An Austrian who fled the Nazis with his family during World War II bequeathed much of his fortune to the French people, whose residents hid them from persecution for years. Eric Schwam, who died at the age of 90 on December 25, wrote his surprise gift in his will for Chambon-sur-Lignon, located on a remote mountain plateau in southeastern France that historically has a large community Protestant known for offering refuge to those in need. .
“It’s a huge amount for the people,” Mayor Jean-Michel Eyraud told AFP.
He did not want to specify the amount, as the will was still being settled, but his predecessor, who told a local website that he met twice with Schwam and his wife to talk about the gift, said which was around 2 million euros ($ 2.4 million).
Photo of JEAN-PHILIPPE KSIAZEK / AFP via Getty Images
Schwam and his family arrived in 1943 and were hiding in a school during the war. They remained until 1950.
He later studied pharmacy and married a Catholic woman from the region near Lyon, where they lived.
Eyraud said Schwam called for the money to go to educational and youth initiatives, particularly scholarships.
About 2,500 Jews were welcomed and protected during World War II by Chambon-sur-Lignon, whose residents were honored as “Righteous Among the Nations” by the Israeli Holocaust Memorial Center Yad Vashem.
Over the centuries, the town has hosted a wide range of people fleeing religious or political persecution, from priests hidden during the French Revolution to Spanish Republicans during the civil war of the 1930s and, more recently, migrants and refugees. of the Middle East and Africa.