Raoul Wallenberg

Raoul Wallenberg (August 4, 1912 – July 17, 1947?) was a Swedish humanitarian who worked in Budapest , Hungary , during World War II to rescue Jews from the Holocaust . Between July and December 1944, he issued protective passports and housed Jews, saving tens of thousands of Jewish lives. On January 17, 1945 [1] , he was arrested in Budapest by the Soviets after they wrested control of the city from the Germans , and was reported to have died in March. The exact circumstances of his death have long been in dispute. He is an honorary citizen of Canada , Hungary , Israel and the United States . Israel has also designated Wallenberg one of the Righteous among the Nations . Monuments have been dedicated to him, and streets have been named after him throughout the world. A Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States was created in 1981 to "perpetuate the humanitarian ideals and the nonviolent courage of Raoul Wallenberg" and gives out the Raoul Wallenberg Award to that end. The date of death is based on a letter turned over to his family by the Soviets in 1957 and is disputed by some.

Raoul Gustaf Wallenberg (4 August 1912 – disappeared 17 January 1945) was a Swedish architect, businessman, diplomat and humanitarian . He is widely celebrated for saving tens of thousands of Jews in Nazi-occupied Hungary during the Holocaust from German Nazis and Hungarian Fascists during the later stages of World War II . While serving as Sweden's special envoy in Budapest between July and December 1944, Wallenberg issued protective passports and sheltered Jews in buildings designated as Swedish territory . On 17 January 1945, during the Siege of Budapest by the Red Army , Wallenberg was detained by Soviet authorities on suspicion of espionage and subsequently disappeared . He was later reported to have died on 17 July 1947 while imprisoned by communist authorities and KGB secret police in the Lubyanka , the KGB headquarters and affiliated prison in Moscow . The motives behind Wallenberg's arrest and imprisonment by the Soviet government, along with questions surrounding the circumstances of his death and his possible ties to US intelligence , remain mysterious and are the subject of continued speculation. Due to his courageous actions on behalf of the Hungarian Jews , Raoul Wallenberg has been the subject of numerous humanitarian honors in the decades following his presumed death . Congressman Tom Lantos , himself one of those saved by Wallenberg, sponsored a bill making Wallenberg an Honorary Citizen of the United States . He is also an honorary citizen of Canada , Hungary, Australia and Israel. Israel has also designated Wallenberg one of the Righteous among the Nations . Monuments have been dedicated to him, and streets have been named after him throughout the world. A Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States was created in 1981 to "perpetuate the humanitarian ideals and the nonviolent courage of Raoul Wallenberg". It gives the Raoul Wallenberg Award annually to recognize persons who carry out those goals. A postage stamp was issued by the U.S. in his honour in 1997. On 26 July 2012, he was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress "in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during the Holocaust." The date of death is based on a letter given to his family by Soviet authorities in 1957 and is disputed by some. The New York Times . 1 April 2010 . Raoul Wallenberg’s arrest order, signed by Bulganin in January 1945 "Unraveling Raoul Wallenberg's Secrets" .

20th-century Swedish architect, businessman, diplomat and humanitarian Raoul Gustaf Wallenberg (4 August 1912 – disappeared 17 January 1945) was a Swedish architect, businessman, diplomat , and humanitarian . He saved tens of thousands of Jews in Nazi-occupied Hungary during the Holocaust from German Nazis and Hungarian Fascists during the later stages of World War II . While serving as Sweden's special envoy in Budapest between July and December 1944, Wallenberg issued protective passports and sheltered Jews in buildings designated as Swedish territory . On 17 January 1945, during the Siege of Budapest by the Red Army , Wallenberg was detained by SMERSH on suspicion of espionage and subsequently disappeared . He was later reported to have died on 17 July 1947 while imprisoned by the KGB secret police in the Lubyanka , the KGB headquarters and affiliated prison in Moscow . The motives behind Wallenberg's arrest and imprisonment by the Soviet government, along with questions surrounding the circumstances of his death and his ties to US intelligence , remain mysterious and are the subject of continued speculation. As a result of his successful efforts to rescue Hungarian Jews , Wallenberg has been the subject of numerous humanitarian honours in the decades following his presumed death . In 1981, US Congressman Tom Lantos , one of those saved by Wallenberg, sponsored a bill making Wallenberg an honorary citizen of the United States , the second person ever to receive this honour. Wallenberg is also an honorary citizen of Canada , Hungary, Australia, and Israel. Israel has designated Wallenberg one of the Righteous Among the Nations . Numerous monuments have been dedicated to him, and streets have been named after him throughout the world. The Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States was created in 1981 to "perpetuate the humanitarian ideals and the nonviolent courage of Raoul Wallenberg." It gives the Raoul Wallenberg Award annually to recognize persons who carry out those goals. He was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress "in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during the Holocaust." There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ). Stockholm, Agence France-Presse in (31 October 2016). "Raoul Wallenberg's arrest order, signed by Bulganin in January 1945 – Searching for Raoul Wallenberg Searching for Raoul Wallenberg" . Searching for Raoul Wallenberg . 17 January 1945 .

20th-century Swedish architect, businessman, diplomat and humanitarian Raoul Gustaf Wallenberg (4 August 1912 – disappeared 17 January 1945) was a Swedish architect, businessman, diplomat , and humanitarian . He saved thousands of Jews in German-occupied Hungary during the Holocaust from German Nazis and Hungarian fascists during the later stages of World War II . While serving as Sweden's special envoy in Budapest between July and December 1944, Wallenberg issued protective passports and sheltered Jews in buildings which he declared as Swedish territory . On 17 January 1945, during the Siege of Budapest by the Red Army , agents of SMERSH detained Wallenberg on suspicion of espionage , and he subsequently disappeared . In 1957, 12 years after his disappearance, he was reported by Soviet authorities to have died of a suspected myocardial infarction on 17 July 1947 while imprisoned in the Lubyanka , the prison at the headquarters of the NKVD secret police in Moscow . However, the cause and date of death have been disputed ever since, with some people claiming to have encountered men matching Wallenberg's description until the 1980s in Soviet prisons and psychiatric hospitals. The motives behind Wallenberg's arrest and imprisonment by the Soviet government, along with questions surrounding the circumstances of his death and his ties to US intelligence , remain shrouded in mystery and are the subject of continued speculation. In 2016 the Swedish Tax Agency declared him dead in absentia , with the pro forma date of death noted as 31 July 1952. As a result of his successful efforts to rescue Hungarian Jews , Wallenberg has been the subject of numerous humanitarian honours in the decades following his presumed death . In 1981, US Congressman Tom Lantos , one of those saved by Wallenberg, sponsored a bill making Wallenberg an honorary citizen of the United States , the second person ever to receive this honour. Wallenberg also became an honorary citizen of Canada , Hungary, Australia, the United Kingdom and Israel. In 1963 the Israeli agency Yad Vashem designated Wallenberg one of the Righteous Among the Nations . Numerous monuments have been dedicated to him, and streets have been named after him throughout the world. The Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States was founded in 1981 to "perpetuate the humanitarian ideals and the nonviolent courage of Raoul Wallenberg". It gives the Raoul Wallenberg Award annually to recognize persons who carry out those goals. In 2012 Wallenberg was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress "in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during the Holocaust." Declassified documents have confirmed that Raoul Wallenberg worked with the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the predecessor of the CIA . Although some have claimed that Wallenberg was responsible for rescuing 100,000 Jews who survived the Holocaust in Hungary, historians regard that figure as an exaggeration; Yad Vashem estimates the number of people granted protective paperwork as about 4,500 individuals. There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ). Stockholm, Agence France-Presse in (31 October 2016). "Raoul Wallenberg's arrest order, signed by Bulganin in January 1945 – Searching for Raoul Wallenberg Searching for Raoul Wallenberg" . Searching for Raoul Wallenberg . 17 January 1945 . Science & Society . 63 (4): 459– 477. The protective letter authorized its holder to travel to Sweden or to any of the other country Sweden represented. About 4,500 Jews had these papers, which protected them from forced labor and exempted them from wearing the yellow star.

Swedish diplomat and humanitarian (1912–1945) Raoul Gustaf Wallenberg (4 August 1912 – disappeared 17 January 1945) was a Swedish architect, businessman, diplomat , and humanitarian . He saved thousands of Jews in German-occupied Hungary during the Holocaust from German Nazis and Hungarian fascists during the later stages of World War II . While serving as Sweden's special envoy in Budapest between July and December 1944, Wallenberg issued protective passports and sheltered Jews in buildings which he declared as Swedish territory . On 17 January 1945, during the Siege of Budapest by the Red Army , agents of SMERSH detained Wallenberg on suspicion of espionage , and he subsequently disappeared . In 1957, 12 years after his disappearance, he was reported by Soviet authorities to have died of a suspected myocardial infarction on 17 July 1947 while imprisoned in the Lubyanka , the prison at the headquarters of the NKVD secret police in Moscow . A document released in 2023 as part of the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection indicates that Vyacheslav Nikonov , then an assistant to the head of the KGB , determined as part of a 1991 inquiry into the circumstances surrounding his disappearance that Wallenberg had likely been executed by Soviet authorities in late 1947 as a result of claims that he may have been associated with people helping not only Jews but also Nazi war criminals escape prosecution. However, there is no conclusive proof of this theory of Wallenberg's death, and his cause and date of death have been disputed ever since, with some people claiming to have encountered men matching Wallenberg's description until the 1980s in Soviet prisons and psychiatric hospitals. The motives behind Wallenberg's arrest and imprisonment by the Soviet government, along with questions surrounding the circumstances of his death and his ties to US intelligence , remain shrouded in mystery and are the subject of continued speculation. In 2016, the Swedish Tax Agency declared him dead in absentia , with the pro forma date of death noted as 31 July 1952. As a result of his successful efforts to rescue Hungarian Jews , Wallenberg has been the subject of numerous humanitarian honours in the decades following his presumed death . In 1981, US Congressman Tom Lantos , one of those saved by Wallenberg, sponsored a bill making Wallenberg an honorary citizen of the United States , the second person ever to receive this honour. Wallenberg also became an honorary citizen of Canada , Hungary, Australia, the United Kingdom and Israel. In 1963, Yad Vashem designated Raoul Wallenberg as one of the Righteous Among the Nations . Numerous monuments have been dedicated to him, and streets have been named after him throughout the world. The Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States was founded in 1981 to "perpetuate the humanitarian ideals and the nonviolent courage of Raoul Wallenberg." It gives the Raoul Wallenberg Award annually to recognize persons who carry out those goals. In 2012, Wallenberg was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress "in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during the Holocaust." Declassified documents have confirmed that Raoul Wallenberg worked with the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the predecessor of the CIA . Although some have claimed that Wallenberg was responsible for rescuing 100,000 Jews who survived the Holocaust in Hungary, historians regard that figure as an exaggeration; Yad Vashem estimates the number of people granted protective paperwork as about 4,500 individuals. There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ). Stockholm, Agence France-Presse in (31 October 2016). "Raoul Wallenberg's arrest order, signed by Bulganin in January 1945 – Searching for Raoul Wallenberg Searching for Raoul Wallenberg" . Science & Society . 63 (4): 459– 477. The protective letter authorized its holder to travel to Sweden or to any of the other country Sweden represented. About 4,500 Jews had these papers, which protected them from forced labor and exempted them from wearing the yellow star.