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The White Buses

Norway and Denmark were occupied by the Nazis in April 1940 (Sweden was a neutral country during the war). Almost immediately, the Germans began arresting targeted individuals and threw them into detention camps scattered throughout Norway. Soon, they would be deported to concentration camps such as Sachsenhausen. As more people were arrested, detained, and deported, various Scandinavian humanitarian organizations became active in gaining access to the prisoners, ensuring correspondence was reached by their families, as well as engaging directly with the Germans concerning their fates.

Towards the end of the war, one major attempt at obtaining the release of concentration camp inmates was successful. It liberated more than 15,000 prisoners of which half were Scandinavian. Believe it or not, the White Bus evacuations were approved by Heinrich Himmler.

Count Folke Bernadotte. Photo by anonymous (c. 1945). USHMM, courtesy of National Archives, http://www.ushmm.org/. PD-70+. Wikimedia Commons.
Count Folke Bernadotte. Photo by anonymous (c. 1945). USHMM, courtesy of National Archives, http://www.ushmm.org/. PD-70+. Wikimedia Commons.

Did You Know?

Rina Fried, then 16-years-old, was crammed into a cattle car with a hundred other women whose skin barely hung to their skeletons. They were all being transported from their concentration camp to an extermination camp to be murdered by the Nazis. The end of the war was closing in and the women knew they wouldn’t survive to see it.

However, the train stopped suddenly and the women were approached by people offering them food and drink. They told the women, “Vi aker till Sverige.” — “We are going to Sweden.”

“Your enslavement is over.”

One of the White Bus platoons rescued Rina and the other women.

Folke Bernadotte

Count Folke Bernadotte (1895−1948), Swedish diplomat, was the grandson of King Oscar II of Sweden and nephew of King Gustav V. Entering the military in 1915, Bernadotte eventually rose to the rank of major. By 1933, he was representing Sweden at various world events such as the New York World’s Fair in 1939. Bernadotte became director of the Swedish Boy Scout organization in 1937 and when World War II broke out, he helped train the boy scouts in defense (i.e., anti-aircraft guns) and as medical assistants. However, his greatest role during the war would be played as the vice chairman of the Swedish Red Cross.

Folke Bernadotte (right) in his role with the Swedish Boy Scouts. Photo by anonymous (24 June 1934). PD-70+. Wikimedia Commons.
Folke Bernadotte (right) in his role with the Swedish Boy Scouts. Photo by anonymous (24 June 1934). PD-70+. Wikimedia Commons.

Beginning in 1943, Count Bernadotte organized multiple prisoner exchanges with Germany (his first mission targeted disabled Scandinavian POWs). A total of approximately 11,000 Scandinavian POWs were repatriated as a result of these exchanges. He also personally led several rescue missions into Germany. Read More The White Buses

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The Bookstalls of Paris

You are likely one of three types of people when it comes to Paris: A first time visitor, someone who loves the city and returns multiple times, or a person who has never been to Paris and probably never will. For those folks who return time and time again, they quickly determine it’s not necessary to re-visit the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, or any of the other well-known icons of Paris (in all fairness, I could visit the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay on each visit). What they begin to discover is a city full of French uniqueness that many first-time tourists never experience. Just by walking and keeping your eyes open, you’ll find the Wallace Fountains (read Wallace Fountains here), the remaining pissoirs (read Please, No Pissoirs in Public! here), medieval carvings on the sides of buildings (read One-Eyed Kate here), the small shops, talk with the “pee ladies” (read The Pee Ladies of Paris here), the city’s original Roman amphitheater, and medallions imbedded in the concrete marking the location of a hidden river flowing below your feet (read A River Runs Through It and Under It here). They also learn to look up at the buildings so as not to miss the plaques, reliefs, and other unique aspects of the architecture.

Wallace fountain outside the Shakespeare and Co. bookstore on the Left Bank (4e). Photo by Sandy Ross (2017).
Arènes de Lutèce
Arènes de Lutèce (5e), a Roman amphitheater. Photo by Sandy Ross (2015).

One of the cultural icons you can’t miss if you walk along the Seine River are the bouquinistes (boo-keen-eest) or bookstalls where you can buy second-hand books, engravings, prints, magazines, collector’s stamps, and antique postcards.

Did You Know?

I’ve said this over and over. The world’s largest museum is likely twelve feet below the streets of Paris. Well, here’s another example. A medieval crypt has been discovered below an underground parking garage in the Latin Quartier. It is located on Rue Pierre-Nicole (I’m attempting to confirm the street number but I think it is either no. 14 bis or no. 11). The crypt is all that remains of the 7th-century church built by Saint Eloi—Église Sainte-Marie-des-Champs. It was here that the remains of the French kings were interred until that tradition shifted to the Basilique Cathédrale de Saint-Denis. Unfortunately, the medieval church was destroyed during the French Revolution. The recent floods have damaged the crypt and the city would like to begin restoration and then open the crypt up to the public. They are in negotiations now with the property owner. Let’s hope an agreement can be reached so that another excellent example of medieval Paris becomes available to us. Learn more here.

Inside the crypt. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).
Inside the crypt. Photo by anonymous (date unknown).

Medieval Origins: True or False?

The story has it that a ship carrying books sank in the Seine as it passed through the heart of the city. The books were recovered, taken onshore to be dried out, and then sold on the quais above the river. These books became known as bouquins or, small old bashed books. The name was derived from buch or, the German word for book (some think it originated from the Dutch word meaning small book, boeckin). Reportedly, this happened in the late 15th-century.

The bouquinistes established themselves on the Pont Neuf until they got kicked off the bridge (the established bookstores complained) and relocated to either side of the river where they were allowed to sell their books on holidays and hours when the bookstores were closed. Read More The Bookstalls of Paris