Oskar Schindler: The Nazi, who saved over 1000 Jews!

Oskar Schindler: The Nazi, who saved over 1000 Jews!

50 years ago, on October 9, 1974, Oskar Schindler died in Hildesheim. The entrepreneur and Nazi, who saved 1100 Jewish people during the Holocaust, remains a complex figure in history. His biography is characterized by contradictions: on the one hand, he was a man who benefited from Hitler's aggressive war policy, on the other hand he developed a pronounced sense of the suffering of his Jewish workers, which finally caused him to save her from deportation and safe death.

Schindler was born on April 28, 1908 in the Moravian city of Zwittau (today: Svitavy). This city originally belonged to Austria-Hungary and became part of Czechoslovakia after the First World War. The majority of the population felt like German, which also met the Schindler family.

the change of a National Socialist

The turning point in Schindler's life entered in 1939 when he joined the NSDAP. He thus secured a certain level of influence and protection. After Poland's occupation, he took over an enamel factory that previously belonged to Jewish owners. Schindler not only benefited financially, but also saw the opportunity to employ Jews who were then preserved from destruction.

Witnesses, including the saved Jude Mietek Pemper, reported Schindler's moral change. Pemper's statement describes how Schindler was initially a convinced National Socialist, but changed his attitude when he witnessed the suffering of the Jewish people. Pemper said: "He had a soft heart."

Schindler's sympathy became particularly visible in 1943 when the Krakauer ghetto was dissolved. Many of his workers were deported to the Plaszow concentration camp, where the brutal SS commander Amon Göth ruled. Despite the danger, Schindler actively sought closeness to Göth to protect his workers.

The famous lists

One of the most famous measures of Schindler were the lists, which were later famous by Steven Spielberg's film "Schindler's list". Schindler decided to list the names of his workers - as well as other Jewish names - to ensure their security. In doing so, he partially “sealed” to add additional names to the lists. In the end, the SS recognized 1078 men and women that he could preserve from death.

In order to ensure the security of his factory in Brünnlitz, Schindler had to pay not only for the care of his workers, but also for the SS wax team. Historians estimate that he spent around 26 million euros - adapted to today's purchasing power - on bribes and additional expenses to protect his Jewish workers.

in January 1945, when the Red Army moved closer and many Jewish people were in danger, Schindler took up another 81 Hungarian Jews. With a courageous excuse, he was able to prevent the transport of the Jews into a extermination camp and bring them to safety.

a life after the war

After the war, Schindler was impoverished and left Europe after he and his wife moved to Argentina in 1945 and founded a little low there. After all, he returned to Germany, where he could not cope with the challenges of a normalized life and always got into financial difficulties.

He only found up to date when he met a Hildesheim doctor's wife in Tel Aviv, who invited him to Hildesheim. There he largely lived from the support of the Jewish community until his death, which never forgot him and helped him, despite his previous life as a National Socialist. At his funeral, who visited many Jewish survivors, the real value of Schindler was finally recognized.

in Hildesheim today reminds Oskar-Schindler-Straße and a small monument to his actions. A school also bears his name. Like many other personalities in history, Oskar Schindler remains a figure that stand out through their contradictions and their brave commitment to the life right of thousands of people. His legacy lives on and his actions are an example of courage and humanity in one of the darkest times of history.