Into the Arms of Strangers

On November 9, 1938, Adolph Hitler's ugly war against the Jews began in earnest with the "Kristallnacht," in which Nazi troops joined with angry mobs to attack synagogues, Jewish-owned businesses, and residents of predominantly Jewish neighborhoods. While Hitler did not initially make clear his plans for a genocide of Germany's Jews, he openly stated his desire that Germany be free of Jews. Few nations were willing to accept the large numbers of German Jews who now wished to expatriate in fear of their lives. However, Great Britain agreed to permit Jewish children between the ages of 5 and 17 to come to the U.K. -- without their parents. Between December of 1938 and August of 1939, some 10,000 German children gained refuge in the U.K. Most were adopted by British families, and many of the older boys served in the British Army, fighting against the Nazis, but the majority were never to see their birth parents again. Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport is a documentary that looks at the "Kindertransport," which ferried the children to Great Britain, and what became of the children once they arrived in England. Judi Dench narrates.