When the Jews of Auschwitz waited in Puglia for their Promised Land

In the aftermath of the armistice of 8 September 1943, numerous Jewish refugees (mostly non-Italians) were present in the areas of southern Italy liberated by the Allies.

Due to the promulgation of the racial laws, they had been confined to some civil internment camps wanted by Mussolini (in Puglia there were several, on the Tremiti Islands, in Alberobello, in Manfredonia).

With the progressive liberation of Italy, the number of refugees began to grow. And above all with the end of the conflict, when thousands of veterans from concentration camps throughout Central Europe poured into Italy.

For this purpose, schools, barracks, public buildings or, more simply, some house or villa complexes were requisitioned.

For this purpose, schools, barracks, public buildings or, more simply, some house or villa complexes were requisitioned.

Santa Maria al Bagno (one of the marinas of the municipality of Nardò) was then a small fishing village, but also a tourist resort where numerous villas and holiday homes arose that could be requisitioned for refugees.

A group of Slavic refugees had settled there for a short time already at the end of 1943. From 1944 onwards the place served mainly as a reception camp for Jews.

Displaced Persons Camp number 34 (its official name) became the largest refugee camp in Puglia.

To cope with the constant flow of refugees, 106 holiday homes were initially requisitioned, to which another 173 were added over time.

The camp management was established at Villa Saetta and the so-called Jewish municipality, at Villa Personè (today De Benedittis). Other Villas, Fonte and Falco (called Ave Mare), were equipped for the canteen and for the training school. The Synagogue was housed in a house in the small square.

Life in the camp was largely self-managed by the refugees themselves. They built a nursery, school, canteens, libraries, hospital and post office. Commercial activities were started and courses in carpentry, knitting, tailoring, typing, mechanics and fishing were offered to adults.

Most of the refugees were young people from various European countries, eager to start a new life after the suffering of the Holocaust.

Over 400 marriages were celebrated in the camp and over two hundred and fifty Jewish children were born in the hospital in Leuca.

The refugees immediately began to barter excess food and aid for services and goods that could be provided to them by the local population.

Over time, the relationship between the Jews and the Salentines became increasingly close and supportive. The boys from the camp attended school and played with the local boys.

It is not easy to establish the exact number of thousands of refugees who passed through between 1944 and 1947. At the peak times, the presence of over 2,000 people on site reached the point of greatest crowding.

Among the refugees were also some of the future protagonists of the political events of the State of Israel, such as Dov Shilanski, member of the Israeli Parliament (Knesset) from 1977 to 1996, then president from 1988 to 1992.

The Santa Maria al Bagno refugee camp closed in 1947. The flow of refugees had by then dried up and the process that would lead, the following year, to the establishment of the State of Israel had begun.