Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book discusses the decisions of the various governments contributed to the legacy of violence that characterizes how Kristallnacht is studied and remembered. It focuses on Great Britain, France, Spain, Canada, Australia, and Germany to problematize foreign reaction to Kristallnacht against ongoing domestic anti-Semitism, heightened tension about German expansionism, continuing economic misfortune, and rigid immigration policies that few countries were willing to relax to accommodate Jewish refugees. Paul Moore and Emmanuel Debono turn the analytic gaze on France to gauge on one hand French opinion about the assassination that took place on its soil and on the other hand French reaction to the pogrom that resulted from it. Baer's chapter sees a Spain strongly divided between the Nationalist and the Republican sides but also keenly aware of what was taking place elsewhere in Europe.