The Shoes on the Danube Promenade

This memorial lies on the bank of the Danube in Budapest. It is a memorial to the men, women and children who fell victim to the Arrow Cross Militiamen in Budapest and depicts their shoes, left behind as they were cast into the river after been shot during WWII.

During WWII between 250 and 400 workers worked around the clock to prevent its Jewish population from being sent to the many concentrations camps. They were housed at the Swedish Embassy and other buildings in the area. On January 8, 1945 all of the inhabitants were rounded up and taken away to the banks of the river by the Arrow Cross Execution Brigade. Still wanting to prevent a massacre, 20 policemen armed with bayonets rescued them all, and helped them to flee the country. The survivors remember how they were lucky to escape the fate that their loved ones endured the Christmas the year before, being shot and thrown into the cold Danube River.

These little pairs of shoes broke my heart. Lives literally thrown away and shoes first removed as these were seen to be far more valuable than the people themselves. I couldn’t stay long. These replicas stand today as memory of the shocking and devastating loss.