Displaced Persons in Post WW2

When did WW2 start?

October 1939

How many people were displaced over the course of WW2?

55 million

How many prisoners of war did the Nazis have in WW2?

2 million

How many concentration camps survivors were there that got liberated in 1945?

700,000

What does DPs stand for?

Displaced Persons

What does UNRRA stand for?

United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration

When was UNRRA founded?

November 1943

What was UNRRA founded for?

Aid refugees from Axis powers and provide economic support to European countries

How many ethnic Germans would be expelled from their home countries after WW2?

10 million

What was the Potsdam Agreement?

Dictated how Germany would be split and occupied

What does SHAEF stand for?

Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Expeditionary Forces

What is the full name of the G-5 Office in SHAEF?

Refugee and Displaced Persons and Welfare Branch

When did the UNRRA take over administrative responsibility for DPs in Western Europe?

October 1945

What organization was UNRRA operating under during WW2?

Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Expeditionary Forces

Who was the British Prime Minister in WW2?

Winston Churchill

Who was the US President during WW2?

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Who was the Soviet leader during WW2?

Joseph Stalin

What is the name of the meeting of the three largest allied powers near the end of WW2 called?

Yalta Conference

What was discussed/agreed to during the Yalta Conference?

Prisoners of War and DPs would be repatriated

What was the Halle Agreement?

Commitment to repatriate all DPs

When was the Halle Agreement signed?

May 1945

When did WW2 officially end in Europe?

May 8, 1945

What is the Victory in Europe after WW2 also called?

V-E Day

How many DPs were there in Europe after WW2

11 million

How many DPs were there in Germany after WW2?

8 million

How many people would depart from DPs camps per day between May 1945 and September 1945?

33,000

By the end of 1945, how many people were repatriated?

6 million

What report was shared to Truman that investigated the conditions of DPs in camps?

Harrison Report

When was the Harrison Report shared?

August 1945

Who made the Harrison Report?

Earl G. Harrison

What position did Earl G. Harrison gain by FDR?

US Representative to Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees

Who oversaw US forces in Europe during WW2 and after?

Dwight D. Eisenhower

By the end of September 1945, how many DPs remained in Germany?

1.2 million

Why did the “last million” DPs not want to return home?

Did not want to go under Soviet Union

What Soviet government agency was tasked to oversee repatriation of Soviet DPs?

Administration of the Plenipotentiary for Repatriation Affairs

What does APRA stand for?

Administration of the Plenipotentiary for Repatriation Affairs

When did the Truman administration decide to change the US approach to forceful repatriation?

December 1945

Under the new thought of the American State-War-Navy-Coordinating Committee, who could be forcefully repatriated?

Captured German soldier, Member of Soviet armed forces, Proven Axis collaborators

When was the refugee Resettlement issue discussed for the “last million”?

January and February 1946

What was the Third Committee’s stance on forced repatriation?

No refugee would be compelled to return to their country of origin

When would the UN comprehensively define what a refugee is?

1951

Where did most of the “last million” DPs end up settling?

US, Canada, Australia