Karl Blum’s long journey through the Balkans, 1942–1943. A contribution to the history of Pharrajmos

Abstract

Several German Roma-Sinti families, members of a caravan of traveling artists, set off from central Germany to Istanbul, passing through the war-torn Balkans during 1942 to the end of January 1943 when they were arrested and transferred to the Red Cross camp in Niš. A few months later they were transferred to the Anhaltelager Dedinje in Belgrade (Banjički camp) from where, they were transported to the “Gypsy Camp” of Auschwitz in late June. Following the fate of this group of Roma (i. e. Sinti), the paper also discusses the racist policy of the National Socialist regime towards Roma and Sinti with the final consequence – their mass physical destruction, genocide (Pharrajmos).