We commonly associate the term Holocaust with Nuremberg and Kristallnacht, the Warsaw and Vilna ghettos, Auschwitz and Treblinka. Appearing as they do in countless books and films, these symbols of hatred penetrate our consciousness, memory, and history. But, unfortunately, our memory is selective, and, in the case of Romania, our knowledge is scant. In 1939 the Jewish population of Romania exceeded 750,000: the third largest concentration of Jews in Europe. By 1944, some 400,000 had disappeared. Another 150,000 Ukrainian Jews died at the hands of Romanian soldiers. In the quest for a...

In this volume, the first English-language account of the underground Jewish resistance in Romania, I. C. Butnaru examines the efforts that resulted in some 300,000 Romanian Jews surviving the Holocaust. After detailing the rise of the fascist Iron Guards and the consequences of German domination, Butnaru describes the organization of the Jewish resistance movement, its various contacts within the government, and its activities.

While emphasizing the role played by Zionist youth organizations which smuggled Jews from Europe and arranged illegal emigration, Butnaru also...