Harry GOLDSCHMIDT
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Postcard dated 15
March 1893
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Translation Dear Julius! I received your
letter on Shabbes. Everything is fine
here, and we’re very happy about Rosalie’s engagement. We celebrated this with great enthusiasm –
especially me. On Shabbes evening Max
arrived unexpectedly, in order to see me just once more, and he left again on
Monday around midday. I’m leaving here
on Monday morning; will stay until Wednesday morning in Bassum; and then
until Friday morning in Hengelo. On Sunday there
will be a big antisemitic gathering in Holzhausen (at Schwiering’s)
and we all intend to go and protest.
More details to follow. Again, live well,
and do good business. With love and
kisses from your brother
Harry Everyone here sends
greetings. 15 Mar 1893 |
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Comments There is one handwritten word, repeated twice, that I have highlighted. It is not in German. I believe the word is “Shabbes” [Sabbath] in cursive Hebrew. Since the card is dated March 15 (a Wednesday) I conclude that Harry is referring to a letter from Julius that arrived on Saturday, March 11. Harry mentions Rosalie’s engagement. He is referring to his first cousin, Rosalie Goldschmidt, daughter of his father’s brother Marcus Goldschmidt, whose family also lived in Stolzenau. Rosalie was born on 23 May 1869 (she was 23 years old in March 1893), and she married Nathan Löwenstein from Göttingen on 10 October 1893. They subsequently had three sons. Rosalie died on 26 Apr 1943 in Theresienstadt. Harry also mentions Max, who unexpectedly came to visit. He is referring to his younger brother Max Goldschmidt. Max was born on 12 Jul 1873 (he was 19 years old in March 1893). He died just a few months later on 18 Oct 1893, as a result of illness. When Harry mentions that he will visit Bassum, he is referring to his uncle, aunt and cousins (the family of his mother’s brother Julius Nachmann), who lived in Bassum. Similarly, when he mentions he will visit Hengelo, he is referring to his aunt, uncle and cousins (the family of his mother’s sister Jenny and her husband Mejer Goedhardt) who lived in Hengelo. Clearly, he is visiting these places in order to say goodbye before leaving for America. Harry mentions an antisemitic gathering that was to take place on the following Sunday (19 March) in Holzhausen (a small village close to Stolzenau). I was curious whether this event had been reported in the local press, and with help from my friend Ute Müller (for which I am most grateful), the report was found in the archives of the Stolzenauer Wochenblatt, a local weekly newspaper. Click on this link for an English translation of this report. I am most grateful to my friend professor Chris Friedrichs, who provided this translation. The newspaper report provides a detailed description of the antisemitic arguments that were presented at the gathering, the counter-arguments, and the reactions of the audience. There is no report that any protest took place, no doubt because the audience was given a stern warning that no disturbance would be tolerated. It is interesting to read what was said, because nowadays, nearly 130 years later, we know a great deal about events that occurred after Germany’s defeat in World War I, and the antisemitic policies of the Nazi Party when they came to power in 1933. But we know less about what occurred earlier This report gives a glimpse of the amount of antisemitism that existed in Germany long before World War I. |
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