The AJR Journal Sixty Years on a Historical Retrospective Anthony Grenville

VOLUME 6 NO. 1 JANUARY 2006 f946-2006 The AJR Journal sixty years on A historical retrospective Anthony Grenville Sixty years ago this month, AfR The Wiener Library and the AJR. Right to left: Information (the AfR fournal's Werner Rosenstock, predecessor) first appeared. That first General Secretary of AJR, issue, with its poor-quality paper and 1941-82, and editor of blurred print, now seems like a window AJR Information, onto a different world. But the grey and 1946-82, the historian Eva Reichmann, battered Britain of the post-war austerity Alfred Wiener, founder years was also the Britain in which the of the Library, Jewish refugees from Germany and Ilse Wolff, Chief Librarian, Austria settled - their adopted homeland. Hans Reichmann, Chairman of AJR, To read the early issues of the journal is 1953-63, to rediscover the history of the AJR's Susanne Rosenstock founding years. Courtesy of the Wiener Ubrary In its early years, AfR Information was only eight pages long. Its editors were naturalisation who had served in the pseudonym 'Narrator', could afford to Werner Rosenstock, who was to continue Forces, had contributed to the war effort treat the subject with humour, a sure sign in post until 1982, Herbert Freeden in a civilian capacity, or were contributing of anxieties defused. Surveying the (Friedenthal), who left for Israel in 1950, to the national economy. register of aliens naturalised in 1947, the and Ernst Lowenthal, who left for The journal followed the process of authors came across celebrities like the Gennany in 1946 to work for the Jewish naturalisation with close attention, pianist Franz Osborn and the actor Adolf Committee for Relief Abroad. The paths regularly informing its readers of the Wohlbriick, 'known as Anton Walbrook' taken by the original editors necessarily progress made. After a slow start in 1946, (famous for his roles in The Life and reflected the journal's principal areas of the official machine swung into action, Death of Colonel Blimp, The Red Shoes and concern: Britain, the land of settlement; and in 1947 over 10,000 applications for La Ronde), as well as a battery of Germany and Austria, the principal British citizenship from refugees from aristocratic 'vons', Bethmann-Hollweg, countries of origin; and the new Jewish Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia Neurath, Etzdorf, Westarp, and even, homeland in Palestine. were granted. Given that a single lurking 'von'-less among the commoners, application often covered several family a grandson of Kaiser Wilhelm II, The home front members, this meant that by the end of Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Christoph Dominating the AJR's domestic agenda 1948, when a further 7,000 applications Hohenzollern, 'known as George was its campaign to secure the right of its had been granted, the bulk of the Mansfield'. members to British citizenship. In refugees had become British. In 1949 the Commenting on the changes of name November 1945, shortly before the first number of applications granted to that often accompanied the acquisition of appearance of AfR Information, the refugees from Central Europe fell to British citizenship, the article chided, Home Secretary, James Chuter Ede, some 3,000, and thereafter to a mere tongue-in-cheek, those who took the made a statement in parliament opening trickle. The naturalisation of the former process of anglicisation to extremes: the way to the naturalisation of the refugees had been substantially 'Without wishing to hurt anybody's Jewish refugees, with certain classes of completed by 1950. sentiments, one feels tempted to ask, applicants for British citizenship being This was the cause of much satisfaction whether people do not overdo the given priority. The fi"ont page of the to the joumal, which strongly advocated expression of their gratitude to their new journal's first issue carried a prominent the integration of the refugees into country if they adopt names like Eden or welcome for the Home Secretary's British society. By March 1949, the Kipling, and whether names starting with statement, endorsing the principle that journal's column 'From My Diary', "Mac" should not rather be left to priority should be given to applicants for written by the editors under the Members ofthe Scottish Clans.' AJR JOURNAL JANUARY 2006 In January 1950, the journal's regular from German Jews who had survived the just system of restitution for the Jews feature on legal matters, 'Law and Life', Holocaust were extremely moving. 'Dear from Germany down the decades. The could state with some finality that 'every Colleagues from Breslau', read a letter journal also carried a fi-ont-page report on refugee who applied for it and had fi-om Hanover, 'I send all my love to those the proceedings at Nuremberg, whose not made himself personally of you who have worked together with sixtieth anniversary we also remember. objectionable to the authorities has me at the Jewish Hospital at Breslau. Up Characteristically, the journal's report become a British subject'. This was a to now, I am the only nurse from Breslau set the trial of the leading Nazi war notable success for the cause of the who has returned from the Camps. With criminals against the background of Jewish refugees in Britain. great difficulty I have gained my liberty, German Jewry's own history, in which it thanks to the British Army. Day by day, always took a special interest and pride. It Reporting on the Jews in Germany we fought for our lives, and unfortunately recalled Nuremberg's notoriety as the The plight of the surviving Jews in only very few have survived the fiefdom of Julius Streicher, editor of the Germany and, to a lesser extent, Austria, unspeakable horrors. I am the only pornographically antisemitic magazine and the conditions obtaining there survivor of a family of 9 members.' Der StUrmer, and as the site of the formed a principal focus of the journal's infamous Party rallies that had reports. 'I have just come from Berlin', culminated in the promulgation of the wrote 'Narrator' in the first issue. 'The This is the first edition of the anti-Jewish Nuremberg Laws in 1935. last time I saw her, she was a proud and Journal on which Dr Anthony The trials would, the journal hoped, arrogant city, her streets resounding with Grenville has worked in his remove the taint of Nazism that attached the steps of marching jackboots. I did not capacity of Consultant Editor. to the town's name: 'For all those who recognise her any more. Her glory has Following in the footsteps of have been spared, the days of Nuremberg crumbled to dust, her monuments are are indeed days of judgment, and the obliterated, her streets have been razed Richard Grunberger and utilising name of the town, soiled by the lowest to the ground and the faces of her people his specialised knowledge of the perfidy, will be cleansed and raised to an are grey and beaten.' A vivid picture, in refugee community, Dr Grenville emblem of justice.' The implication was those pre-television days, expressing looks at the principal issues the that the trials might begin the process of both satisfaction at the downfall of AJR dealt with in its early years. the decontamination of Germany as a Nazi Germany and concern for the In forthcoming editions, he will whole; it was, after all, the refugees' Jews surviving amidst such destruction former homeland, and the ties that bound and need. be focusing on historical, cultural and political topics of them to it often proved durable enough to The joumal carried regular reports on survive even the crimes of the special interest to our members. the Jews in German and Austrian towns Holocaust. and cities or in Displaced Persons camps like Deggendorf and Fohrenwald; in the From its first issue, the journal Crisis in Palestine British zone of occupation, a large contained a 'Missing Relatives' (later As the voice of a substantial section of number were still accommodated in the 'Missing Persons') column, through Jewry in Britain, AfR Information gave former concentration camp at Bergen- which subscribers could try to make vent to the grave concern of its members Belsen. A column in the journal entitled contact with family members who had about the situation in Palestine, where 'Those Who Survived' gave details about vanished in the Holocaust. Already from Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin the German-Jewish communities in the very first of these enquiries, for various towns, their deportation to the Marthe Herzog from Budapest, who had East, the fate that had awaited them been deported to Stutthof, a particularly there, and the pitifully small number who murderous camp near Danzig, it was JACKMAN • returned. Then, as now, AJR members clear that most would remain forever SILVERMAN demonstrated their concern for their less unanswered. Yet the column also allowed COMMERCIAL PROPERTY CONSULTANTS fortunate fellow Jews. In early 1945 the at least one survivor to display an AJR had set up its Clothing Collection indomitable will to live: 'Dr Kathe 26 Conduit Street, London WIR 9TA Department to bring relief, in the form of Laserstein wants to inform her relatives Telephone: 020 7409 0771 Fax: 020 7493 8017 donated garments, to the desperately and fiiends that she has survived. Her needy Jews on the Continent, principally present address is Berlin-Steglitz, in Germany. By February 1945, it had Immenweg 7.' AJR Heads of Department despatched more than 80,000 garments Two of the principal concerns of the Gordon Greenfield Finance to Europe and was appealing to AJR Carol Rossen Administration and Personnel Jews firom Germany were restitution for Marcia Goodman Social Services members for at least 12,000 garments material losses inflicted by the Nazis and Michael Newman Media and per month.

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