Norbert Wollheim
Encyclopedia
Norbert Wollheim was a chartered accountant, tax advisor, previously a director of Central Council of the Jews in Germany and a functionary of Jewish organizations.
Norbert Wollheim grew up in Berlin. He studied jurisprudence
and political economy
, but had to cease his studies in 1933 because of his Jewish origin. He then worked as a welder for a metal export firm until the outbreak of war in 1938. During that same period he played a key role in running the Kindertransport
which transported 10,000 Jewish children out of Hitler's reach and into safety.
Wollheim engaged himself strongly in the Jewish life and became a managing director of the federation of German/Jewish youth. After the night of pogrom
s known as Kristallnacht
in 1938, he helped to organize the child transports of the Jewish municipality to Great Britain
and Sweden
. Until 1941 he was responsible for the occupation-training schools realm agency of the Jews in Germany and adviser on the training relating to crafts of Jewish citizens.
From September 1941 Wollheim worked at a transportation equipment factory in Berlin Lichtenberg.
On March 8, 1943 Wollheim with his wife and child were arrested by the Gestapo
and brought to the collective camp for Jews in the Grosse Hamburger street in Berlin, Germany. On March 12, 1943 the whole family was deported to Auschwitz. While Wollheim was singled out for slave labour, his wife and child were gassed in the concentration camp.
Wollheim was brought to Auschwitz camp III, Monowitz, where he had to work as slave labuorer for I.G. Farbenindustrie AG
, helping build the new Buna-factory IV until the evacuation of Auschwitz on January 18, 1945. On one of the so called death-marches of camp inmates being evacuated by the SS, Wollheim managed to flee. After the war he settled in Luebeck, Germany
. He soon engaged in Jewish community work and helped to rebuild Jewish life in Germany. He was elected second chairman of the central committee of the freed Jews in the British sector ("Zentralkomitee der befreiten Juden in der britischen Zone") and was cofounder of the Jewish Trust Corporation in the British sector. Later he became chairman of the ("Verband der Jüdischen Gemeinden Nordwestdeutschland) and member of the board of the central consistory of Jews in Germany ("Zentralrat der Juden in Deutschland").
In 1950 Norbert Wollheim sued I.G. Farbenindustrie AG for his salary as slave labourer and compensation for damages. His lawsuit was the first test case of a former slave labourer against a company in Germany. In 1953, the court of first instance, the district court of Frankfurt/Main, Germany, convicted IG Farbenindustrie AG i.L. to pay 10.000 Deutschmarks in punitive damages to Wollheim. In second instance the lawsuit was settled by a global settlement awarding several thousand of the former slave labourers of I.G. Farbenindustrie AG 30 million Deutschmarks. The settlement apart from the parties of the lawsuit involved the Conference on Jewish Material Claims against Germany
. The settlement was accompanied by a law passed by German parliament that needed and received the consent of the three western Allies, the U.S., the U.K. and France.
Wollheim emigrated to the U.S. in September 1951 and settled in New York City
, where he studied to become an accountant. He exercised his profession till the mid-1980s.
Wollheim provided his services on a pro bono basis to organisations like the US Holocaust Council and the World Federation of Bergen Belsen Survivors.
Norbert Wollheim grew up in Berlin. He studied jurisprudence
Jurisprudence
Jurisprudence is the theory and philosophy of law. Scholars of jurisprudence, or legal theorists , hope to obtain a deeper understanding of the nature of law, of legal reasoning, legal systems and of legal institutions...
and political economy
Political economy
Political economy originally was the term for studying production, buying, and selling, and their relations with law, custom, and government, as well as with the distribution of national income and wealth, including through the budget process. Political economy originated in moral philosophy...
, but had to cease his studies in 1933 because of his Jewish origin. He then worked as a welder for a metal export firm until the outbreak of war in 1938. During that same period he played a key role in running the Kindertransport
Kindertransport
Kindertransport is the name given to the rescue mission that took place nine months prior to the outbreak of the Second World War. The United Kingdom took in nearly 10,000 predominantly Jewish children from Nazi Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Poland and the Free City of Danzig...
which transported 10,000 Jewish children out of Hitler's reach and into safety.
Wollheim engaged himself strongly in the Jewish life and became a managing director of the federation of German/Jewish youth. After the night of pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
s known as Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht, also referred to as the Night of Broken Glass, and also Reichskristallnacht, Pogromnacht, and Novemberpogrome, was a pogrom or series of attacks against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria on 9–10 November 1938.Jewish homes were ransacked, as were shops, towns and...
in 1938, he helped to organize the child transports of the Jewish municipality to Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Until 1941 he was responsible for the occupation-training schools realm agency of the Jews in Germany and adviser on the training relating to crafts of Jewish citizens.
From September 1941 Wollheim worked at a transportation equipment factory in Berlin Lichtenberg.
On March 8, 1943 Wollheim with his wife and child were arrested by the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
and brought to the collective camp for Jews in the Grosse Hamburger street in Berlin, Germany. On March 12, 1943 the whole family was deported to Auschwitz. While Wollheim was singled out for slave labour, his wife and child were gassed in the concentration camp.
Wollheim was brought to Auschwitz camp III, Monowitz, where he had to work as slave labuorer for I.G. Farbenindustrie AG
IG Farben
I.G. Farbenindustrie AG was a German chemical industry conglomerate. Its name is taken from Interessen-Gemeinschaft Farbenindustrie AG . The company was formed in 1925 from a number of major companies that had been working together closely since World War I...
, helping build the new Buna-factory IV until the evacuation of Auschwitz on January 18, 1945. On one of the so called death-marches of camp inmates being evacuated by the SS, Wollheim managed to flee. After the war he settled in Luebeck, Germany
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
. He soon engaged in Jewish community work and helped to rebuild Jewish life in Germany. He was elected second chairman of the central committee of the freed Jews in the British sector ("Zentralkomitee der befreiten Juden in der britischen Zone") and was cofounder of the Jewish Trust Corporation in the British sector. Later he became chairman of the ("Verband der Jüdischen Gemeinden Nordwestdeutschland) and member of the board of the central consistory of Jews in Germany ("Zentralrat der Juden in Deutschland").
In 1950 Norbert Wollheim sued I.G. Farbenindustrie AG for his salary as slave labourer and compensation for damages. His lawsuit was the first test case of a former slave labourer against a company in Germany. In 1953, the court of first instance, the district court of Frankfurt/Main, Germany, convicted IG Farbenindustrie AG i.L. to pay 10.000 Deutschmarks in punitive damages to Wollheim. In second instance the lawsuit was settled by a global settlement awarding several thousand of the former slave labourers of I.G. Farbenindustrie AG 30 million Deutschmarks. The settlement apart from the parties of the lawsuit involved the Conference on Jewish Material Claims against Germany
Claims Conference
The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, or Claims Conference, represents world Jewry in negotiating for compensation and restitution for victims of Nazi persecution and their heirs...
. The settlement was accompanied by a law passed by German parliament that needed and received the consent of the three western Allies, the U.S., the U.K. and France.
Wollheim emigrated to the U.S. in September 1951 and settled in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he studied to become an accountant. He exercised his profession till the mid-1980s.
Wollheim provided his services on a pro bono basis to organisations like the US Holocaust Council and the World Federation of Bergen Belsen Survivors.