IN THE NEWSPAPERS.
The String Quartet and its Humorous Troubles
… The literature on the string quartet is not particularly extensive. Apparently, the players are too busy to exchange their instruments for a pen. A few good studies, a single illustrated work with several short biographies of famous quartets, a single humorous book—one could list a few more things that have been written in connection with the string quartet. But a real library, such as exists for almost every other branch of the musical arts, does not exist for the string quartet.
Many enthusiasts, however—especially those who prefer to concern themselves with the practical rather than the theoretical side of the string quartet—preserve a small newspaper clipping from the Berliner Tageblatt of 9 May 1924. They carry it in their breast pocket, sometimes in their wallet, and when it has become so smudged or crumpled that it is nearly unreadable, they copy it out anew. Years ago it was given to us as a rare gift by the first violinist of a famous string quartet. For a long time, the author was unknown.*)
*) The author is Franz Anton Ledermann, jurist and amateur violist, born 1880.
… The literature on the string quartet is not particularly extensive. Apparently, the players are too busy to exchange their instruments for a pen. A few good studies, a single illustrated work with several short biographies of famous quartets, a single humorous book—one could list a few more things that have been written in connection with the string quartet. But a real library, such as exists for almost every other branch of the musical arts, does not exist for the string quartet.
Many enthusiasts, however—especially those who prefer to concern themselves with the practical rather than the theoretical side of the string quartet—preserve a small newspaper clipping from the Berliner Tageblatt of 9 May 1924. They carry it in their breast pocket, sometimes in their wallet, and when it has become so smudged or crumpled that it is nearly unreadable, they copy it out anew. Years ago it was given to us as a rare gift by the first violinist of a famous string quartet. For a long time, the author was unknown.*)
*) The author is Franz Anton Ledermann, jurist and amateur violist, born 1880.
“We gaan op reis, vaarwel liefsten.” by Miki Shoshan
Paul Citroen was my mother’s beloved uncle. Two years ago he passed away. My mother travelled from Israel to Wassenaar and stayed with his family. Among his belongings she found a bundle of letters. They were letters Paul had received from his family members during the war from Amsterdam, Westerbork, and Bergen-Belsen. The letters describe the final years of this Dutch-German family.
The main branch of the Citroen family had lived in the Netherlands for generations and did (successful) business there in hides and diamonds. The grandfather of the family, Hendrik, however, lived for a long time in Berlin where he worked in his uncle’s business. He had chosen the uncle in Berlin over another uncle in Paris, who had set up a car factory there, the Citroën factory. In Berlin, Hendrik married Ellen Philippi, a Berliner, who after her husband’s death moved to Amsterdam in 1932. See Citroen familytree.
In 1940, when the Germans invaded the Netherlands, Hendrik and Ellen’s son Paul was living in Wassenaar. His sister Ilse was by then married to Franz Ledermann, a German Jew from a well-to-do Berlin family. The Ledermanns had decided to leave Berlin in 1935 (incorrect, it was 1933). Franz left for Palestine “to explore,” but returned disappointed. Franz and Ilse and their two daughters Barbara and Susanne settled in safe (?) Amsterdam, where Ilse’s mother Ellen was the director of a home for the elderly. They too thus lived in Amsterdam on May 10, 1940, when the Germans invaded the Netherlands.
Honourable
Hans Citroen realized the danger looming over his family. From Paris he wrote his sister Ilse a letter urging her to use their position and connections to have false papers made in order to get out of the Netherlands. Franz Ledermann sent his brother-in-law an angry reply: “I am an honourable lawyer and cannot break the law.” After some time the lawyer Franz Ledermann received an appointment with the Jewish Council.
On 3 July 1942 Ilse Ledermann wrote to her brother Paul, who was now in hiding in Wassenaar: “We no longer have permission to ride the tram. Franz now goes by bicycle to the Jewish Council and that is far too exhausting for him. Susanne got an eight today for her German and sevens for the other subjects…”
That same day Franz also wrote: “Dear Paul, although I have not given up hope for surprises, I must admit to you that it now looks as if the word ‘besch’ is too flattering a description… but have we not been too spoiled… are there not millions of people who are far worse off… I suggest we scorn the dangers that threaten us. It is a mistake to think that the oppressors are happy and the oppressed unhappy. We and our families are currently not in danger of being sent to labour camps because the age limit is forty and perhaps may even be raised further before we have to pack our toothbrushes.”
On 9 July Ilse writes to Paul: “Everyone who works at the Jewish Council is safe for the time being. Before I knew that, I was frantic with fear for Barbara, her seventeen-year-old daughter. All her friends, boys and girls, have received their summons. It started on Sunday. The police handed out summonses door to door. You had to report to the Gestapo the next day. It concerned men aged fifteen to forty, and if you were married your family also had to go. In addition, all single women up to forty and girls from sixteen onwards.
At the Gestapo they were given a note stating that they had to be at the station on 15 July at 24:30, with two woollen blankets and a suitcase with some clothing. The action is called ‘transport for work in Germany’… Just now the Jewish Council called and said that the children of people who work for the Jewish Council are safe. What good fortune has come to us! All around us it is nothing but tragedy. Many families have become childless. The separation of young children is unbearable.”
Two months later, on 11 September 1942, Ilse writes: “People are now being arrested almost every evening, but they say that things will pause during the holidays. A gentlemen’s agreement!”
And on 3 October 1942 Ilse writes to Paul: “After I wrote to you yesterday, a lot more happened. First Franz came back from the Jewish Council with the message that we must prepare for a large transport. Five trains are ready, which means that five thousand Jews will be rounded up… This time everything is being arranged without the Jewish Council…”
Ready to travel
“At ten o’clock a boy came, sent by one of Barbara’s friends, to get her out of here because Jews are already being taken from house to house. My nerves gave way as they never had before. We decided that she will stay here. Whether the stamp helps or not. I hope the former. If they work according to the list, then Barbara is registered with us and must be here when they come. Barbara has dressed ready for travel and even went to sleep like that…
Nothing happened to us. But this morning the facts: this time the target was mainly families of people who had already been put to work. They all had to go. It was horrible. WA, NSB members, blacks (SS?), Hitler Youth ruthlessly dragged thousands from their homes—small children with their parents, the elderly and the sick. We ran to two of Susanne’s friends. Their houses were empty. One of them had come to Susanne just yesterday to return a book, because they had already heard that it concerned their category…”
(On 2 and 3 October 1942, the Germans deployed all available manpower plus the entire Amsterdam police force for the largest raid until then. In just a few days, including in the labour camps, between 13,000 and 15,000 Jews were arrested. They were sent almost immediately to Westerbork, where the overcrowding in the barracks and the chaos became instantly indescribable.)
In mid-November Ellen, the mother of Ilse and Paul, who runs a home for the elderly, writes to her son: “Don’t worry so much about us. So far everything has gone well, even when we again had unexpected visitors (Gestapo) last night for the fourth time, at ten minutes to twelve. They actually came for Mrs. De Leeuw. There were three of them, very decent people.
I asked them to wait a moment so I could prepare her for their arrival, because she is in bed with breast cancer. They immediately agreed, asked for a doctor’s certificate, and then left her alone. They showed a great deal of interest in our portrait in my room. ‘That is you, isn’t it, madam? He must be a good artist.’ This portrait was drawn by Paul Citroen, her son to whom the letter was addressed. They also looked at the photo of the Ledermanns and everything hanging in my room, and found it all very nice…
Children, how tired I am, but I do not dare go to bed before one o’clock in case we get more visitors. Then I must be ready to open the door…”
Paul Citroen was my mother’s beloved uncle. Two years ago he passed away. My mother travelled from Israel to Wassenaar and stayed with his family. Among his belongings she found a bundle of letters. They were letters Paul had received from his family members during the war from Amsterdam, Westerbork, and Bergen-Belsen. The letters describe the final years of this Dutch-German family.
The main branch of the Citroen family had lived in the Netherlands for generations and did (successful) business there in hides and diamonds. The grandfather of the family, Hendrik, however, lived for a long time in Berlin where he worked in his uncle’s business. He had chosen the uncle in Berlin over another uncle in Paris, who had set up a car factory there, the Citroën factory. In Berlin, Hendrik married Ellen Philippi, a Berliner, who after her husband’s death moved to Amsterdam in 1932. See Citroen familytree.
In 1940, when the Germans invaded the Netherlands, Hendrik and Ellen’s son Paul was living in Wassenaar. His sister Ilse was by then married to Franz Ledermann, a German Jew from a well-to-do Berlin family. The Ledermanns had decided to leave Berlin in 1935 (incorrect, it was 1933). Franz left for Palestine “to explore,” but returned disappointed. Franz and Ilse and their two daughters Barbara and Susanne settled in safe (?) Amsterdam, where Ilse’s mother Ellen was the director of a home for the elderly. They too thus lived in Amsterdam on May 10, 1940, when the Germans invaded the Netherlands.
Honourable
Hans Citroen realized the danger looming over his family. From Paris he wrote his sister Ilse a letter urging her to use their position and connections to have false papers made in order to get out of the Netherlands. Franz Ledermann sent his brother-in-law an angry reply: “I am an honourable lawyer and cannot break the law.” After some time the lawyer Franz Ledermann received an appointment with the Jewish Council.
On 3 July 1942 Ilse Ledermann wrote to her brother Paul, who was now in hiding in Wassenaar: “We no longer have permission to ride the tram. Franz now goes by bicycle to the Jewish Council and that is far too exhausting for him. Susanne got an eight today for her German and sevens for the other subjects…”
That same day Franz also wrote: “Dear Paul, although I have not given up hope for surprises, I must admit to you that it now looks as if the word ‘besch’ is too flattering a description… but have we not been too spoiled… are there not millions of people who are far worse off… I suggest we scorn the dangers that threaten us. It is a mistake to think that the oppressors are happy and the oppressed unhappy. We and our families are currently not in danger of being sent to labour camps because the age limit is forty and perhaps may even be raised further before we have to pack our toothbrushes.”
On 9 July Ilse writes to Paul: “Everyone who works at the Jewish Council is safe for the time being. Before I knew that, I was frantic with fear for Barbara, her seventeen-year-old daughter. All her friends, boys and girls, have received their summons. It started on Sunday. The police handed out summonses door to door. You had to report to the Gestapo the next day. It concerned men aged fifteen to forty, and if you were married your family also had to go. In addition, all single women up to forty and girls from sixteen onwards.
At the Gestapo they were given a note stating that they had to be at the station on 15 July at 24:30, with two woollen blankets and a suitcase with some clothing. The action is called ‘transport for work in Germany’… Just now the Jewish Council called and said that the children of people who work for the Jewish Council are safe. What good fortune has come to us! All around us it is nothing but tragedy. Many families have become childless. The separation of young children is unbearable.”
Two months later, on 11 September 1942, Ilse writes: “People are now being arrested almost every evening, but they say that things will pause during the holidays. A gentlemen’s agreement!”
And on 3 October 1942 Ilse writes to Paul: “After I wrote to you yesterday, a lot more happened. First Franz came back from the Jewish Council with the message that we must prepare for a large transport. Five trains are ready, which means that five thousand Jews will be rounded up… This time everything is being arranged without the Jewish Council…”
Ready to travel
“At ten o’clock a boy came, sent by one of Barbara’s friends, to get her out of here because Jews are already being taken from house to house. My nerves gave way as they never had before. We decided that she will stay here. Whether the stamp helps or not. I hope the former. If they work according to the list, then Barbara is registered with us and must be here when they come. Barbara has dressed ready for travel and even went to sleep like that…
Nothing happened to us. But this morning the facts: this time the target was mainly families of people who had already been put to work. They all had to go. It was horrible. WA, NSB members, blacks (SS?), Hitler Youth ruthlessly dragged thousands from their homes—small children with their parents, the elderly and the sick. We ran to two of Susanne’s friends. Their houses were empty. One of them had come to Susanne just yesterday to return a book, because they had already heard that it concerned their category…”
(On 2 and 3 October 1942, the Germans deployed all available manpower plus the entire Amsterdam police force for the largest raid until then. In just a few days, including in the labour camps, between 13,000 and 15,000 Jews were arrested. They were sent almost immediately to Westerbork, where the overcrowding in the barracks and the chaos became instantly indescribable.)
In mid-November Ellen, the mother of Ilse and Paul, who runs a home for the elderly, writes to her son: “Don’t worry so much about us. So far everything has gone well, even when we again had unexpected visitors (Gestapo) last night for the fourth time, at ten minutes to twelve. They actually came for Mrs. De Leeuw. There were three of them, very decent people.
I asked them to wait a moment so I could prepare her for their arrival, because she is in bed with breast cancer. They immediately agreed, asked for a doctor’s certificate, and then left her alone. They showed a great deal of interest in our portrait in my room. ‘That is you, isn’t it, madam? He must be a good artist.’ This portrait was drawn by Paul Citroen, her son to whom the letter was addressed. They also looked at the photo of the Ledermanns and everything hanging in my room, and found it all very nice…
Children, how tired I am, but I do not dare go to bed before one o’clock in case we get more visitors. Then I must be ready to open the door…”
Two days later, Mrs. De Leeuw is nevertheless taken away by “those decent people.” On 9 February 1943 it is also Ellen Citroen-Philippi’s turn. On 1 March 1943 she writes from barrack 64 in Westerbork to Paul: “My dear child, this is the day we are allowed to write. Everything is in order here. But the longing for you is unbearable. Tomorrow the journey continues. The train is ready. Only at 04:43 at night will it be announced who will be sent on (to Auschwitz). I have little hope. Thank you for everything, and teach Pauline (her granddaughter) not to forget me. You live in me and for you I live…”
Very brave
Ellen Citroen-Philippi did not (yet) have to go on transport. In a letter to Paul, Ilse writes: “Heinz has written to his family that Mama is very brave and is caring for the sick. She is admired.” Even then Ilse has not yet given up hope of obtaining the necessary stamps and arranging something for her mother. Among the letters is also one addressed to the Germans, pointing to the merits of Ellen Citroen-Philippi during and after the First World War in Germany.
Not even four days later, the Jewish Council is no longer “safe.” Ilse writes on 24 May 1943 to her mother in Westerbork: “Dearest Mother, yes, now it is the Jewish Council’s turn. On Friday Cohen was informed that now a part of the Jewish Council would be sent to Germany for Arbeitseinsatz. On Sunday they worked day and night on the lists. The Jewish Council must draw up the lists itself and send out the summonses. A desperate task. Many are digging their own graves. Barbara had duty on Sunday evening. First, 50 percent of the Oosteinde had to be removed. She escaped by a hair, but then it became 75 percent.
They came to her crying and said they had to cross her off. They offered her all kinds of help, said she was one of the best workers. What good does it do us. We had a terrible night and when Franz went to the Keizersgracht on Sunday to speak with Meijer de Vries, he had already removed her from the list on his own initiative.”
On 20 July 1943 the Ledermanns also had to report to the Schouwburg. They took the tram, got off at the Schouwburg stop, and went inside. The parents, Franz and Ilse, went first, with Barbara and Susanne hand in hand behind them. The moment Barbara passed the German guard, she instinctively realized what it meant. She let go of her younger sister’s hand, turned around, and demanded that the German guards open the gate. With her blond appearance and perfect German, she was taken for a German whose shift had ended. In this way she was saved—without farewell, without looking back. (This story is incorrect, see her own testimonies.)
Franz, Ilse, and Susanne were sent to Westerbork and there they saw Ellen again, Ilse’s mother. Three days after arrival Ilse and Franz write to Paul:
“Dear friends, at the Daniel Willinkplein we were able to hand in the rucksacks, which will be delivered to us on Monday. Then registered and took the tram to Muiderpoort. The train left at 3 a.m. A cattle wagon, 28 people packed together, very warm and stuffy. Arrived at 8 o’clock, about 1800 people, then until 6 p.m. through all the departments, registrations, applications, Jewish Council, quarantine, barrack assignment, the whole time with luggage, very exhausting… We immediately ran to Mama, who looks thin, pale, but unbroken and brave.”
Newspaper
The letter continues with a description of the food in the camp and the food items that are very welcome: jam, bread, sugar, and a list of the friends they find there.
“It is swarming with acquaintances here… Have the Nieuwe Rotterdamse of the Rosenbaums sent here… Also order our Telegraaf to be delivered here, to Barrack 57…”
On 26 August Susanne writes to her sister Barbara, who in the meantime has gone into hiding:
“Dear Darling,
by the time this letter arrives, it will be almost your birthday (4 September, and you will be 18). Sweetheart, you know how much good we wish you, and you also know that I would much rather have told you this in person with a little present. It hasn’t happened often, has it, that we didn’t celebrate your birthday together, and so it feels a bit strange to send you a birthday kiss instead of smacking a big one on your cheek. And the present—or rather, presents—I received from you this year instead of you from me! One needs variety. What beautiful things you sent me! First came those shoes, you rascal! Weren’t those lovely shoes originally yours? I seem to remember you had just received them. You mustn’t send things you need yourself, you know! Of course, I was delighted with them and they fit me perfectly. How they’ve been admired here!
And the adorable blouse. What beautiful fabric. I made the sleeves a bit narrower and wear it only when I want to look really nice. The kerchief ditto ditto. Though now I wear it in bed. You see, I’ve been ill again since Sunday. Glandular fever. I have a swollen, painful gland, accompanied by headaches and a high fever. This morning at half past eight it was 38.4. Annoying, isn’t it? The doctor says it may last three weeks. I’m writing now in bed, which goes badly, as you can see. Now I have that kerchief on, filled with fat and regular cotton wool, and look as if I have the mumps. That belt is great too. And such good quality. And the puzzle game—both I and the whole neighbourhood were thrilled with it. Only the “soy game” I don’t understand. A pity, isn’t it?
That candy parcel was wonderful! I was already ill then and had finished it in two days! Such excitement when I get a parcel myself! Those shoes from Pl. were amazing (again!). They fit me like a glove. I already have an entire shoe shop now. Although two pairs of low leather shoes are not even that many here in Westerbork because you wear out soles terribly fast here, especially if you’re an ordonnance.
This morning we received your letter of the 5th. Ugh, a finger caught in something can hurt badly. Was Bea a disappointment after all? See, I knew you and your Mannie would get along fine. Congratulations, Manfred, on ‘the girl of your heart’—or isn’t she? Will you give her a bunch of tulips again this year? But now you surely won’t be so shy, because now there won’t be as many people around!
Oh yes, Lottie, I still have to ask you for a shopping bag and a tea strainer, and tell Louisje that her honey cake was unforgettable. Is she back? The weather was nice lately; she must have been lucky.
Furthermore, I must give you Uncle Heinz’s warm greetings, with many kisses and birthday wishes, and send you a wonderful birthday and unbelievably many kisses from your Suusje.
P.S. Thank you again for Willy’s Offer. I knew it already, but still find it beautiful. And Manfred, you will also get a letter from me for the extra guilder time—aren’t you thrilled?
Goodbye, darlings.” (This is the complete letter Susanne wrote.)
Telegraaf
The letter continues with a description of the food in the camp and the foodstuffs that are very welcome: jam, bread, sugar, and a list of the friends they encounter there.
“It is swarming with acquaintances here… Have the Nieuwe Rotterdamse of the Rosenbaums sent here… Also order our Telegraaf to be delivered here, to Barrack 57…”
Full of courage
Twice a week in Westerbork the lists were published with the names of people who had to go on transport. Ellen, Ilse’s mother and Susanne’s grandmother, saw dozens of such lists without her name ever appearing on them. On 16 November 1943 it was the Ledermanns’ turn: Ilse, her husband Franz, and their daughter Susanne were to be transported to Auschwitz. Only when she was sitting in the overcrowded cattle wagon did Ilse admit that she knew it was not a labour camp in Germany.
In the wagon she wrote on a small piece of paper: “My dearest ones, we are now sitting together on our last journey for a long time… the three of us together. They have provided us with plenty of food. The farewell from Mama was terribly difficult. Do not suffer over us, we are full of courage. Barbara, my child, take good care of yourself. That is what we all hope… Your last parcels were wonderful, we have taken them with us. Also Papa’s dressing gown. Send the wool we asked for to Grandma instead. We are on our journey, farewell beloved ones, much love, all the best, kisses, Ilse.”
The note, addressed to her brother Paul, was thrown from the train. Someone found it and sent it to Paul. The Ledermanns’ journey to Auschwitz took three days. On 19 November 1943 they arrived in Auschwitz, and already at the first selection on the same day all three were sent to the gas chamber.
Grandmother Ellen remained in Westerbork and from there wrote a letter on 7 December 1943. By then one was only allowed to write on special stationery, marked with a German censorship stamp.
The letter was addressed to her son Paul:
“My dear children, this letter is being sent a day late due to lack of forms. Nevertheless, all my best wishes, that we may one day meet again in good health. The letter should reach you around your birthday, my dear eldest son. It is terribly cold here, and who knows how it is in Poland… ah, my children! All your parcels have arrived. Also two from ‘Little Angel’ (Barbara). How much rather I would have shared all those good things with you—or even better, gone without them entirely… Lena and Johan sent me a lovely St. Nicholas parcel and a sweet letter. What good friends they are. Now all single persons may receive only one parcel every six weeks from 16 December onwards… My thoughts are always with you. Have Lottie write; I long for it so much! All the best, my dears, and an embrace from Mama.”
Ellen Citroen-Philippi was on the list the next day. She was sent to Bergen-Belsen.
On 30 January 1945 two cards suddenly arrived from her, addressed to her son Hans and her granddaughter Tamar, who were in a refugee camp in Switzerland. They had been written already in October and November of the previous year:
“Beloved ones, you are constantly in my thoughts. I hope you are healthy. In August I received a card from Barbara.”
The second card read:
“Today is Hans’s birthday. Health, all the best, I am with you, hope to hear from you soon. We are allowed to receive letters and parcels. Love, Mama…”
That was the last we heard from her. Ellen Citroen-Philippi died on 5 January 1945 in Bergen-Belsen. Three months later the camp was liberated.
Less than a month after her death, at the end of January 1945, her son Hans in Geneva received a message from Annemarie Rosenbaum, a woman unknown to him: “Dear Citroen family, you hardly know of my existence, but I know you very well… We lived on the Merwedeplein in the home of Ruth Toby Nussbaum and saw the Ledermanns daily. We were with them in Westerbork…”
Very brave
Ellen Citroen-Philippi did not (yet) have to go on transport. In a letter to Paul, Ilse writes: “Heinz has written to his family that Mama is very brave and is caring for the sick. She is admired.” Even then Ilse has not yet given up hope of obtaining the necessary stamps and arranging something for her mother. Among the letters is also one addressed to the Germans, pointing to the merits of Ellen Citroen-Philippi during and after the First World War in Germany.
Not even four days later, the Jewish Council is no longer “safe.” Ilse writes on 24 May 1943 to her mother in Westerbork: “Dearest Mother, yes, now it is the Jewish Council’s turn. On Friday Cohen was informed that now a part of the Jewish Council would be sent to Germany for Arbeitseinsatz. On Sunday they worked day and night on the lists. The Jewish Council must draw up the lists itself and send out the summonses. A desperate task. Many are digging their own graves. Barbara had duty on Sunday evening. First, 50 percent of the Oosteinde had to be removed. She escaped by a hair, but then it became 75 percent.
They came to her crying and said they had to cross her off. They offered her all kinds of help, said she was one of the best workers. What good does it do us. We had a terrible night and when Franz went to the Keizersgracht on Sunday to speak with Meijer de Vries, he had already removed her from the list on his own initiative.”
On 20 July 1943 the Ledermanns also had to report to the Schouwburg. They took the tram, got off at the Schouwburg stop, and went inside. The parents, Franz and Ilse, went first, with Barbara and Susanne hand in hand behind them. The moment Barbara passed the German guard, she instinctively realized what it meant. She let go of her younger sister’s hand, turned around, and demanded that the German guards open the gate. With her blond appearance and perfect German, she was taken for a German whose shift had ended. In this way she was saved—without farewell, without looking back. (This story is incorrect, see her own testimonies.)
Franz, Ilse, and Susanne were sent to Westerbork and there they saw Ellen again, Ilse’s mother. Three days after arrival Ilse and Franz write to Paul:
“Dear friends, at the Daniel Willinkplein we were able to hand in the rucksacks, which will be delivered to us on Monday. Then registered and took the tram to Muiderpoort. The train left at 3 a.m. A cattle wagon, 28 people packed together, very warm and stuffy. Arrived at 8 o’clock, about 1800 people, then until 6 p.m. through all the departments, registrations, applications, Jewish Council, quarantine, barrack assignment, the whole time with luggage, very exhausting… We immediately ran to Mama, who looks thin, pale, but unbroken and brave.”
Newspaper
The letter continues with a description of the food in the camp and the food items that are very welcome: jam, bread, sugar, and a list of the friends they find there.
“It is swarming with acquaintances here… Have the Nieuwe Rotterdamse of the Rosenbaums sent here… Also order our Telegraaf to be delivered here, to Barrack 57…”
On 26 August Susanne writes to her sister Barbara, who in the meantime has gone into hiding:
“Dear Darling,
by the time this letter arrives, it will be almost your birthday (4 September, and you will be 18). Sweetheart, you know how much good we wish you, and you also know that I would much rather have told you this in person with a little present. It hasn’t happened often, has it, that we didn’t celebrate your birthday together, and so it feels a bit strange to send you a birthday kiss instead of smacking a big one on your cheek. And the present—or rather, presents—I received from you this year instead of you from me! One needs variety. What beautiful things you sent me! First came those shoes, you rascal! Weren’t those lovely shoes originally yours? I seem to remember you had just received them. You mustn’t send things you need yourself, you know! Of course, I was delighted with them and they fit me perfectly. How they’ve been admired here!
And the adorable blouse. What beautiful fabric. I made the sleeves a bit narrower and wear it only when I want to look really nice. The kerchief ditto ditto. Though now I wear it in bed. You see, I’ve been ill again since Sunday. Glandular fever. I have a swollen, painful gland, accompanied by headaches and a high fever. This morning at half past eight it was 38.4. Annoying, isn’t it? The doctor says it may last three weeks. I’m writing now in bed, which goes badly, as you can see. Now I have that kerchief on, filled with fat and regular cotton wool, and look as if I have the mumps. That belt is great too. And such good quality. And the puzzle game—both I and the whole neighbourhood were thrilled with it. Only the “soy game” I don’t understand. A pity, isn’t it?
That candy parcel was wonderful! I was already ill then and had finished it in two days! Such excitement when I get a parcel myself! Those shoes from Pl. were amazing (again!). They fit me like a glove. I already have an entire shoe shop now. Although two pairs of low leather shoes are not even that many here in Westerbork because you wear out soles terribly fast here, especially if you’re an ordonnance.
This morning we received your letter of the 5th. Ugh, a finger caught in something can hurt badly. Was Bea a disappointment after all? See, I knew you and your Mannie would get along fine. Congratulations, Manfred, on ‘the girl of your heart’—or isn’t she? Will you give her a bunch of tulips again this year? But now you surely won’t be so shy, because now there won’t be as many people around!
Oh yes, Lottie, I still have to ask you for a shopping bag and a tea strainer, and tell Louisje that her honey cake was unforgettable. Is she back? The weather was nice lately; she must have been lucky.
Furthermore, I must give you Uncle Heinz’s warm greetings, with many kisses and birthday wishes, and send you a wonderful birthday and unbelievably many kisses from your Suusje.
P.S. Thank you again for Willy’s Offer. I knew it already, but still find it beautiful. And Manfred, you will also get a letter from me for the extra guilder time—aren’t you thrilled?
Goodbye, darlings.” (This is the complete letter Susanne wrote.)
Telegraaf
The letter continues with a description of the food in the camp and the foodstuffs that are very welcome: jam, bread, sugar, and a list of the friends they encounter there.
“It is swarming with acquaintances here… Have the Nieuwe Rotterdamse of the Rosenbaums sent here… Also order our Telegraaf to be delivered here, to Barrack 57…”
Full of courage
Twice a week in Westerbork the lists were published with the names of people who had to go on transport. Ellen, Ilse’s mother and Susanne’s grandmother, saw dozens of such lists without her name ever appearing on them. On 16 November 1943 it was the Ledermanns’ turn: Ilse, her husband Franz, and their daughter Susanne were to be transported to Auschwitz. Only when she was sitting in the overcrowded cattle wagon did Ilse admit that she knew it was not a labour camp in Germany.
In the wagon she wrote on a small piece of paper: “My dearest ones, we are now sitting together on our last journey for a long time… the three of us together. They have provided us with plenty of food. The farewell from Mama was terribly difficult. Do not suffer over us, we are full of courage. Barbara, my child, take good care of yourself. That is what we all hope… Your last parcels were wonderful, we have taken them with us. Also Papa’s dressing gown. Send the wool we asked for to Grandma instead. We are on our journey, farewell beloved ones, much love, all the best, kisses, Ilse.”
The note, addressed to her brother Paul, was thrown from the train. Someone found it and sent it to Paul. The Ledermanns’ journey to Auschwitz took three days. On 19 November 1943 they arrived in Auschwitz, and already at the first selection on the same day all three were sent to the gas chamber.
Grandmother Ellen remained in Westerbork and from there wrote a letter on 7 December 1943. By then one was only allowed to write on special stationery, marked with a German censorship stamp.
The letter was addressed to her son Paul:
“My dear children, this letter is being sent a day late due to lack of forms. Nevertheless, all my best wishes, that we may one day meet again in good health. The letter should reach you around your birthday, my dear eldest son. It is terribly cold here, and who knows how it is in Poland… ah, my children! All your parcels have arrived. Also two from ‘Little Angel’ (Barbara). How much rather I would have shared all those good things with you—or even better, gone without them entirely… Lena and Johan sent me a lovely St. Nicholas parcel and a sweet letter. What good friends they are. Now all single persons may receive only one parcel every six weeks from 16 December onwards… My thoughts are always with you. Have Lottie write; I long for it so much! All the best, my dears, and an embrace from Mama.”
Ellen Citroen-Philippi was on the list the next day. She was sent to Bergen-Belsen.
On 30 January 1945 two cards suddenly arrived from her, addressed to her son Hans and her granddaughter Tamar, who were in a refugee camp in Switzerland. They had been written already in October and November of the previous year:
“Beloved ones, you are constantly in my thoughts. I hope you are healthy. In August I received a card from Barbara.”
The second card read:
“Today is Hans’s birthday. Health, all the best, I am with you, hope to hear from you soon. We are allowed to receive letters and parcels. Love, Mama…”
That was the last we heard from her. Ellen Citroen-Philippi died on 5 January 1945 in Bergen-Belsen. Three months later the camp was liberated.
Less than a month after her death, at the end of January 1945, her son Hans in Geneva received a message from Annemarie Rosenbaum, a woman unknown to him: “Dear Citroen family, you hardly know of my existence, but I know you very well… We lived on the Merwedeplein in the home of Ruth Toby Nussbaum and saw the Ledermanns daily. We were with them in Westerbork…”
This Annemarie Rosenbaum was a staff member of the social aid services and also worked for the Jewish Council, and indeed lived on the Merwedeplein.
Ruth Toby Nussbaum’s maiden name was Offenstadt; she was married to Ludwig Friedrich Toby, but they divorced on 2 July 1937 in The Hague. She remarried Moses Nussbaum and moved with him and her daughter to Berlin.
Annemarie Rosenbaum continues: “Your grandmother was with us in Bergen-Belsen, a hell of hunger… horrors. My husband had already developed a heart condition in Westerbork and slowly wasted away in Bergen-Belsen over nine months. Thanks to a passport for Ecuador, which my sister in Sweden managed to obtain for me, I alone was set free. What to do with that freedom, as you can imagine, I do not know.
Ellen belonged to us and we were very close. I tried to take Ilse’s place. At first your mother was strong and in good shape, as in Westerbork. Later she was placed in a barrack for the elderly and began to lose heart. She developed pneumonia that lasted two months, and afterwards she recovered again. In the autumn she fell ill once more; the constant moving from barrack to barrack and the deteriorating conditions in the camp completely exhausted her… She closed her eyes for the last time on the fifth of this month. I was with her until the end. She was happy with your card, which she received at the end of December.”
Numbed
“I apologise for writing about it so dryly and factually. Two years of camp life, my own fate and that of many hundreds of Jews have completely numbed my feelings. I can no longer express them. Here I am sending you everything I was able to take with me of your mother’s belongings. I fear the train will move on again tomorrow. Too bad. I would have loved to speak with you! The journey into the unknown continues…” (Is she going to Sweden, or to city in Switzerland?)
Aside from the letter, all she had been able to take of Ellen Citroen-Philippi’s things was a small black leather handbag. A bag she had carried with her until the end.
In my grandfather Hans’s house in Jerusalem I found that bag exactly as it had been forty years earlier, when my grandfather received it. Inside I found the letters she had received in Westerbork and Bergen-Belsen, photographs of all her loved ones, several portraits Paul had drawn, an address book still from Amsterdam, and a form with all her personal details in case she were to pass away.
* Miki Shoshan is a daughter of Tamar (Charlotte Dolly Citroen) and works for Israeli radio.
See the Citroen family tree.
Ruth Toby Nussbaum’s maiden name was Offenstadt; she was married to Ludwig Friedrich Toby, but they divorced on 2 July 1937 in The Hague. She remarried Moses Nussbaum and moved with him and her daughter to Berlin.
Annemarie Rosenbaum continues: “Your grandmother was with us in Bergen-Belsen, a hell of hunger… horrors. My husband had already developed a heart condition in Westerbork and slowly wasted away in Bergen-Belsen over nine months. Thanks to a passport for Ecuador, which my sister in Sweden managed to obtain for me, I alone was set free. What to do with that freedom, as you can imagine, I do not know.
Ellen belonged to us and we were very close. I tried to take Ilse’s place. At first your mother was strong and in good shape, as in Westerbork. Later she was placed in a barrack for the elderly and began to lose heart. She developed pneumonia that lasted two months, and afterwards she recovered again. In the autumn she fell ill once more; the constant moving from barrack to barrack and the deteriorating conditions in the camp completely exhausted her… She closed her eyes for the last time on the fifth of this month. I was with her until the end. She was happy with your card, which she received at the end of December.”
Numbed
“I apologise for writing about it so dryly and factually. Two years of camp life, my own fate and that of many hundreds of Jews have completely numbed my feelings. I can no longer express them. Here I am sending you everything I was able to take with me of your mother’s belongings. I fear the train will move on again tomorrow. Too bad. I would have loved to speak with you! The journey into the unknown continues…” (Is she going to Sweden, or to city in Switzerland?)
Aside from the letter, all she had been able to take of Ellen Citroen-Philippi’s things was a small black leather handbag. A bag she had carried with her until the end.
In my grandfather Hans’s house in Jerusalem I found that bag exactly as it had been forty years earlier, when my grandfather received it. Inside I found the letters she had received in Westerbork and Bergen-Belsen, photographs of all her loved ones, several portraits Paul had drawn, an address book still from Amsterdam, and a form with all her personal details in case she were to pass away.
* Miki Shoshan is a daughter of Tamar (Charlotte Dolly Citroen) and works for Israeli radio.
See the Citroen family tree.
Hanneli Goslar Anne Frank Dolly Citroen Hanna Toby Barbara Lederman Susanne Ledermann
Frontpage picture for the article wriiten above.
Rabbi Dr. Max Nussbaum
Borne April 4th 1908 Suceava, Romania
Died July 20th 1974 (age 66) Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Max Nussbaum was a leading figure in world of Zionism and head of Temple Israel from 1942-1974, leading Hollywood (CA) synagogue which also operates Hillside Memorial Park, Los Angeles.
He was the last Rabbi to leave Berlin under Nazi rule in 1940. He was also the youngest Rabbi ever to be ordained in Germany. He tutored Elizabeth Taylor and Sammy Davis Jr. with their religious conversions and his name often appeared in print with show business personalities.
He was President of the Zionist Organization of America, Honorary President of the World Jewish Congress, and was honored in 1959 on the Ralph Edwards TV program "This Is Your Life". He also received the prestigious Scopus Award in 1971 by the American Friends of Hebrew University.
Ruth Offenstadt Nussbaum
Born Augst 9th 1911 Berlin-Mitte, Mitte, Berlin, Germany
Died April 27th 2010 (leeftijd 98) Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Instrumental in the creation of the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA), Ruth Nussbaum played a pivotal role in helping to reshape the Reform movement of Judaism's view of Zionism, which once was anti-Zionist. She was also co-chairwoman of the women's division of the United Jewish Welfare Fund and wife of Rabbi Max Nussbaum of Temple Israel, Hollywood, California. After moving to Amsterdam as a young woman to escape Nazi persecution, she was neighbors with the Frank family. Daughter Anne would play with Ruth's daughter Hannah from her first marriage to Ludwig Friedrich ("Fritz") Toby.
Hannah Elizabeth Nussbaum Marsh
Born December 2nd 1934 Berlin, Germany
Died October 20th 2013 (leeftijd 78) Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Hannah Elisabeth (Hanneli) Pick-Goslar
Born November 12th Berlin-Tiergarten 1928.
Died October 28th Jerusalem 2022,
She was a German nurse who became best known for her close friendship with diarist Anne Frank. Both Goslar and Frank attended the Sixth Montessori School and the Jewish Lyceum in Amsterdam.
Hanneli Goslar was a granddaughter of Alfred Klee, who is considered one of the founders of Zionism in Germany. Her father, Hans Goslar, was head of the press department of the Prussian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After the Nazi takeover, the family emigrated to Amsterdam. There, Goslar met Anne Frank and attended the same school. As “Anne, Hanne and Sanne,” she and Anne Frank and Sanne Ledermann formed a close group of friends in 1934.
On 20 June 1943, “Hanneli,” as Anne Frank refers to her in her diary, was arrested by the Gestapo together with her father (her mother had died in October 1942 in childbirth during the stillbirth of their third child), her grandparents, and her younger sister Gabi (1940). Due to her father Hans’s Zionist involvement, they were placed on a list for Palestine. This meant they were not sent to Auschwitz but were instead eligible for the Bergen-Belsen camp. On 15 February 1944, Hannah, her father, and her sister were deported there. In February 1945, Goslar encountered her childhood friend Anne Frank again, shortly before Anne’s death. In early April 1945, Goslar and others were crammed into the so-called “lost transport” train and, after a 13-day journey through Germany, she and her sister (the only other family member to survive the war besides Hannah) ultimately survived the Holocaust.
On 23 April 1945, the train arrived in the village of Tröbitz, where they were liberated by the Russians.
Pick-Goslar married Dr. Walter Pinchas-Pick and had three children and ten grandchildren. She lived in Jerusalem until her death.
She died in October 2022 at the age of 93.
Source: Wikipedia.
Borne April 4th 1908 Suceava, Romania
Died July 20th 1974 (age 66) Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Max Nussbaum was a leading figure in world of Zionism and head of Temple Israel from 1942-1974, leading Hollywood (CA) synagogue which also operates Hillside Memorial Park, Los Angeles.
He was the last Rabbi to leave Berlin under Nazi rule in 1940. He was also the youngest Rabbi ever to be ordained in Germany. He tutored Elizabeth Taylor and Sammy Davis Jr. with their religious conversions and his name often appeared in print with show business personalities.
He was President of the Zionist Organization of America, Honorary President of the World Jewish Congress, and was honored in 1959 on the Ralph Edwards TV program "This Is Your Life". He also received the prestigious Scopus Award in 1971 by the American Friends of Hebrew University.
Ruth Offenstadt Nussbaum
Born Augst 9th 1911 Berlin-Mitte, Mitte, Berlin, Germany
Died April 27th 2010 (leeftijd 98) Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Instrumental in the creation of the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA), Ruth Nussbaum played a pivotal role in helping to reshape the Reform movement of Judaism's view of Zionism, which once was anti-Zionist. She was also co-chairwoman of the women's division of the United Jewish Welfare Fund and wife of Rabbi Max Nussbaum of Temple Israel, Hollywood, California. After moving to Amsterdam as a young woman to escape Nazi persecution, she was neighbors with the Frank family. Daughter Anne would play with Ruth's daughter Hannah from her first marriage to Ludwig Friedrich ("Fritz") Toby.
Hannah Elizabeth Nussbaum Marsh
Born December 2nd 1934 Berlin, Germany
Died October 20th 2013 (leeftijd 78) Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Hannah Elisabeth (Hanneli) Pick-Goslar
Born November 12th Berlin-Tiergarten 1928.
Died October 28th Jerusalem 2022,
She was a German nurse who became best known for her close friendship with diarist Anne Frank. Both Goslar and Frank attended the Sixth Montessori School and the Jewish Lyceum in Amsterdam.
Hanneli Goslar was a granddaughter of Alfred Klee, who is considered one of the founders of Zionism in Germany. Her father, Hans Goslar, was head of the press department of the Prussian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
After the Nazi takeover, the family emigrated to Amsterdam. There, Goslar met Anne Frank and attended the same school. As “Anne, Hanne and Sanne,” she and Anne Frank and Sanne Ledermann formed a close group of friends in 1934.
On 20 June 1943, “Hanneli,” as Anne Frank refers to her in her diary, was arrested by the Gestapo together with her father (her mother had died in October 1942 in childbirth during the stillbirth of their third child), her grandparents, and her younger sister Gabi (1940). Due to her father Hans’s Zionist involvement, they were placed on a list for Palestine. This meant they were not sent to Auschwitz but were instead eligible for the Bergen-Belsen camp. On 15 February 1944, Hannah, her father, and her sister were deported there. In February 1945, Goslar encountered her childhood friend Anne Frank again, shortly before Anne’s death. In early April 1945, Goslar and others were crammed into the so-called “lost transport” train and, after a 13-day journey through Germany, she and her sister (the only other family member to survive the war besides Hannah) ultimately survived the Holocaust.
On 23 April 1945, the train arrived in the village of Tröbitz, where they were liberated by the Russians.
Pick-Goslar married Dr. Walter Pinchas-Pick and had three children and ten grandchildren. She lived in Jerusalem until her death.
She died in October 2022 at the age of 93.
Source: Wikipedia.
© Anne Frank Foundation.
Achtertuin Merwedeplein 3, Amsterdam.
Verfahren Annemarie Schwabacher, geb. Schoenlank (*08.12.1907), Tornedalsgatan 13, Vällingby, Schweden, gegen das Deutsche Reich
enthält: Enthält: Wohnungseinrichtung.
Archivaliensignatur
B Rep. 025-03 Nr. 295/65
Alt-/Vorsignatur
registratursignatur: B Rep. 025-03 Nr. 31 WGA 295/65
vorl. nr.: B Rep. 025-03 Nr. 57574
Sonstige Erschließungsangaben
Verweis: B Rep. 032, Treuhänder Reg. Nr. G/10440/Sch
Edition: 31 WGA 295/65
Entnommen: Kt. 404
Verweise und Beziehungen
Kontext
B Rep. 025-03 Wiedergutmachungsämter von Berlin Geschäftsstelle 3
Bestand
B Rep. 025-03 Wiedergutmachungsämter von Berlin Geschäftsstelle 3
Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben
Laufzeit
1965
Weitere Informationen
Weitere Objektseiten
Objekt im "Archivportal-D" anzeigen
Rechteinformation
Für nähere Informationen zu Nutzungs- und Verwertungsrechten kontaktieren Sie bitte info@landesarchiv.berlin.de.
Letzte Aktualisierung
22.08.2025, 11:59 MESZ
(I have no idea how to obtain this file)
Annemarie Schwabacher
Geboorte 8 dec 1907
Overlijden 13 okt 2013 (leeftijd 105)
Begraaflocatie: Råcksta begravningsplats Vallingby, Stockholms kommun, Stockholms län, Sweden
Perceel Minneslund
enthält: Enthält: Wohnungseinrichtung.
Archivaliensignatur
B Rep. 025-03 Nr. 295/65
Alt-/Vorsignatur
registratursignatur: B Rep. 025-03 Nr. 31 WGA 295/65
vorl. nr.: B Rep. 025-03 Nr. 57574
Sonstige Erschließungsangaben
Verweis: B Rep. 032, Treuhänder Reg. Nr. G/10440/Sch
Edition: 31 WGA 295/65
Entnommen: Kt. 404
Verweise und Beziehungen
Kontext
B Rep. 025-03 Wiedergutmachungsämter von Berlin Geschäftsstelle 3
Bestand
B Rep. 025-03 Wiedergutmachungsämter von Berlin Geschäftsstelle 3
Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben
Laufzeit
1965
Weitere Informationen
Weitere Objektseiten
Objekt im "Archivportal-D" anzeigen
Rechteinformation
Für nähere Informationen zu Nutzungs- und Verwertungsrechten kontaktieren Sie bitte info@landesarchiv.berlin.de.
Letzte Aktualisierung
22.08.2025, 11:59 MESZ
(I have no idea how to obtain this file)
Annemarie Schwabacher
Geboorte 8 dec 1907
Overlijden 13 okt 2013 (leeftijd 105)
Begraaflocatie: Råcksta begravningsplats Vallingby, Stockholms kommun, Stockholms län, Sweden
Perceel Minneslund
weggum.com