The Pyrenees, the lifeline for Jews during World War II

ByEduardo Azcona
Pep Coll. God's long nap
Pep Coll. God's long nap

The Pyrenees was the lifeline for many Jews fleeing Nazi barbarism in World War II. The persecution of Jews by Nazi Germany and its allies drove millions to flee Europe. Many sought refuge in neighbouring countries, such as Spain, but the border was dangerous and many were captured and returned to the hands of the Nazis. However, there were routes through the Pyrenees that offered a chance of escape, and thousands of Jews risked their lives to cross them.

We had a pleasant and very instructive chat with Pep Coll on all these subjects -and some more-. The author has just released his novel "The story of a man".God's long nap"set in the Pyrenees during World War II, in which the Pyrenees are shown as the "only escape option".

Long and dangerous marches, with mountain hunters lurking in the passes, made it safe for those who risked crossing the border.

Between 1939 and 1945, thousands of people crossed the Pyrenees into Spain. to flee Nazi-occupied Europe, many were Jews, but there were also young Frenchmen who wanted to join the Allied army in North Africa or English pilots who had been shot down and wanted to get to safety and return to England.

Video content:

  • 0:00 Intro, the book: God's Long Nap.
  • 08:05 The Pyrenees as a lifeline.
  • 09:00 Flight across the Pyrenees in World War II. A late study.
  • 11:20 Solidarity of the territory's neighbours.
  • 12:20 Mountain hunters, special corps in the passes and cols.
  • 14:00 Pep Coll's beginnings as a mountaineer.
  • 15:50 The mountains of freedom. Josep Calvet.
  • 16:32 Current cultural routes and memorials. "Freedom Road
  • 19:50 Documentation. 1st June we had to see what the mountain was like.
  • 22:31 Smuggling and smuggling in the Pyrenees
  • 23:21 Pins, guides and nets
  • 24:36 Passage of young deserters to armies in Africa or of downed British pilots.
  • 26:19 Barcelona as a centre for Jews who crossed the Pyrenees and then left on chartered ships for Palestine.
  • 28:41 The case of Switzerland. It was not an alternative for them.
  • 29:54 The reason for the title: God's long nap.
  • 33:22 A place in the Pyrenees: Roc de Pessonada
  • 34:01 Monteixo, and the peculiar "Cuita el Sol".