The Holocaust was a dark period in world history. Jews, gypsies, homosexuals and others were killed and cremated at the hands of the Nazis. There were some, however, who fought Adolf Hitler's views and attempted to save some of the victims of his cruelty. One of the greatest among them is Oskar Schindler. Oskar Schindler has been described as a con man, an alcoholic and an insatiable womanizer. All this may well be true, but the factory owner was a hero to many Jewish men, women and children. When those Jews were deported to the Plazsow concentration camp, he entered the famous Schindler's list. This list was a promise, a promise to those on it, that they would not die at the hands of the Nazis. Since he was known to love the finer things in life, no one knows exactly why he risked his life and spent his entire fortune to save at least 1,100 Jews during World War II. On April 28, 1908 in the industrial city of Zwittau, Austria Hungary Oskar Schindler was born to his parents Hans and Louisa. His father Hans owned an agricultural machinery company and thanks to this the family prospered. They lived in a middle-class neighborhood in a large two-story house surrounded by beautiful gardens. He, along with his younger sister Elfriede and their Jewish neighbors, attended a German high school. His father enrolled Oskar in science courses so he could become an engineer and expected him to eventually take over the family business. As a teenager, he became interested in motorcycles. As a gift, his father bought him a bright red Italian motorcycle. He darted everywhere in it and became the envy of his classmates. He soon began racing motorcycles, as many local factory owners had racing teams. He... middle of paper... is a good deed. They also gave him a gold ring made from a prisoner's dental bridge work. It was engraved with the words: "He who saves a single life, saves the whole world." The Schindlers fled the country to escape the Soviets and the Czechs. After the war, the Schinlders were not wealthy. They had spent nearly two million dollars to protect their workers. To make money, they resold items donated by aid agencies. They eventually saved enough to travel to South America. Oscar Schindler lived for many years and died in 1974. He was undergoing surgery to replace a pacemaker that had been implanted in him after a heart attack. It was October 9th in Frankfurt, western Germany. As he had requested, his body was buried outside the Jewish cemetery in Jerusalem. The reason and I quote: "My children are there."