Mildred Fish-Harnack Germany’s Secret Hero Biography written by: Becky Marburger Educational Producer Wisconsin Media Lab Table of Contents Introduction . 2 Early Life . 3 Getting an Education . 5 Living in Germany . 7 Resistance . 8 Captured! . 10 Conclusion . 12 Glossary . 13 Introduction Most laws are created to help keep people safe . Would you follow laws if they hurt people? Mildred Fish-Harnack lived in Germany when Adolf Hitler was its leader . His laws led to war and the deaths of millions of people . Mildred chose to stand up to Hitler . Her actions helped save people’s lives . Courtesy of the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections Center . UW .MFH0021 bib. Mildred Fish-Harnack (1923) 2 Early Life Mildred Fish was born on September 16, 1902, to Georgina and William Fish . Mildred had three older siblings: Harriette and twins Marion and Marbeau . The family lived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin . Fearless Mildred enjoyed being the center of attention . Courtesy of the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections Center . UW .MFH004 .bib . Mildred (top row, second from the left) showing her silly side in a photo with family and friends (August 1917). 3 Mildred was 12 years old when World War I began in Europe . The war pitted Germany against other countries . The United States (US) disagreed with Germany . Liberty Cabbage Kobako . 2006 . Wikimedia Commons . During World War I, people in Milwaukee removed German poetry from school lessons and stopped printing the city’s German newspaper . They even renamed sauerkraut “liberty cabbage ”. Sauerkraut, sausage, and potatoes are a traditional German meal. 4 Getting an Education Mildred’s parents separated when she was in high school . She moved with her mother Georgina in 1918 to Washington, DC . Georgina taught herself how to type and became a secretary . Mildred admired how hard her mother worked . Courtesy of the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections Mildred began college in Center . Washington, DC, in 1920 . After one year she switched schools and went to the University of Wisconsin- Madison (UW-Madison) . Mildred studied books and poems . Mildred graduated from UW- Madison in 1925 . She stayed to teach and get another college degree . One day a lost German student named Arvid Harnack came Mildred (right) used her into her classroom . He soon fell in mother’s work ethic and self-reliance as a model for love with Mildred . her own life (1917). 5 The couple married at her brother’s farm on August 7, 1926 . Arvid finished his classes in 1928 and moved back to Germany . Mildred stayed in the US to teach at a Maryland college . Courtesy of the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections Center . UW .MFH0020 .bib . As a progressive woman, Mildred kept her name after she got married and went by Mildred Fish-Harnack. 6 Life in Germany Mildred moved to Germany a year later . She taught classes and worked to get a third college degree . As Mildred studied, Hitler and the Nazi Party grew strong . The group wanted others to join the Nazi Party and share their beliefs . Mildred refused to do so, which caused her to lose her job . Mildred, Arvid, and other scholars from Berlin went to the Soviet Union in 1932 to learn more about the country . Soviet Union Mildred admired the Soviet Union because women had the right to choose where to work . Her experiences in the country fueled her desire to gain equal rights in Germany and the rest of the world . In 1991, the Soviet Union broke apart into 15 new countries, the largest being Russia. 7 Resistance Hitler led the Nazis . In 1933 he became the leader of Germany . The Harnacks hated the laws Hitler created . They formed a resistance group the German secret police called the Red Orchestra . The group Hoops . 2011 . Wikimedia Commons . wanted to force Hitler from power and return peace to Germany . The Red Orchestra told the truth about the Nazis in handouts and on the radio . The Nazis hated this . Arvid and Mildred went Adolf Hitler was the political leader of Germany from 1933 to 1945. back to Wisconsin in 1937 to visit the Fishes . The family thought Mildred was secretly a Nazi because she had grown quiet and shy . They asked her and Arvid to emigrate from Germany . The couple said no because they wanted to keep working against Hitler . 8 In 1939, World War II began in Europe . Mildred kept working within the Red Orchestra to tell the truth about the Nazis . She also helped people escape Germany and the Nazis . Arvid bought Mildred a boat ticket to the US because he felt Germany was too dangerous . But Mildred refused to go . She wanted to stay with Arvid and continue her work in Germany . Courtesy of the German Resistance Memorial Center . Despite the war, Mildred completed her PhD on November 20, 1941. This is her degree from the University of Giessen. 9 Captured! Arvid went outside alone on September 7, 1942 . He returned with three German secret policemen . The men took Arvid and Mildred to prison . The couple went on trial . Arvid knew he would be found guilty . He said he hated the Nazi Party and it was his fault that Mildred had worked against it . He hoped to save Mildred’s life . Both were found guilty on December 19, 1942 . Mildred’s sentence was six years in prison . Arvid’s sentence was death . He was hanged three days later . Arvid died believing his wife would live . Hitler learned of Mildred’s sentence and called for a second trial . This time her sentence was death . Courtesy of the German Resistance Memorial Center . Mildred and Arvid were kept in this Berlin prison before their five-day trial. 10 Red Orchestra Kobako . 2006 . Wikimedia Commons . The Red Orchestra was a resistance group that worked against Hitler and the Nazis . The organization gave Nazi secrets to countries such as the Soviet Union and the US so that they could work to defeat Hitler . The Red Orchestra also helped people flee from the Nazis. The members were so secretive that they often did not know each other . They did this because A Soviet soldier waving a flag they feared they could be jailed or after they beat the Nazis at the Battle of Stalingrad (1943). executed if discovered . Ihle, T . 2004 . Wikimedia Commons . A pastor visited Mildred on February 16, 1943 . He gave her a picture of her mother . Mildred kissed it and wrote on the back about her love for her mother . Mildred Fish-Harnack was put to death that night . Mildred was beheaded using a guillotine. 11 Conclusion Courtesy of the University of Wisconsin The Harnacks risked their Digital Collections Center . lives sharing Nazi secrets with the US and Soviet Union so Hitler could be defeated . World War II ended in 1945 . Mildred Fish-Harnack was a fearless woman who challenged laws In 1986, Wisconsin declared that harmed people . She September 16 Mildred Fish-Harnack Day to honor her selfless actions. believed in doing what How do you hope to be remembered? (1938) she thought right . Mildred showed how the actions of one person can help save people’s lives . 12 Glossary emigrate (v): . to move from one country to live in another equal rights (n): . the same treatment for all people guillotine (n): . a machine used to behead people as punishment Nazi (n): . a nickname for the National Socialist German Workers Party; political party led by Adolf Hitler whose goal was to make Germany the most powerful country in the world progressive (adj): . in favor of improvement, progress, and new ideas resistance group (n): . an organization formed to fight back against authority sauerkraut (n): . shredded cabbage that is salted and fermented to make it sour; means sour cabbage in German university (n): . a school for higher education; usually after high school World War I (WWI) (n): . a war fought from 1914 to 1918 mainly in Europe; France, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, the United States, and other allied countries defeated Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey World War II (WWII) (n): a war fought from 1939 to 1945 in Europe and eastern Asia; France, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, the United States, and other allied countries defeated Germany, Italy, and Japan 13 For additional resources, visit pbswisconsineducation.org Level 1 © 2019 Wisconsin Educational Communications Board and The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System.