Good Man in Evil Times: The Unknown Hero Who Saved Countless...

Good Man in Evil Times: The Unknown Hero Who Saved Countless... by Fralon, Jose Alain. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780670888030.

Early in 1940 thousands of refugees fleeing the invading Nazi armies poured into Bordeaux, Frances temporary capital. Their only hope of salvation was to continue their journey to neutral countries like Spain and Portugal. But Franco and Salazar did not want to offend Hitler, and therefore instructed their embassies and consulates not to issue visas. Enter a truly exceptional man: Aristides de Sousa Mendes, the Portuguese consul in Bordeaux. Over a period of six months he doggedly defied Salazars orders and signed many thousands of visas, thus rescuing their recipients, many of them Jewish, from a terrible fate at the hands of the Nazis. A vengeful Salazar forced Sousa Mendes to return to Lisbon and take early retirement, thus ensuring he would end his days destitute. But whereas few now have fond memories of the Portuguese dictator, Sousa Mendes has earned himself a place in the pantheon of truly just men.