As it became clear that Hitler and his government had orchestrated the extrajudicial violence carried out against Germany’s Jews on the night of November 9–10, 1938, the British Foreign Secretary Samuel Hoare and other high-ranking cabinet ministers strongly encouraged the British government to reverse its position prohibiting Jewish refugees into Britain. In the months following, the British government agreed to allow entry to an unspecified number of Jewish children with the support of organizations like the Inter-Aid Committee for Children from Germany and Austria. Pictured here is a sample of the documentation required by the thousands of Jewish children who left Germany as part of what was called the Kindertransport.

Inge Engelhard and her two siblings were taken to England while her parents survived the war in hiding in Europe and eventually managed to reunite with their children in the UK.

The last Kindertransport left Germany the same day World War II began, September 1, 1939. In general, these refugee children were treated well throughout their trip and on their arrival. Those who were under the age of 14 were placed in foster homes, hostels, and group homes. Those over 14 years old often entered the workforce once they were settled. The Kindertransport Association, a postwar not-for profit organization founded in 1989, estimates that 10,000 unaccompanied Jewish children escaped Nazi persecution on these transports. The vast majority never saw their parents again.