to conduct research into this
period and to preserve the relevant documents. The high scien-
tific standards this institution-the Netherlands State Insti-
tute for War Documentation-has succeeded in maintaining
and the efficiency with which it carries out its duties can, in-
deed, serve a an example for other nations. However, the docu-
mentary material preserved in other countries is of major histo-
ric importance for research into the European catastrophe and
the tragic fate of the Jews everywhere. There are also impor-
tant international institutions (such as the International Com-
mittee of the Red Cross) which have important documentary
material of this character in their possession. These institutions
maintained certain contacts with Germany during the war
years and insofar as this material has survived-according to
one report, for example, the hundreds of thousands of requests
sent by Jews of the Ghettoes to the Red Cross have been
destroyed-it can serve as an important source of information
for our purpose. The immediate problem regarding this mate-
rial is to obtain precise information about its nature and where-
abouts.
Records and documents of the various war criminals' trials
14
PR.OBLEMS OF RESEARCH
constitute material of a more general nature. Not only has an
entire literature based upon these trials emerged but they have
been instrumental in laying bear a rich lode of new material.
Some of this material is of a unique character and includes
the writings and testimony, notes, memoirs and even diaries"
of the criminals themselves. Regarding certain phases of the-.
European catastrophe there are three classes of material: Re-
ports of those responsible for the actual acts of extermination
at the time; the testimony of the victims; and reports of the
criminals after the act.
But despite the wealth of the material available for research
into this period it is very widely dispersed. These documents,
are to be found not only in archives of many countries of the
world, but in the collections of diverse political and social or-
ganizations and scientific institutions-publicly and privately
endowed-for research into this period. Often material on a
single aspect is dispersed over many countries, while thousands
of documents are in the hands of private persons, who survived
the death camps, fought in the underground resistance move-
ments or in the ranks of the diverse armies. Much material is
also retained by societies of people coming from the same town,
by ex-servicemen's organizations, institutions for invalids and
the like.
v
Taking into account the state of affairs outlined in the foregoing,
it seems to me that the general function of Yad Washem in
collecting the testimony relating to the European catastrophe
and the Jewish resistance comprises five basic branches of acti-
vity, as follows: collection (in archives and museums); pre-
paration of photographs; preparation of catalogues; the taking
of testimony and compilation of bibliographies.
1. Collection: It is the immediate duty of Yad Washem
to acquire for its archives as much of the widely dispersed
documentary material as it is able to secure. Its aim must be
to convert its archives into a central institution of its kind for
15
BENZION DINUR
research into the European catastrophe. It must also collect all
museum material, the relics bearing testimony to the events of
the past and capable of conveying something of the terrors
and suffering of the period. This category of material includes
recordings of songs of the Ghetto and the camps, and
documentary films (some of these produced by the Nazis
themselves, others relating to the period of the German defeat
and the liberation of the inmates of concentration camps).
It is difficult to exaggerate the historical significance of mate-
rial of this kind. The vast extent of the extermination opera-
tions, the participation not only of Germans but of members
of other nations, too, the fact that the Ghettoes and the camps
were widely dispersed over many countries, has resulted in
far more relics of this period being preserved than was pre-
viously conceived. These relics include: the special badges
Jews were required to wear in various districts and states (the
yellow patch", the "Magen David" and the like) ; coins and
postage stamps from the Ghettoes and camps; labour cards
and prisoners-books; religious requisites (Torah scrolls, prayer
books, shofarot, mezuzot, and the like); children's text-and
copy-books; photographs of street scenes (of camps and Ghet-
toes), of partisan bands and Ghetto resistance fighters; draw-
ings and other pictorial material-including caricatures-
drawn by artists resident in the Ghettoes and camps, or by
others; exhibits reflecting private and public life, including
clothing worn by the victims of the Nazi terror; embroidery;
uniforms of the prisoners of the camps; children's dolls; musi-
cal instruments; pocket-knives; the weapons and equipment of
the underground and Ghetto fighters; and medals given for
service in the fight against the Nazis. In this category we must,
of course, also include the remains of the victims of the cata-
strophe, and the instruments used to torture them. A consider-
able amount of material emanating from Nazi sources can also
be collected. This class includes sign- and notice-boards from the
camps, albums of photographs depicting scenes in the Ghettoes
16
PR.OBLEMS OF RESEARCH
and the camps; articles prepared from jewish religious requi-
sities such as purses, hand-bags and even jackboots made from
the parchment of Torah scrolls. The museum containing these
objects, which must be established by Yad Washem should serve
as the central institution of its kind for this purpose.
2. Photographs: In keeping with this purpose Yad Washem
must embark upon the planned and systematic photographing
of all documents dealing with the European catastrophe pre-
served in archives and institutes to which we have access
throughout the world. The principle of reciprocality must in-
spire this field of Yad Washem's work, not only because it will
facilitate it, but because we are interested-as indeed we must
be-to multiply documentary material in all archives and
scientific institutions established to investigate the period of the
European catastrophe, and thereby, simultaneously, to con-
tribute towards raising such research to a higher plane of
scholarship.
3. Preparation of catalogues: It is essential that we have full
information about the documentary material stored in the Yad
Washem archives and museum and that scholars have easy
access to this material. For this reason we must collect all in-
formation possible about the material preserved and available
in the various archives. A detailed and descriptive catalogue of
such material must be compiled.
4. Collection of testimony: Obviously even the most com-
plete collection of all documentary material relating to the years
of the European catastrophe does not cover all the testimony
available.
To a far greater extent than for any other period in Jewish
history personal evidence regarding the European catastrophe
is of vital importance. We must bear in mind that though a
large amount of material relating to the catastrophe has been
salvaged, it is not sufficient when compared with the magnitude
of the catastrophe. From the German official documents
which have escaped deliberate destruction we can only obtain
17
BENZION DINUR
information on matters in which the Germans themselves were
interested, namely, in the implementation of the expulsion and
transportation of the Jews, the figures for those so expelled,
and similar data for what were regarded as "achievements"
on the road towards "the final solution" of the Jewish
question. The Germans at this time were committed to the total
destruction of the Jewish people, the extermination of com-
munities and of synagogues, of Yeshivot and schools, of books
and writings. And despite the desire of Jews to leave a record
for future generations of the horrors they had experienced, of
their struggle to preserve the image of God even while in the
European purgatory, of their active and passive resistance to
German persecution, their faith and their despair, their opera-
tions together with the fighters in the forests and the partisan
bands, the organization of the underground, the few acts of
charity on the part of Gentiles in their terrible distress--of all
this we have virtually no documentary material at all. Indeed
often one is left with the impression that one must rely entirely
on the evidence of the criminals themselves. This suffices to
underline the significance of the personal evidence of survivors
of the European holocaust. Furthermore this evidence assists us
to see the European catastrophe in its entirety in its proper per-
spective. German plans to "solve" once and for all the "Jewish
question" and the work of destroying, in successive stages, mil-
lions of Jews, plumbed new depths of human depravity, re-
miniscent in its cruelty and brutishness of primitive tribes. The
records left behind by such human beasts cannot constitute
proper evidence of the daily processes of mass murder.
The details of the attitude of the Germans towards the Jews,
of the relations of the local populations-the Poles, the Uk-
rainians, the Lithuanians, the Letts, the Czechs, the Hungar-
ians, the Serbs, the Roumanians, the Danes, the Swedes, the
Dutch and the French-reflect the preparation of public opi-
nion in entire states and nations for the fate held in store for
the Jews. From the historical aspect the value of such evidence
18
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
is of paramount importance regarding internal processes in
Jewish life. There can be no doubt that the Jewish capacity
for resistance and the internal strength of Jewish biologico-
sociological cells-families, settlements, communities, political
parties, unions and organizations-played a vital role in the
fate which overtook the Jews of Europe. These manifestations
can only be properly assessed after close examination of daily
life in the Ghetto and the conduct of its residents. Evidence
submitted by persons who survived all these horrors can provide
us with invaluable material regarding Jewish resistance, the
underground organizations and the revolt, the methods adopted
by the Resistance Movement, its success and its failures. It is
superfluous to stress that in regard to many communities the
verbal testimony that is given by survivors constitutes virtually
the only material we have regarding their fate. Our aim to
obtain all the material possible relating to our subject makes
it incumbent upon us to gather systematically all evidence
dealing with the actual destruction and the Jewish resistance.
The material that has accumulated in the Dapei 'Ed belongs
to this category. Hundreds of thousands of such Dapei 'Ed
containing the names of victims of the European catastrophe
and details of the fate which overtook entire communities con-
stitute source material regarding the destruction of the basic
cells of Jewish society-the family and the community.
From every point of view memoirs and reminiscences of per-
sons who witnessed and experienced the horrors of the Euro-
pean catastrophe, watched it develop, or took part actively in
the fight against their Nazi oppressors, either in regular military
formations or in the partisan bands, as underground resistance
fighters or in the Ghetto revolts, or in any other form, are of
major importance. These memoirs must be treated in the same
way as any other testimony and must, of course, be properly
examined. The plain and unvarnished character of the narra-
tion and the presence of the narrator on the spot at the time
constitute in themselves no guarantee of the authenticity of
19
BENZION DINUR
such memoirs. The reason need not be any desire to "amend"
or to "improve" upon actual events for any ulterior purpose.
It is difficult for the individual to liberate himself from his
own personality. He has a propensity to see the past and his
own past experiences, from the vantage point of the present.
In such evidence every effort must be made to establish all the
facts relating to the narrator, his location and status during the
period of the catastrophe, and his subsequent career. We must
keep in mind that one of the requisite qualities for writing
reminiscences is that of recreating the "climate" existing at
the time and thereby to reconstruct the past. This quality in-
deed has determined the importance of reminiscences for histo-
rical research.
One of the difficulties with which we have to contend in
conducting research into the European catastrophe relates to
our capacity to enter into that special "climate." This indeed
is an essential precondition for such research. For this reason
Yad Washem must do everything in its power to foster and
stimulate the writing of such reminiscences by people who lived
through the European catastrophe, and to preserve these me-
moirs in its archives after close examination to establish their
authenticity.
5. Bibliography: The testimony relating to the European
catastrophe will naturally include much printed material. This
material, issued in many countries and in some thirty languages
constitutes a veritable literature, counting thousands of books
and pamphlets and a far greater number of articles and the
like. It covers all classes of literature: from memoirs, articles
and diaries kept by the victims of the Nazis, to inflammatory
and propaganda material issued by the Nazis in connection
with the campaign of extermination they launched against the
Jews; from the memorial books published by diverse Jewish
communities to reports on the Nazi crimes and the records of
the courts in which they were tried; from poetry and studies
of the horrors perpetrated by the Nazis to the neo-N azi litera-
20
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
ture, which overtly or covertly was issued to extenuate the
atrocities perpetrated and to defend those responsible; from
historical works of a general nature seeking to establish the
background that permitted the rise of the Nazis to power and
granted them the opportunity and the means to carry out their
satanic plans of wholesale slaughter to studies of the methods
evolved for their nefarious purposes. The duty of Yad Washem
in respect of this literature is twofold. It must collect all pos-
sible information about it by the preparation of bibliographical
lists that will be as comprehensive as possible. It must also
seek to collect all the relevant books, pamphlets, articles etc., it
can lay hands on. The basic condition of any such work is the
compilation of a full card index, with a card for every work
catalogued, complete with full information about each work
and the category in which it is registered (in keeping with the
system of classification decided upon by Yad Washem). The
collection of this literary material is essential for any serious
attempt at research into the European catastrophe and Jewish
resistance.
VI
The second function to which reference is made in Paragraph
2 of the Act is to conduct research into all testimony concerning
the European catastrophe and the Jewish resistance. I believe
that it is advisable primarily, to clarify the significance of this
paragraph and only thereafter to draw our conclusions regard-
ing the specific tasks which devolve upon Yad Wash em in this
field.
The immediate and primary meaning of research is to delve
deeply, with a view to finding what is hidden or covered.
Research also means to follow something up to its source,
to observe every detail very closely. From these two follows
a third meaning, namely to study something closely and thereby
to acquire a more precise knowledge of the subject of study.
Scientific research, of course, involves all three of these
21
BENZION DINUR
aspects and accordingly Yad Washem must proceed in three
directions as follows:
1. to uncover, by seeking out primary sources, all the details
of the European catastrophe;
2. to conduct close inquiry into the European catastrophe
and Jewish resistance, with special regard to detail;
3. close study with a view to securing authentic information
regarding the catastrophe and the various acts performed
during these years.
The implication is not that Yad Washem itself must engage
in all this work of research and study. Its duty is to create
a suitable permanent organizational framework for the conduct
of such research aud study, in the various fields demarcated.
Within the general framework Yad Washem must grant the
necessary facilities to scientists for research and study. It must
of course take whatever steps it deems necessary to ensure the
highest scientific standards of this research.
In carrying out this function, accordingly, Yad Washem is
confronted by two main problems:
1. The creation of the organizational framework within
which the guidance necessary to ensure proper scientific
standards will be provided;
2. A clear definition of the various fields of research must
be established.
1. There is little doubt that the most suitable organizational
framework which can be established for this purpose, perhaps
the only one which can implement the functions devolving
upon Yad Washem-is a special scientific institute, attached
to the Hebrew University and working in collaboration with it,
dedicated to a study of "all the testimony regarding the Euro-
pean catastrophe and Jewish resistance." This research must
22
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
be undertaken within the bounds of the history of the period,
in all its manifold ramifications.
This institute must be headed by a Professor of Modern
Jewish History who must be connected in some way with the
general purposes of Yad Washem (in the field of collection
and research) and with the Hebrew University (facilities for
instruction in historical research). Only such an institute, pos-
sessing close ties with academic teaching and scientific guidance,
can hope to foster and encourage research and ensure the re-
quisite scientific standards.
On the other hand it is also very important that the Research
Department of Yad Washem, comprising such institutions as
the library, archives, and the museum, and bibliographical
scientific projects, the collection of personal testimony, the
editorial board and the like, should also stand in some sort
of relation to the scientific institute referred to above. It is
to be hoped that the negotiations at present under way between
the Hebrew University and Yad Washem regarding the crea-
tion of such an institute will soon be concluded and that as a
result the instrument so necessary for the purposes of Yad
Washem will be forged.
2. On the face of it the clear definition of the various fields
of research presents no difficulties. The terms of research are
clear: the destruction of the Jews of Europe by Germany and
her satellites during the Second World War. Closer examina-
tion, however, reveals that we have here three clearly demar-
cated spheres of research, namely: Germany and her satellite
countries; the Jewish population in Europe and the other
countries of the Diaspora; the nations which waged war on
Germany, witnessed the atrocities, the reactions of these nations,
the degree of aid they extended, their indifference to these hor-
rors and the like. Each of these fields present special problems,
but they share two in common-demarcation of the limits of
each field, and definition of the subjects which enter each of
them. Each of these is of very extensive proportions, for in the
23
BENZION DINUR
nature of things they tend to expand both in breadth and in
depth. This "depth" entails research into other historical periods
and circumstances, preceding the European catastrophe, but
which nevertheless possess an organic connection with it.
"Breadth" implies extension of the field of research to include
not only all aspects of the destruction of Jewry and life in the
camps and the Ghettoes, but also manifestations which at first
sight appear not to be involved in the catastrophe. This extension
of the field of research in both directions brings in its train
the danger of deviation from the main purpose of Yad Wa-
shern. The best method of ensuring the basic character of the
research while at the same time preserving the proper terms
of reference the Authority seems to the present writer to
be as already stated, a clear delimination of each of the fields
of research and definition of the subjects that come within it.
Such delimitation is of course necessary for the proper imple-
mentation of the diverse functions that devolve upon Yad
Washem. It is not our intention here to outline such a plan,
but we shall endeavour to clarify with the aid of a number
of examples basic principles in the light of which we believe
the limits of each field of research, should be demarcated. One
example from the first field-the German-Nazi. One of the
problems encountered in this field centres around the "plan" for
the "final solution" of the Jewish problem. We must determine
when this plan was conceived and launched, when the "idea"
of mass destruction was first brought up, and trace the discus-
sions held in the Nazi Party with regard to implementation,
the preparation of world public opinion and finally the setting
of a date for the actual work of extermination. A close study
of even part of the official sources of Nazi literature-from
Hitler's "Mein Kampf" and the speeches of Goebbels, Goering
and Streicher, from the plans of the Nazi Party in regard to the
Jews, down to the diaries of Frank and others, all prove beyond
any shadow of doubt that this plan was not conceived during
the war, nor even as far back as the riots of November 1938.
24
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
The Nuernberg Laws and all the other acts of repression and
persecution to which the Jews were subjected under the Nazi
regime in Germany were often described by the rulers of that
country as an attempt to deal more liberally with the Jews.
In other words this was not the real policy that was contemplat-
ed. The Nazis reiterated that while "every Nazi is an anti-
Semite, not every anti-Semite is a Nazi" and that therefore
the Nazis would not rest content with "the expulsion of the
Jews from the German people." They openly avowed their in-
tention of adopting other "measures". Regarding the latter we
have adequate evidence relating to the period predating Hitler's
accession to power, despite the fact that in that period the
Nazis did not always practice candour in regard to their future
aims. This dissimulation, of course, was deliberate. Nazi lite-
rature provides an abundance of testimony that many years
before Hitler's rise to power, "the physical extermination of
this foreign people" was seriously discussed and whatever hesi-
tations were entertained centred mainly about technical diffi-
culties impeding implementation of the scheme. The Nazi
leaders, such as Goebbels, Streicher and others, declared quite
openly that "it is a mistake to believe that the final solution
of the Jewish problem will be achieved without bloodshed", and
that "if we wish to live the Jews must die!" The style of propa-
ganda they adopted and their campaign of incitement proves
beyond the slightest shadow of doubt that they envisaged the
"extermination of creatures" upon whom mercy would be
wasted and who indeed did not belong to the human race at
all. Hitler's declaration in the Reichstag on the 30th January,
1939, that if a world war broke out one certain result would
be "the extermination of the Jewish people in Europe" cannot
be regarded as mere rhetoric; it was rather the calculated
policy-declaration of the leader of a political party, of its inner
circle, that under conditions of international conflict it would
prove possible to effect a "final solution" along the lines regard-
ed as desirable, and that to facilitate the execution of that
25
BENZION DINUR
policy it must be explained both within the country and abroad.
Indeed the destruction of the Jews was one of Hitler's para-
mount war aims, to be accomplished without any connection
with the other objectives he had set himself.
The work of destruction and all the incredible atrocities it
involved could not be carried out without the active participa-
tion of tens of thousands and the support of hundreds of
thousands of persons. Millions bore witness to its execution
while the whole world knew of it. It is equally obvious that
the decision taken to put this policy into effect was the out-
come of a systematic preparation of public opinion throughout
the world by the Nazis, and also by anti-Semitic propaganda
carried on over a period of seventy years.
In our efforts to lay bare the very roots we must delve
deeply. Concurrent with our research into all the horrors per-
petrated by the Nazis and their satellites, we must investigate
the plans drafted, the dissemination of these plans by the
German anti-Semites and the various organizations they con-
trolled in the diverse countries, and the connections maintained
between these organizations. For this reason we cannot restrict
ourselves to the Nazi era. The preparation of public opinion
for the catastrophe ultimately to engulf European Jewry leads
back directly to the early phases of racial anti-Semitism, and
the first organizations set up to disseminate it in the seventies
of the preceding century. The framework of our research is
fixed accordingly, by these limits; any attempt to ignore this
.direct and unbroken development must inevitably strike at
the very basis of our research and disable us from laying bare
scientific truth. On the basis of what I have stated above it
seems to me that any attempt to stretch the terms of our
research, in point of time, is justified if it is connected directly
and organically with the European catastrophe and the pro-
blems relating to it.
Another example, from the second field-the conditions under
which Jews existed during the Nazi occupation. One of the
26
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
central problems with which we have to deal in our work
of historical research is that of the appointment of the Coun-
cils of Jews (the "J udenrat") in all countries dominated by
the Nazis. These councils constituted ostensibly organs of Jew-
ish self-government. In practice, however, in one form or
another, they were the Jewish arm of German administration,
reaching down within the condemned people. There can be
little doubt that many of the members of these Councils ac-
cepted the appointment in the hope that they could be of
some help. The Councils cannot be considered in isolation.
They constitute an expression basically of what remained of
the confidence the Jews had in Germany even under its Nazi
regime. The Jews obediently carried out the various regula-
tions enacted even when at a certain risk they could evade
them; they registered when they were required to do so. The
Jews of the Netherlands hurried with their luggage to embark
upon the trains carrying them to the East, disbelieving the
tales they had been told of death journeys. Even in Warsaw
and Vilna, in Bialystok and in Lwow for a long time such
reports were discredited. Facing a great world power organ-
ized on the lines of a military camp, which over a period of
years had evolved a carefully elaborated plan for mass exter-
mination, stood the victims, divided, powerless, bewildered,
without a leadership, without any plan of action adequate to
the dimensions of the impending calamity. All sections of
the Jewish people were as if stupified by despair. This aspect
calls for close research into all manifestations of Jewish life
and the will to live in this period. An enquiry into the Jewish
Councils belongs to this framework. Here too it will at times
prove necessary to go beyond the years of the European cata-
strophe. Our guiding principle must be, of course, that of
preserving direct continuity. I believe that the period inter-
vening between the two world wars indicates the limits to
which this aspect of our research can be extended.
A third example from another field: The non-Nazi world
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BENZION DINUR
and the extermination of the Jews. Here, too, we stand in need
of painstaking research that must be conducted resolutely, with
the determination to see developments a ~ they actually occured,
to lay bare the truth, however bitter that truth may prove to
be. Research here centres about two main problems: How
much did the Powers and the neutral countries know about
the extermination of the Jews and how must the absence of
any adequate reaction on their part be explained? What was
the extent of the "help" they were willing to offer? Many
countries were apprehensive of appearing as "saviours of the
Jews" because of devious political calculations. There can be
no doubt whatever that this attitude encouraged the Nazis to
persist in their plan of mass murder. Of course, we cannot
ignore the special exigencies of war, the position on the various
fronts and the like. We must also take into account the nego-
tiations which were being conducted-or which were projected
--on this matter. Research in this field has to contend with
many difficulties. The sources of material are still kept secret
and are not available for the public. There is also ground
for apprehension that much of this material-such as appeals
for help made by Jews in the occupied territories to various
international institutions-has already been destroyed as "re-
dundant." However the material that has been salvaged and
is still available provides a solid basis for work of research.
Here we have another field in which the boundaries and defi-
nitions of the subjects of research must be determined in keep-
ing with the principle of "direct continuity" already referred
to. This field includes the various principles established re-
garding the protection of minorities, actual procedure adopted
to give practical effect to such protection, as well as the
attempt made by Jews in their efforts to invoke these prin-
ciples. The anti-Semitic fifth column operating in every one
of the countries at war with Hitler, the influence of British
policy in Palestine upon the fate of the Jews in the Nazi
{;ountries must also be closely investigated. (e.g. I believe that
28
PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH
we have not yet properly evaluated the impact of the "Struma"
disaster upon the European catastrophe).
Organized research in this field comes within the compe-
tence of the "Institute for Research into the European Jew-
ish Catastrophe." It will, however, be the task of "Yad Wa-
shem" to submit to the Institute a list of the problems in which
it is interested, to suggest various aspects as worthy of special
research, as well as proposals how to conduct this research and
to publish its results.
Determination of the various aspects and problems that must
be investigated in detail can constitute an effective contribution
to the research being conducted into the European catastrophe.
Yad Washem intends to open the matter for discussion among
a number of scientists and research workers, once the negotia-
tions regarding the establishment of the Institute for Research
into the European Jewish Catastrophe are finally completed.
VII
Two other tasks which devolve upon Yad Washem in keeping
with Paragraph 2, already referred to, relate to "publication
of testimony regarding the catastrophe" and "to pass on to the
people the lessons to be learned therefrom". These two tasks
are interconnected. Primarily the Act instructs Y ad Washem
to ensure that its work in collecting the testimony shall be
brought to the knowledge of the public. Secondly the Act
makes it obligatory to explain the European catastrophe and
Jewish resistance in such a way as to bring its lesson to the
knowledge of all the people.
Yad Washem must accordingly devote itself specifically to
the issue of four categories of publications:
1. Publication of the results of work conducted in the col-
lection of testimony relating to the European catastrophe;
t:atalogues of various types of documents; bibliographi-
cal lists and the like.
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BEN ZION DINUR
2. Publication of collections of documents, testimony and
memoirs, from the archives of Yad Washem.
3. Publication of works of research into the European cata-
strophe and Jewish resistance. This category includes
monograph dealing with specific problems, as well as
more comprehensive works such as the "Mavo le-Pinkas
Hakehillot", which will comprise the annals of the Jew-
ish communities in all the countries that came under
Nazi dOInination.
4. Publication of historical works for the Hebrew reader
giving a basic and comprehensive description of the years
of the European catastrophe and the fate of our people
in this tragic period.
We fully appreciate that research into the European cata-
strophe cannot be conducted properly if it is not accompanied
by the planned and systematic publication of collections of
documents, bibliographies and other basic works. It is equally
clear that it is impossible to disseminate a full and documented
knowledge of this period without publication of the necessary
source works, scientifically edited. Obviously the necessary con-
ditions must be created to enable Yad Washem to conduct its
work. Yad Washem, for its part, must not deviate from the
tasks with which it has been entrusted. It must ensure the
highest possible scientific standards in all branches of its work.
Hence the work of preparation is vast. We must keep the
jects of Yad Washem constantly before us, both in the sphere
of research into the European catastrophe and Jewish
ance, and in the commemoration projects, with which I shall
deal in my next article. I am of the opinion that only on the
basis of a proper appraisal of the responsibilities of Yad Wa-
shern can we see the work done by the various branches of
its Research Department (reports of which are published in
this publication) in their true light.
30