The Baum Group was an anti-Nazi resistance group in Berlin, Germany. The Group's members were mostly Communist, Jewish, and young with many being teenagers or young adults.[1]

The group printed and distributed anti-Nazi literature and organized activities. Its members were executed for setting fire to Das Sowjetparadies (The Soviet Paradise), an anti-Soviet exhibit in Berlin's Lustgarten.[2]

Founding

Herbert and Marianne Baum before they married

The Baum Group was founded by Herbert Baum in 1936, 1937 or 1938 depending on the source.[3] Herbert Baum was active in the Communist Youth Federation (KJVD), but was pushed out of mainstream Communist organizations including the Communist Party of Germany because he was Jewish.[2]

Through his connections, Baum organized a group of like-minded individuals to undertake anti-Nazi activities. Most members of Baum's group were Jewish and young. The average age of the members was 22. Baum's wife, Marianne, was a central figure in the group.[2] By 1938, the group had 100 members.[4]

Herbert and Marianne Baum were ordered into forced labor at the Jewish department of the Siemens electric motors factory where they continued to recruit members.[2]

Activities

The Baum Group printed and distributed anti-Nazi literature and planned resistance activities and initiatives. Because Jews had limited access to typewriters at the time, non-Jewish members secretly typed materials while at work. Stenciled leaflets and other materials were made in Herbert and Marianne Baum's basement.[5]

On May 18, 1942, the Baum Group and another anti-Nazi group set fire to Das Sowjetparadies (The Soviet Paradise), an anti-Soviet exhibit in Berlin's Lustgarten.[2] Group members were caught by the Nazis. Herbert Baum was tortured to death in Moabit Prison, dying on June 11, 1942. The Gestapo reported his death as a suicide. His wife, Marianne, was executed in Plötzensee Prison on August 18, 1942. Other members were executed at Berlin-Plötzensee in 1943. After the arson attack, the Nazis also detained and executed 500 Berlin Jews. Most were executed quickly and others were murdered a short time later in prisons and concentration camps.[1]

A memorial to the Baum Group stands in Weissensee, Berlin.[6]

Members

  • Hans Adler
  • Herbert Baum (1912-1942)
  • Marianne Baum (1912-1942)
  • Kurt Bernhard
  • Heinz Birnbaum (1920–1943)
  • Herbert Budzislawsky
  • Hella Hirsch (1921–1943)
  • Edith Fraenkel
  • Felix Heymann
  • Hardel Heymann
  • Alice Hirsch
  • Hilda Jadamowitz
  • Hans Joachim
  • Marianne Joachim (1922–1943)
  • Martin Kochmann
  • Sala Kochmann
  • Hildegard Löwy
  • Gerd Meyer
  • Hanni Meyer (1921–1943)
  • Herbert Meyer
  • Helmut Neumann (1922–1943)
  • Suzanna Wesse
  • Heinz Rotholz (1922–1943)
  • Siegbert Rotholz (1922–1943).
  • Lothar Salinger (1920–1943)
  • Werner Steinbrink
  • Irene Walter

References

  1. 1 2 "Shoah Resource Center - Baum Gruppe" (PDF). Yad Vashem.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Baum Gruppe: Jewish Women". Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  3. ↑ "EHRI - Baum Gruppe". portal.ehri-project.eu. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  4. ↑ "May 18: The Baum Group". Jewish Currents. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  5. ↑ "German Resistance Memorial Center Biographie". gdw-berlin.de. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  6. ↑ "Weissensee, Berlin, Germany, A memorial monument in the neighborhood cemetery, dedicated to the communist underground group of Herbert Baum". Yad Vashem.
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