I never tire of seeing new pictures of these Swedish busses and their incredible mission, rescuing concentration camp prisoners and taking them to safety in Sweden, a key part of my novel, Lilac Girls.
The mission’s white busses were painted with Red Cross emblems, so they would not be mistaken for military targets. The convoys included 288 volunteer soldiers, 20 medics, 36 hospital buses, 19 trucks, seven passenger cars, seven motorcycles, a tow truck, a Swedish field kitchen and supplies. The operation rescued 15,345 prisoners from concentration camps– 7,795 Scandinavian and 7,550 non-Scandinavian–7,000 of those women from Ravensbruck. Despite the red crosses the convoys were hit three times by Allied bombers, unaware that the buses carried concentration camp victims. (The Nazis often painted red crosses on their transports to deter Allied fire.) Sixteen newly-freed inmates were killed.
Bus today
Loved this great book on the subject: Escape from the Third Reich by Sune Persson. It tells the whole story in detail.
Count Folke Bernadotte headed up the rescue.
Volunteer soldiers and medics
The body of Count Bernadotte, assassinated by Jewish militants in Israel, taken back to Sweden.
For more information visit this excellent website (translation available): http://www.redcross.se/om-oss/historik/vita-bussarna/
