Born: 1922, Budapest, Hungary
Describes experiences in the immediate postwar months [Interview: 1990]
After the Germans occupied Hungary in March 1944, Francis was deported to Neuengamme, a concentration camp located on the outskirts of Hamburg, Germany. Later, as Allied forces advanced, Francis and other prisoners were transported from Neuengamme. They were placed on a cargo ship which sailed into Luebeck Bay, where the prisoners were crowded onto the "Cap Arcona." The "Cap Arcona" and other ships were bombed in early May 1945. Francis was rescued and came ashore in the German town of Neustadt, where British troops forced the inhabitants to provide survivors with food and clothes. Francis, a musician, then worked in the British officers' mess. He returned to Budapest in September 1945, and eventually immigrated to the United States.
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