German-Jewish migration to Sweden -Interdisciplinary Perspectives on History, Identity ; Religion
Wednesday, November 5
Session I: Biographies, Life’s work, Impacts I
Associate professor Anders Hammarlund, SM:
Lazarus
–Simmel –Boas
The
Jewish Reform Movement and the Origins of Kulturwissenschaft
1830-1930
Wissenschaft
des Judentums, the modern scholarly study of all aspects of Jewish
culture, history and religion can be regarded as the intellectual
aspect of the German-Jewish reform movement. Its importance for the
modern understanding of Jewish identity cannot be overestimated;
however, it also fertilized the general development of the humanities
and social sciences and contributed decisively the the emergence of
German Kulturwissenschaft. In my contribution I focus on the
productive cultural relationship between Berlin and its eastern
Hinterland in Provinz Posen, a connection that was fruitful for the
Swedish cultural scene as well, due to the strong links between the
Jewish community in Sweden and the Jewish settings in the
Prussian-Polish borderlands.
Dr. Carl Henrik Carlsson, UU :
Jakob
Ettlinger –an ‘Untypical’ German Jew In Sweden
Ettlinger
was born 1880 in Mannheim, Baden in a Neo-Orthodox family. As a young
man he was employed by a large ore and metal business in Frankfurt am
Main. In 1915 he came to Sweden with the intention of continuing to
the U.S., but because of the war he had to remain in Sweden where he
became the company’s representative and eventually its owner.True
to his Neo-Orthodox upbringing, he was for many years president of
the Orthodox synagogue in Stockholm, located in a rather poor
neighborhood, where the Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe lived.
Ettlinger himself lived in another part of town, the part where the
Stockholm Jewish elite resided. Thus in his person he bridged the gap
between the well-integrated Jewish elite in Stockholm, that adhered
to Reform Judaism and the Orthodox immigrants. His home was open to
immigrants, temporary visitors and eventually for Jewish refugees
from Nazi Germany.
MA Harry R Svensson, SU:
The
Ruben and Philip Families in Karlskrona.
Swedish
“Port Jews”from Germany
In 1780 Fabian Philip immigrated to
Sweden from Bützow in Germany, to settle in Karlskrona and
became a burgher of the City. After the Department of Finance issued
the Regulations of Jews in 1782, Jews were only allowed to reside in
Stockholm, Gothenburg and Norrköping.
By
that time, Philip had turned to the Supreme Admiral of the
Swedish Royal Navy and offered to build a sailcloth factory. Due to
this offer, the admiral acquired permission from the King for Philip
and his extended family to stay in Karlskrona.The Phillip
family changed its name to Ruben in 1811 when the
daughter of Fabian Philip, Eleonora, married
Jerachmiel ben Moses Ruben. During the 19th Century the Ruben
family continued sending its sons to Hamburg for business
training and, in1880, Elise Wolf from Hamburg married Anton
Ruben and moved to Karlskrona. On April 20, 1943 Elise Ruben,
the German Jewish immigrant, was presented as one of the
prominent ladies of the city when her dresses were
displayed on the local museum. Karlskrona was the only naval city of
Sweden and constituted a distinct maritime society. The city
was constructed to support the Swedish Royal Navy. Karlskrona
was run by the burghers but the informal power was found within
the ranks of the naval officers. During the 1790’s Fabian Philip
was integrated by the naval officers of Karlskrona which is probably
why the family stayed in Karlskrona even though the economy of the
city went into decline after 1815.
Thursday, November 6 Keynote II:
Professor Dr. Helmut Müssener, UU:
Schwedisch-deutsch-jüdische
Beziehungen. Eine Desideratenarie Swedish-German-Jewish Relations. A
Desideratum.
The
lecture is based on the current state of research and has become a
catalog of various questions still awaiting an answer.These include
who defines the research subject how; the mapping of immigration
routes; genealogy; and the lack of studies on the Swedish
economy in the 19th century. The Swedish saying die dummen Schweden
[the stupid Swedes] will be touched on, as well as the problem of
when and according to whom does a “German Jew” become a “Swedish
Jew”and how, up into the 20th century, “German” stood for
“Jew”.The extent as to which the Jewish Austrian authors Franzos
and Sacher-Masoch influenced the image of Eastern European Jews in
Sweden will be explored. Using the example of the Judisk Tidskrift ,
it will be seen if and how the refugees influenced Swedish Jewish
cultural life after 1933. The question will also be raised if
Swedish flagellantism led to the lack of studies of aid initiatives
after 1933. The lecture concludes with the claim that Sweden could
serve academic research as a laboratoryr questions of assimilation
and integration
Session II: Refugees from Nazi Germany ; Swedish Immigration Policy I
Professor
Dr. Michael Scholz, UU ;Professor Dr. HelmuMüssener, UU:
Wolfgang
Steinitz, die Gründung der Emigrantenselbsthilfe und ihre Tätigkeit
Wolfgang Steinitz, the founding and activities of the Self-Help
Group for Émigrés Emigranten Selbsthilfe.By presenting the
Emigranten-Selbsthilfe, a Jewish self-help group for émigrés
founded in Sweden at the end of 1938 and which probably
continued to exist until the end of the 1970’s, we want to change
the understanding of Jewish refugees and émigrés as objects and/or
victims. The Emigranten-Selbsthilfe, also known as ES or
Emigranternas Självhjälp, hasn’t been forgotten, but little is
known about it today, although it was “the largest Jewish
association” in Stockholm in 1949 (according to ES accounts in
1949). Initially, using historiographic deliberations, the reasons
for this will be discussed. After a presentation of the founding
history and a short introduction of the most important people
involved, including Fritz Hollander and Wolfgang Steinitz, we will
gain a first impression of the specific activities of the
organization using documents such as accounting reports, bulletins,
invitations and job lists. Furthermore, we will explore what this
organization meant to the people at the time and which lessons for
the present can be drawn from this experience.
MA Pontus Rudberg, UU:
A
Difficult Duty. Swedish
Jewish Refugee Aid, Relief and Rescue Efforts
during the Nazi Era.
The
aim of this presentation is to share some of the results of my
ongoing PhD-project, dealing with the Swedish Jewish minority’s
response to the Nazi persecution and genocide of the Jews. However,
here I will concentrate on the Swedish Jewish aid efforts during the
period before the German policy shifted from forced migration to
genocide. I will particularly discuss refugee aid, relief and
political actions and the Swedish Jewish cooperation with German and
other foreign Jewish organizations and representatives. Already in
1933 the Jewish Community of Stockholm cooperated with the major
international Jewish relief organizations and received instructions
from German Jewish organizations. What did the Swedish Jews do to
aid Jews in Germany and what determined their actions? How did the
connections with the foreign Jewish organizations influence the
Swedish Jewish response? These are the questions that will be
dealtwith in the presentation.
Session III: Refugees from Nazi Germany; Swedish Immigration Policy II
Dr. Irene Nawrocka, ÖAW:
Der
deutschsprachige Bermann-Fischer Verlag (S. Fischer) in Stockholm
und Gottfried Bermann Fischer in Stockholm und Gottfried Bermann
Fischers Zusammenarbeit mit der Verlegerfamilie Bonnier, 1938–1948
The
publisher Gottfried Bermann Fischer (S. Fischer) and his involvement
with the Swedish Bonnier family of publishers in Stockholm
(1938–1948) The S. Fischer Verlag publishing house was
founded in 1886 by Samuel Fischer in Berlin. Fischer published
authors such as Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Arthur Schnitzler, Felix
Salten and Hermann Hesse and was considered to bethe publisher of
Naturalism. Many Scandinavian authors like Jan Peter Jacobsen, Arne
Gaborg, Ellen Key, Gustav af Geijerstam, Henrik Ibsen and Hermann
Bang could also be found on his program. In May 1933-after the
Nazis took over power in Germany- many publishing houses left the
country. The Bermann-Fischer Verlag in Stockholm became the third
significant publisher of German language exile literature.
Bermann Fischer had to act quickly not to lose the rights to his
authors and contacted Karl Otto Bonnier. The Albert Bonnier
publishing house in Stockholm could look back on a long tradition as
a family business, like S. Fischer. The Bonnier family, who were of
Jewish extraction themselves, was prepared to come to Gottfried
Bermann Fischer’s aid. In 1940, Gottfried Bermann Fischer
emigrated to the U.S.A. and founded the English language L. B.
Fischer Publishing Corporation in New York, for which the Bonnier
family also provided financial backing. Through their involvement in
the Bermann-Fischer Verlag in Stockholm, the Bonnier publishing
family made a significant contribution to the creation of German
language exile literature.
Associate professor Henrik Rosengren, LU:
Cultural
Encounters.German-Jewish Composers in Swedish Exile
My
paper is based on my book Från tysk höst till tysk vår
(From German Autumn to German Spring) (Nordic Academic Press
2013).The book is a collective biographical analysis of five
individuals and their exile experiences and contributions to the
Swedish music scene in the aftermath of Nazism and in the shadow of
the Cold War. Hans Holewa, Maxim Stempel, Ernst Emsheimer, Herbert
Connor and Richard Engländer migrated to Sweden from Nazi Germany
and Austria via countries such as Denmark and the Soviet Union
during the second half of the 1930s. They worked as composers, music
writers, musicians, researchers and educators. As Jews they fled
Nazism as supposed enemies of Germany and of what was regarded as
“German”.They arrived in Sweden with a German-speaking cultural
heritage with which they could contribute to the continuity between
the Swedish and German music scenes. As refugees, and in some cases
leftists, they were also subject to extensive monitoring of the
Swedish security police.
Dr. Izabela Dahl, GU:
Die
Station des Lebens. Deutsche jüdische Alma Maters Töchter im
schwedischen Exil
The
academic careers of women in Germany began with their general
admission to study at the universities, which started in 1909 and
with their right to Habilitation, which was introduced in 1921. On
April 7th 1933 the Law for the Restoration of the Professional Civil
Service was adopted in German Reich and the dismissals from the
German research centers and universities enforced Jewish scientists
of international reputation, professors of every discipline as well
as a large number of younger men and women who were Privat-Dozents
and assistants to search for continuation of life and work abroad.
In my presentation I will argue that the changed political
circumstances and the prelude to the Holocaust affected men and
women in a different manner. An expression for the difference is the
inauguration of the first monument for a female Jewish scientist in
Germany, Lise Meitner, as late as in summer 2014.The main focus of
my presentation will deal with the question what the exile meant to
this new group of scientists and intellectuals. Taking some examples
in individual biographical sketches of intellectual women in Swedish
exile, I will emphasize on three main topics in order to avoid a
purely performance-related consideration of the exiled women lives:
the organization of the everyday life, the challenge of language and
exile as a new sphere for the continuation of the professional work.
Session IV: Kindertransporte
Associate professor Pär Frohnert, SU:
Swedish
Christian Refugee relief and the Austrian-Jewish converts, 1938-1945
In
1938 the Swedish Israel Mission (SIM) had obtained a quota of 300
refugees for transit visas to Sweden. Several of the
grown-ups, consisting almost exclusively by young men from Vienna,
were placed in a camp run by the Swedish Missionary Society,
which was a Free Church. SIM, however, was close to the State
church.The focus in the paper is on the relief work of the
Missionary Society. The State Church and even more so the Free
Churches were indeed strongly critical towards the German
persecution of the Jews, but restrained publicly. In the same way as
other idealistic refugee relief organisations SIM and the Missionary
Society on the whole took care only for "their own"
refugees. Those who were admitted mostly came from a bourgeois
background and most of them were converts.The camp was funded by the
Missionary Society and mainly in a philantropical way. From July
1939 some state support was received.
Most
work places that the Society was able to arrange were within
agriculture. Almost everybody was able to leave the camp. The
existence in the camp consisted of work and education,
and also prayers. The main motive for the relief work was the
Christian charity. The adolescents were looked upon as children and
were spoken of as "our lads".
Dr. Thomas Pammer, UW:
The
Work of Svenska Israelsmissionen in Vienna from the 1920s to
the 1970s
Svenska
Israelsmissionen (SIM) started its activities in Vienna in 1921 with
the conversion of Jews to Christianity as the primary objective.
Only after impoverished Christians of Jewish descent fled Germany
for Austria from 1933 onwards, some sort of relief work was
organised, which was considerably expanded after 1938. Research
focused a lot on the Mission's rescue of up to 3.000 Jews and
Christians of Jewish descent, about 250-300 to Sweden, where they
made up about a quarter of the Austrian exile. Beyond that, SIM
organised many other aid programmes and even after it was closed
down by the Nazi authorities mid-1941, the mission continued its
relief work in one of the largest Swedish humanitarian efforts for
racially persecuted Austrians and Germans. For example, thousands of
food parcels and significant amounts of money were sent into ghettos
and concentration camps (most notably, Theresienstadt). Under the
protection of Swedish neutrality, SIM also acted as a proxy for
other aid organisations. Nevertheless, SIM faced some criticism
recently, above all for its theological basis and its reluctance to
make public their knowledge of Nazi crimes
MA Merethe Aagaard Jensen, IJGÖ:
Die
Rettung jüdischer Kinder und Jugendlicher nach Schweden betrachtet
aus einem skandinavischen Blickwinke
The
Rescue of Jewish Children and Youths to Sweden from a Scandinavian
Perspective“ After the so-called Anschluss of Austria to the
German Reich min March 1938, the persecution of the Austrian Jews
began with tremendous brutality. Thus, a distinct Austrian
experience can be argued. Despite the traumatic experiences the 330
Austrian Jewish children and youths, who from 1938 to 1940 were
rescued to the Scandinavian Countries without their parents, often
kept a sense of identification with –above all –their native
city Vienna. The aid organizations, which took care of these young
refugees, had many meeting points and held contact with each other.
This is why they can be considered as an aid network of sorts.
Regarding the care for Jewish children and youths in Scandinavian
countries, the involvement of the members of the Women’s
International League for Peace and Freedom is a common denominator.
In Sweden, the members of the Women’s League collected money for
this support work. They were involved in the allocation of children
and youths, who were entrusted to the Jewish community and the
Swedish Israel Mission, to foster families. In addition,
German-Jewish migration to Sweden -Interdisciplinary
Perspectives on History, Identity Religion these women were also
actively involved in the founding and operation of the refugee home
for girls in Göteborg.
Dr.Clemens Maier-Wolthausen, TU:
Saving
the children.
Kindertransports
to Sweden "Kinder gut angekommen" -The Children's Quota of
Mosaiska Församlingen in Stockholm. Around 500 Jewish children from
Germany and Austria travelled to Sweden as part of the "barnkvot"
-the children's quota. The aim was to release the parents from the
burden of caring for the children amidst the frantic preparations for
emigration from the German Reich and provide the children with a
place to stay unharmed by persecution and humiliation. In theory the
children were to be reunited with the parents in a third country. The
quota was a response of the Jewish Community of Stockholm's rescue
committee to the reports of the November-riots in 1938 and the plight
of German-Jewish organizations. The cornerstone of the quota were
donations by Swedish Jews to guarantee that the children would not
become a burden to the public.The presentation will describe the
single largest rescue effort by the Swedish Jewish community in the
context of Swedish immigration policies and the Jewish community's
response to it and put it into context of efforts to help German Jews
in a phase of intensified persecution that resulted in very similar
schemes in various countries -most notably in Great Britain.
Friday, November 7 Keynote III:
Associate professor Lena Roos, UU:
Gottlieb
Klein. Wissenschaft des Judentums in Sweden
Gottlieb
Klein (1852–1914) became rabbi of the Jewish congregation of
Stockholm in 1983. As a former student of Abraham Geiger, he became
an important representative of liberal Judaism in Scandinavia. As a
scholar of religion he was in contact with fellow scholars and
Swedish church leaders such as Nathan Söderblom, which can be
studies through their correspondence. Klein also lectured on the
Talmud for theology students in Uppsala, and was one of the driving
forces behind the Society for the Study or Religions in Stockholm.
The presentation will focus on his contributions to the early
development of the field of the Study of Religions in Sweden.
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