Anton Schmid
Encyclopedia
Anton Schmid was a German
sergeant (feldwebel) who, during World War II
in Vilnius
, Lithuania
, was executed by his superiors for helping 250 Jewish men, women, and children escape from extermination
by the Nazi SS during the European Jewish Holocaust. He did this by hiding them, supplying them with false ID papers and helping them escape.
Anton Schmid was an electrician who owned a small radio shop in Vienna
. Drafted into the German army after the Anschluss
of 1938, Schmid found himself stationed near Vilnius in the autumn of 1941. The Germans had entered Lithuania shortly before. As a sergeant of the Wehrmacht
, he witnessed the herding of Jews into two ghettos and the shooting of thousands of them in nearby Ponary
. In a letter to his wife, Stefi, Schmid described his horror at the sight of mass murder and of children being beaten on the way. He went on: "You know how it is with my soft heart. I could not think and had to help them." The post-war Federal Republic of Germany renamed a military base
in Rendsburg
"Feldwebel-Schmid-Kaserne" in honor for his courage. In Haifa
, Israel, the entry to town from the southern freeway is named "Anton Schmid Circus" in his honour.
His last words in a letter to his family:
When his conviction became known in Vienna, several neighbours talked snidely to Mrs Schmid about the „Landesverräter“ (Traitor of his Country).
Someone smashed one of her house's window panes.
On 16 May 1967, the Israeli government paid tribute to Sergeant Anton Schmid. Yad Vashem awarded his widow the medal "Righteous among the Nations
" which bears the inscription: "Whoever saves one life - saves the world entire."
To get the title "Righteous among the Nations", Anton Schmid had to have done certain things. A person can be considered for the title of "Righteous among the Nations" when the survivors' testimony or other documentation clearly demonstrates that a non-Jew risked his or her life, freedom, and safety, in order to rescue one or several Jews from the threat of death or deportation without exacting monetary compensation or other rewards. This applies equally to rescuers who have since died. Also, the person or people that were rescued must provide any documents that showed how a person made contact with the person he or she rescued and any other documents showing where either of these two people went after they were saved or saved another.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
sergeant (feldwebel) who, during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in Vilnius
Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, was executed by his superiors for helping 250 Jewish men, women, and children escape from extermination
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
by the Nazi SS during the European Jewish Holocaust. He did this by hiding them, supplying them with false ID papers and helping them escape.
Anton Schmid was an electrician who owned a small radio shop in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Drafted into the German army after the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
of 1938, Schmid found himself stationed near Vilnius in the autumn of 1941. The Germans had entered Lithuania shortly before. As a sergeant of the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
, he witnessed the herding of Jews into two ghettos and the shooting of thousands of them in nearby Ponary
Ponary massacre
The Ponary massacre was the mass-murder of 100,000 people, mostly Polish Jews, by German SD and SS and Lithuanian Nazi collaborators Sonderkommando collaborators...
. In a letter to his wife, Stefi, Schmid described his horror at the sight of mass murder and of children being beaten on the way. He went on: "You know how it is with my soft heart. I could not think and had to help them." The post-war Federal Republic of Germany renamed a military base
Military base
A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. In general, a military base provides accommodations for one or more units, but it may also be used as a...
in Rendsburg
Rendsburg
Rendsburg is a town on the River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the northeastern part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the Kreis of Rendsburg-Eckernförde. As of 2006, it had a population of 28,476.-History:...
"Feldwebel-Schmid-Kaserne" in honor for his courage. In Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, Israel, the entry to town from the southern freeway is named "Anton Schmid Circus" in his honour.
His last words in a letter to his family:
- „Ich habe nur als Mensch gehandelt und wollte ja niemandem weh tun.“
- ("I have only acted as a human and I did not want to hurt anyone.")
When his conviction became known in Vienna, several neighbours talked snidely to Mrs Schmid about the „Landesverräter“ (Traitor of his Country).
Someone smashed one of her house's window panes.
On 16 May 1967, the Israeli government paid tribute to Sergeant Anton Schmid. Yad Vashem awarded his widow the medal "Righteous among the Nations
Righteous Among the Nations
Righteous among the Nations of the world's nations"), also translated as Righteous Gentiles is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis....
" which bears the inscription: "Whoever saves one life - saves the world entire."
To get the title "Righteous among the Nations", Anton Schmid had to have done certain things. A person can be considered for the title of "Righteous among the Nations" when the survivors' testimony or other documentation clearly demonstrates that a non-Jew risked his or her life, freedom, and safety, in order to rescue one or several Jews from the threat of death or deportation without exacting monetary compensation or other rewards. This applies equally to rescuers who have since died. Also, the person or people that were rescued must provide any documents that showed how a person made contact with the person he or she rescued and any other documents showing where either of these two people went after they were saved or saved another.