September 19 in Jewish History: The Fall of Kyiv and the Road to Babi Yar
On September 19, 1941, German forces captured Kyiv (Kiev), the capital of Soviet Ukraine. For the city’s large Jewish population, this day marked the beginning of one of the darkest chapters of the Holocaust. Within ten days, more than 33,000 Jews of Kyiv would be murdered at Babi Yar, in one of the largest single mass killings of Jews during the war.
The German Entry into Kyiv
The Wehrmacht entered Kyiv on September 19, while Soviet forces retreated. As they withdrew, the Soviets left behind demolition charges and mines throughout the city.
On September 24, these explosives detonated, destroying German headquarters and killing hundreds of soldiers. The Nazis immediately blamed the Jews, though it had been a Soviet military operation.
Almost immediately, Nazi security forces — the SS and Einsatzgruppen — moved to establish control. They organized Ukrainian auxiliary police to help identify Jews, guard streets, and enforce orders. Some civilians cooperated, betraying Jewish neighbors or looting their homes. A small number of Ukrainians risked their lives to hide Jews, but this was rare in Kyiv at the time. Without local collaborators, the Nazis would have had to pull troops from the front lines to carry out mass killings.
The Trap is Set
From September 25 to 27, Nazi authorities prepared the elimination of Kyiv’s Jews. Flyers appeared across the city:
“All Jews of Kyiv must assemble on Monday, September 29, at 8:00 AM at the corner of Melnikova and Dokterivska Streets. Bring documents, money, valuables, warm clothing, linen, etc.”
The order promised “resettlement.” In reality, it was the beginning of mass extermination. Ukrainian auxiliary police helped spread the word and prepared to escort Jews to the gathering site.
Timeline: September 19–30, 1941
- September 19 — German Entry: Wehrmacht occupies Kyiv. SS and Einsatzgruppen arrive. Ukrainian auxiliaries recruited.
- September 20–24 — Suspicion and Persecution: Jews identified and harassed. Anti-Jewish propaganda spreads.
- September 24 — Explosions in Kyiv: Soviet mines destroy German HQ. Germans blame Jews. This becomes the pretext for mass retribution.
- September 25–27 — Planning the Massacre: Orders issued for Jews to assemble on September 29. Flyers appear.
- September 28 — The Trap Closes: Jews prepare for “resettlement.” German and Ukrainian police seal routes leading to Babi Yar.
- September 29 — The March to Babi Yar: Tens of thousands assemble. Herded through the city, stripped of possessions, and taken to the ravine. Shot in waves by German forces, with Ukrainian auxiliaries assisting.
- September 30 — Mass Killing Continues: By nightfall, 33,771 Jews are dead. The ravine is filled with corpses, covered with a thin layer of earth.
👉 On September 19 itself, Jews were not yet being shot in mass killings. But that day sealed their fate.
After Babi Yar
Following the massacre, Kyiv was declared “Judenfrei” (free of Jews). But not all Jews had reported to the assembly point.
Hiding and Betrayal: Some Jews hid with non-Jewish neighbors or tried to survive on false papers. Many were betrayed, hunted down, and executed.
Slave Labor: Others were forced into labor battalions, clearing rubble or serving the German war machine, and later killed.
Children and Families: Children found in hiding were usually murdered immediately.
Other Victims: Roma, Soviet POWs, and Ukrainian nationalists were also murdered at Babi Yar in the following months.
By 1942, nearly all Jews in Kyiv had been exterminated.
1943: Erasing the Crime
As the Red Army advanced in 1943, the Nazis attempted to cover their tracks. Jewish and other prisoners were forced to dig up bodies at Babi Yar and burn them on giant pyres. Most of these prisoners were then shot. A small number escaped during a revolt and later testified.
When Kyiv was liberated in November 1943, only a fraction of its prewar Jewish population of about 160,000 had survived. Returning Jews often found their homes occupied and faced hostility from neighbors. The Soviets acknowledged the massacre but described it only as the murder of “Soviet citizens,” deliberately erasing its Jewish character.
Were Jews Armed?
At this time, the Jews of Kyiv — like nearly all Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe — were not armed. Soviet law forbade civilian gun ownership, and weapons were restricted to the Red Army and partisan fighters.
When Kyiv fell, the general Ukrainian population was also largely unarmed. Some later joined partisan groups and gained access to weapons, but in September 1941, ordinary civilians had no means of resistance.
The Jews of Kyiv were completely defenseless.
Why September 19 Matters
September 19, 1941, was the day Kyiv’s Jews lost their safety and their city. Ten days later, at Babi Yar, they lost their lives.
The tragedy lies not only in the scale of murder, but in the reality that the Jews of Kyiv — unarmed, betrayed, and abandoned — had no chance to resist. Their fate was sealed the moment German forces marched into Kyiv.
✡️ This Day in Jewish History reminds us: Being disarmed in the face of a tyrant is a mistake free people get to make once.
Testimony: After reading today’s “This Day in Jewish History, on Babi Yar” my very close friend, Alex Dovgalevsky, sent me the following personal account, which adds important context. It is with his permission that I am including it verbatim in this post.
I appreciate your mention of Babi Yar. My Grandma lost her Grandma there, and with her, faith in Hashem. My Grandma and her Mom would have perished there too if they weren’t already evacuated.
The post-occupation treatment wasn’t much better. At first, Soviets tried to pretend it never happened. Instead of building a monument recognizing a mass grave, they decided to build a residential neighborhood right over the land where burned remnants of the murdered still lay.
Just as the buildings were completed and ready for people to move in, an epic, unprecedented flooding occurred. It toppled the new buildings and brought to the top the soil containing thousands of burned skeletons.
After that, Soviets stopped denying the massacre. They even taught it in schools. They only left the part about the Jews completely out of the story.
It was only in the late ’80s, with money donated by American Jews and the State of Israel, that they built the first monument at Babi Yar. But even that was a slap in the face. The monument was dedicated to those who perished in the Great Patriotic War. No mention of Jews.
