Holocaust research hub to open in UK

Dr Rachel Pistol (second from right) said the work could help tackle Holocaust denial and antisemitism

A new national hub designed to preserve and advance Holocaust research is opening in the UK.

Part of the European Holocaust Research Infrastructure (EHRI), EHRI-UK is a collaboration between the Wiener Holocaust Library, the Holocaust Research Institute, the National Archives and the University of Southampton.

As well as preserving existing work, the hub will also fund more transnational research fellowships and placements and connect researchers, the university said.

Dr Rachel Pistol, director of EHRI-UK and a digital historian at the university, said the work would improve understanding of the Holocaust "as well as helping to counter Holocaust denial and antisemitism".

Collating records

The university is already home to The Parkes Institute, a world-renowned centre of Jewish studies, and the Parkes Collections, which contains the unique records of Rabbi Dr Solomon Schonfeld, who played a vital role in rescuing Jews from Nazi oppression.

The hub's first project will be to digitally map all collections in the UK that relate to the Holocaust.

"The UK is home to an enormously rich collection of records relating to the Holocaust and refugees who fled Nazi oppression," said Dr Pistol.

"These sit in archives, museums and private collections - and some we know very little about."

The university is already home to the records of Rabbi Dr Solomon Schonfeld

EHRI-UK is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).

Executive Chair Prof Christopher Smith said: "It is an obligation of the highest seriousness for us to preserve and share the memory of the Holocaust, a critical turning point in our history and a near-unimaginable tragedy.

"This infrastructure is a key mechanism that brings the fragile and scattered records into the digital world, to preserve it for the future.

"I am proud that AHRC has supported the UK's presence in a powerful European consortium."