Monaco

At the beginning of the Second World War, Monaco was a neutral state. When the Axis powers moved into the French unoccupied zone after the Allied landings in North Africa, the Italian Army occupied Monaco on 11 November 1942 and set up a Fascist government administration. After Italy signed a separate peace agreement with the Allies, in 1943, the German army occupied Monaco from 9 September 1943 through to 3 September 1944, after which Monaco was liberated by Allied troops.

In 1940, Monaco had an estimated total population of 21,000 people. About 300 of them were Jews, who originated mostly from France. Monaco enacted some anti-Jewish legislation, similar to French regulations in 1941-42, with comparatively little practical effect. On an order given by the Vichy Government on 28 August 1942, 42 non-Monegasque Jews were arrested by French policemen. They were handed over to the Gestapo, transferred to Drancy first and then sent to Auschwitz. During the Italian occupation, there were no deportations. Under German rule, the Gestapo arrested and deported another 45 Jews of various nationalities in Monaco. Only five of the 87 Jews deported from Monaco survived.

The Archives of the Principality Palace (Archives du Palais Princier) and the Service Central des Archives et de la Documentation Administrative are the most important archival institutions in Monaco.

EHRI has identified the Archives of the Principality Palace as the most likely institution to have documents on the Holocaust period, but found them inaccessible for research at this time. The Jewish Cultural Association of Monaco may also hold relevant archival records. EHRI has yet to determine the exact nature and importance of the holdings of both institutions for Holocaust research. Outside of Monaco, however, EHRI has discovered a limited amount of records pertaining to Monaco during the Holocaust period, especially at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and at NIOD.