Charles Joseph Coward

Charles Joseph Coward

By Brendon Percontini

Start

6. Post-War Trials

1. Who Was Charles Joseph Coward?

2. Army Service

7. Post-War Life

index

3. Auschwitz

4. Jewish rescue

5. Liberation

Section 1

Who Was Charles Joseph Coward?

Charles Joseph Coward

Charles Joseph Coward was a British soldier born on January 30, 1905, that was captured in WWII by Nazis. From there, he rescued hundreds of Jews from Auschwitz, the German concentration camp. Though he was a coward by name, he was not a coward by heart.

Section 2

Army Service

Capture

Charles Joseph Coward enlisted in the British Army in 1937, serving with the 8th Reserve Regimental Royal Artillery. When WWII had started in 1939, he was Quartermaster Battery Sergeant Major. When the Germans assaulted the port of Calais on May 21, 1940, which had marked the day when the Siege of Calais started, Coward was one of the soldiers that became a POW (prisoner of war). Before even making it to a POW camp, he managed to make two escape attempts.

Escape Attempts

Coward, once at the point of being in a camp, made seven escape attempts through the usage of his German, passing himself off as a German soldier. One of the attempts were successful, him being injured though. He was sent to a German Army field hospital, keeping up the guise of course. He was even given an iron cross after being treated for his bravery and suffering. However, they soon realized their mistake and sent him back to the POW camp where he was notorious for his sabotages while working.

Section 3

Auschwitz

Arrival

Coward was later sent to Auschwitz III (Monowitz) in Poland, alongside another 1,200 to 1,400 other British POWs kept at sub-camp E75. The POWs were supposed to work the liquid fuel plant there, but Coward kept up the act with his German skills and worked as a Red Cross liaison officer. Monowitz had 10,000 Jews within it that were allowed to work, though they didn't last long because of conditions of the camp. The camp had also belonged to IG Farben, a chemical plant. IG Farben acquired the patent to Zyklon B, a pesticide, where the Nazi regime used it for genocide against millions of Jews.

Letters

Coward, allowed to write letters due to his position, wrote to a "friend" named Mr. William Orange, which was actually a code for the British War Office. In the letters were explanations of what was happening in the camps. A letter was smuggled to him from Karel Sperber, a British ship's doctor, another day asking for help. They were held in the Jewish section of Monowitz. He changes clothes with an imate and smuggled into the Jewish section to find the doctor, however he had failed.

Section 4

Jewish Rescue

The Plan

Coward had seen how the Jews were being treated in the camp, so he decided that he would help them out. He formed a plan that involved chocolate and dead bodies, giving the chocolate to guards in exchange for the dead bodies of non-Jewish prisoners. Once the clothes and papers of the bodies were received, the bodies were to be cremated. The jews were to then put on the clothes, assume the identities, and then get smuggled out of the camp.

Into Effect

The plan was now underway, with the Jews now putting on the clothes of the dead non-Jewish prisoners and assuming their identities. Members of the Polish Resistance aided in the smuggling of the Jewish prisoners. The operation went smoothly as the missing numbers matched the numbers of those reported dead. Due to this, around 400 Jews were smuggled out.

Section 5

Liberation

The Finale

In January, 1945, Soviet Forces had advanced deeper into Poland, and as they made way towards Auschwitz, Coward and the other POWs had to march to Bavaria, Germany. Along the way there, the prisoners were liberated by the Allied forces, marking the end of the horrible situation they were put in. In 1962, a movie about Coward and his tale was made which was named "The Password is Courage", and in 1963, Coward was recognized as one Righteous Among the Nations, gaining the nickname "Count of Auschwitz".

Section 6

Post-War Trials

Nuremberg War Crimes Trials

In 1945, the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials began, which were a series of 13 trials held against Nazi war criminals to bring them to justice in Nuremberg, Germany. Coward was a crucial witness in the trials, giving his testimony in 1947 which brought attention to his personal bravery. Coward had also given evidence in a trial separate from the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials which enabled thousands of Auschwitz survivors to file lawsuits for the compensation of their suffering.

Section 7

Post-War Life

Life After War

After Coward had been liberated in 1945, he moved to 133 Winchester Road in Edmonton, London. He shared a house with his wife Florence and his five kids. Later on he would go through the Nuremburg trials and another different trial spoke about in the slide before, eventually dying in 1963, ten years after the last trial in 1953.

Resources

Wikipedia English Heritage War History Online History.com

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