Nicholas Winton, Who Saved Hundreds of Children from Nazis, Dead at 106

A man who saved nearly 1,000 children from the wrath of the genocidal Nazis has died at the age of 106.

The New York Times reports that the man was an Englishman name Nicholas Winton and he helped to get 669 children that were predominantly Jewish out of Czechoslovakia as the Nazis took control of the Eastern Euopean nation. Astonishingly, he never mentioned his work until 1988 when his wife found records he kept of the children in an old book.

The children's parents were not so lucky and perished in the Nazi death camps that have come to be synonymous with World War II. Many have called him the English Oskar Schindler, whose exploits saving thousands from the Nazi war machine have become well known.

At the time Winton began his humanitarian work in 1938, he was working as a stockbroker. After talking with a friend who was aiding Czech refugees, he decided to cancel a ski vacation and instead use the time off to go help his friend.

Winton's services of ferrying young children out of the country became so well-known he established a storefront and had to cope with long lines that aroused the suspicion of the Gestapo. With well-placed bribes, Winton was able to carry on his work.

Winton ended up chartering eight trains in an effort to rescue all of the children. He was only able to get the children from the first seven trains to safety. The day the last train was to leave Czechoslovakia, Sept. 1, 1939, Hitler invaded Poland, starting World War II. Tragically, it was the last train that was the largest, holding some 250 children. After the invasion, all of Germany's borders were closed, making it impossible for the trains to pass, regardless of how many bribes he had paid.

In 2003, Winton was made a knight for his heroic actions.