Marta Hillers
Encyclopedia
Marta Hillers was a German
journalist
and the author of the autobiographical
Eine Frau in Berlin (A Woman in Berlin
), her diary from 20 April to 22 June 1945 in Berlin
during and after the Battle of Berlin
. The book details her experiences as a victim of rape during the Red Army
occupation.
, and later traveled extensively throughout Europe
. She spoke French
and Russian
in addition to her native German
. She was a professional journalist, and made a name for herself as a Nazi propagandist. In 1945, she was stranded in Berlin
as the Soviets invaded it.
According to Marta Hillers' memoirs that were first anonymously published in 1954 in English
she was repeatedly raped and otherwise violated by elements of the Red Army as they took control of Berlin
. The diary was written at first during the fall of Berlin, and it differs in some extent from the subsequently published version. One acquaintance of Hillers, German author Kurt Marek
, published the book in the United States
.
Hillers married in the 1950s, moved to Switzerland
, abandoning journalism, but not before republishing her memoirs in German in 1959. However, this was in French-speaking Geneva
, where Hillers had now settled. The memoirs were met with controversy, given the propaganda value at a time of ever greater Cold War tensions. However, the memoirs did not sell well, maybe because it was felt that Hillers' work brought shame on German women, or maybe because it did not strike an emotional chord with readers at the time. It is even possible that so many Germans had heard or lived similar stories of horror that they did not want to read it once again.
Marta Hillers was never in the public eye, not agreeing to a new edition in her lifetime, after she was accused of besmirching the honor of German women, or of stirring anti-Communist propaganda.
It was only after Hillers' death in June 2001 at the age of 90 that Eine Frau in Berlin could be published again. It became a best seller in 2003, given the stronger interest sixty years on in social conditions at the time.
Jens Bisky the literary editor of the Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote in 2003 that Hillers may have been the anonymous author, and produced a profile of her life, mentioning that she was a journalist who worked on magazines and newspapers during the Nazi era, and who had also been a small-time propagandist for the Third Reich writing a navy recruiting brochure, but that she was probably not a member of the party.
Marek notes in his afterword that the book is based on a typescript based on handwritten notes, which were in the possession of his wife after his death in 1971. At the time of the Bisky revelations in 2003 Christian Esch writing in the Berliner Zeitung
pointed to differences in the editions and the Marek notes and said that if the diary was to be accepted as an fully authentic work the originals would have to be examined by experts.
Subsequently an examination of the notes was done by Walter Kempowski
on behalf of the publishing house. He came to the opinion that it was a genuine diary Hiller kept at the time, though the typescript and the published book contain material not in the diary. Antony Beevor
a British historian who wrote, a "magisterial book" on the Battle of Berlin
, confirmed its authenticity by comparing its content with his own detailed knowledge of the period and the other primary sources he has accumulated.
In 2008 a film directed by Max Färberböck
based on the diary, Anonyma - Eine Frau in Berlin, was released in Germany.
A Woman in Berlin was Marta Hillers' only major work.
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...
journalist
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
and the author of the autobiographical
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
Eine Frau in Berlin (A Woman in Berlin
A Woman in Berlin
A Woman in Berlin is an account of the period from 20 April to 22 June 1945 in Berlin . At the author's request, the work was published anonymously for her protection. The book purports to detail the writer's experiences as a rape victim during the Red Army occupation of the city...
), her diary from 20 April to 22 June 1945 in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
during and after the Battle of Berlin
Battle of Berlin
The Battle of Berlin, designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, was the final major offensive of the European Theatre of World War II....
. The book details her experiences as a victim of rape during the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
occupation.
Biography
Hillers studied at the SorbonneSorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
, and later traveled extensively throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. She spoke French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
in addition to her native German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
. She was a professional journalist, and made a name for herself as a Nazi propagandist. In 1945, she was stranded in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
as the Soviets invaded it.
According to Marta Hillers' memoirs that were first anonymously published in 1954 in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
she was repeatedly raped and otherwise violated by elements of the Red Army as they took control of Berlin
. The diary was written at first during the fall of Berlin, and it differs in some extent from the subsequently published version. One acquaintance of Hillers, German author Kurt Marek
C. W. Ceram
C. W. Ceram was the pseudonym of German journalist and author Kurt Wilhelm Marek, known for his popular works about archaeology. He chose to write under a pseudonym to distance himself from his earlier work as a propagandist for the Third Reich.Ceram was born in Berlin. During World War II, he...
, published the book in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Hillers married in the 1950s, moved to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, abandoning journalism, but not before republishing her memoirs in German in 1959. However, this was in French-speaking Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, where Hillers had now settled. The memoirs were met with controversy, given the propaganda value at a time of ever greater Cold War tensions. However, the memoirs did not sell well, maybe because it was felt that Hillers' work brought shame on German women, or maybe because it did not strike an emotional chord with readers at the time. It is even possible that so many Germans had heard or lived similar stories of horror that they did not want to read it once again.
Marta Hillers was never in the public eye, not agreeing to a new edition in her lifetime, after she was accused of besmirching the honor of German women, or of stirring anti-Communist propaganda.
It was only after Hillers' death in June 2001 at the age of 90 that Eine Frau in Berlin could be published again. It became a best seller in 2003, given the stronger interest sixty years on in social conditions at the time.
Jens Bisky the literary editor of the Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote in 2003 that Hillers may have been the anonymous author, and produced a profile of her life, mentioning that she was a journalist who worked on magazines and newspapers during the Nazi era, and who had also been a small-time propagandist for the Third Reich writing a navy recruiting brochure, but that she was probably not a member of the party.
Marek notes in his afterword that the book is based on a typescript based on handwritten notes, which were in the possession of his wife after his death in 1971. At the time of the Bisky revelations in 2003 Christian Esch writing in the Berliner Zeitung
Berliner Zeitung
The Berliner Zeitung, founded in 1945, is a German center-left daily newspaper based in Berlin, published by Berliner Verlag. It is the only East German paper to achieve national prominence since unification. In 2003, the Berliner was Berlin's largest subscription newspaper—the weekend...
pointed to differences in the editions and the Marek notes and said that if the diary was to be accepted as an fully authentic work the originals would have to be examined by experts.
Subsequently an examination of the notes was done by Walter Kempowski
Walter Kempowski
Walter Kempowski was a German writer. Kempowski was known for his series of novels called German Chronicle and the monumental Echolot , a collage of autobiographical reports, letters and other documents by contemporary witnesses of the Second World War.-Childhood :Walter Kempowski was born in...
on behalf of the publishing house. He came to the opinion that it was a genuine diary Hiller kept at the time, though the typescript and the published book contain material not in the diary. Antony Beevor
Antony Beevor
Antony James Beevor, FRSL is a British historian, educated at Winchester College and Sandhurst. He studied under the famous military historian John Keegan. Beevor is a former officer with the 11th Hussars who served in England and Germany for five years before resigning his commission...
a British historian who wrote, a "magisterial book" on the Battle of Berlin
Battle of Berlin
The Battle of Berlin, designated the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, was the final major offensive of the European Theatre of World War II....
, confirmed its authenticity by comparing its content with his own detailed knowledge of the period and the other primary sources he has accumulated.
In 2008 a film directed by Max Färberböck
Max Färberböck
Max Färberböck is a German film director and writer. He was born in Degerndorf, Münsing, Bavaria. He began his career at theaters in Buenos Aires and in Italy. He later studied at the University of Television and Film in Munich and worked for Constantin Film and as an assistant for Peter Zadek at...
based on the diary, Anonyma - Eine Frau in Berlin, was released in Germany.
A Woman in Berlin was Marta Hillers' only major work.
See also
- Forced labor of Germans in the Soviet UnionForced labor of Germans in the Soviet UnionForced labor of Germans in the Soviet Union was considered by the Soviet Union to be part of German war reparations for the damage inflicted by Nazi Germany on the Soviet Union during World War II. German civilians in Eastern Europe were deported to the USSR after World War II as forced laborers...
- Soviet war crimes
- Expulsion of Germans after World War IIExpulsion of Germans after World War IIThe later stages of World War II, and the period after the end of that war, saw the forced migration of millions of German nationals and ethnic Germans from various European states and territories, mostly into the areas which would become post-war Germany and post-war Austria...
Works
- Eine Frau in Berlin, diary from 20 April to 22 June 1945, Die Andere Bibliothek Band Nr. 221, ISBN 3-8218-4534-1
- A Woman in BerlinA Woman in BerlinA Woman in Berlin is an account of the period from 20 April to 22 June 1945 in Berlin . At the author's request, the work was published anonymously for her protection. The book purports to detail the writer's experiences as a rape victim during the Red Army occupation of the city...
, paperback 320 pages, Virago Press Ltd, ISBN 1-84408-112-5
External links
- Anonyma - Eine Frau in Berlin imdb page of 2008 film