Object numberM2018/008:083
Description
In March 1938, Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in the “Anschluss”. From May 1938, the racist Nuremberg laws applied in Austria, and Austrian Jews were steadily ostracised from their societies during the process of “Aryanisation.” This tension came to a climax in the Kristallnacht pogrom from 9th-10th November.
In the meantime, Hardy Brothers, a British jewellery-making firm, offer young Leo Steiner from Vienna employment in Sydney, Australia as a jewellery mounter in July 1938. However, the Gestapo threaten to arrest Jews issued with travel documents who do not leave within a short time. Whilst Leo’s Australian landing permit is pending, it is therefore prudent to seek temporary refuge in a third country. Before he is discharged from his erstwhile firm Vienna Art Designs, Leo’s employer Oscar Fastlich writes that his stay in Switzerland is necessary for business. In July, Leo moves to Zurich on a temporary stay visa, leaving his parents, Adolf and Hermine, and brother Paul, behind in Vienna.
Once established in Australia, Leo makes various applications to the Australian government for landing permits on behalf of his parents and Paul, all of which are denied. All three family members would eventually perish during WWII. A Red Cross International Committee agent wrote this letter to Leo in 1944, responding to a previous enquiry of his. Although not explicitly reiterated in the letter, Leo's enquiry most likely pertained to the location of lost family members. At the time of writing, the Red Cross is unable to pass on any helpful information. Leo would learn of the fate of his brother at the hands of fascist insurgents in Yugoslavia in 1946 thanks to the Red Cross, however the organisation was not able to inform Leo's family of Hermine Steiner's death at Maly Trostenets extermination camp until 2000, four years after Leo's passing.
In March 1938, Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in the “Anschluss”. From May 1938, the racist Nuremberg laws applied in Austria, and Austrian Jews were steadily ostracised from their societies during the process of “Aryanisation.” This tension came to a climax in the Kristallnacht pogrom from 9th-10th November.
In the meantime, Hardy Brothers, a British jewellery-making firm, offer young Leo Steiner from Vienna employment in Sydney, Australia as a jewellery mounter in July 1938. However, the Gestapo threaten to arrest Jews issued with travel documents who do not leave within a short time. Whilst Leo’s Australian landing permit is pending, it is therefore prudent to seek temporary refuge in a third country. Before he is discharged from his erstwhile firm Vienna Art Designs, Leo’s employer Oscar Fastlich writes that his stay in Switzerland is necessary for business. In July, Leo moves to Zurich on a temporary stay visa, leaving his parents, Adolf and Hermine, and brother Paul, behind in Vienna.
Once established in Australia, Leo makes various applications to the Australian government for landing permits on behalf of his parents and Paul, all of which are denied. All three family members would eventually perish during WWII. A Red Cross International Committee agent wrote this letter to Leo in 1944, responding to a previous enquiry of his. Although not explicitly reiterated in the letter, Leo's enquiry most likely pertained to the location of lost family members. At the time of writing, the Red Cross is unable to pass on any helpful information. Leo would learn of the fate of his brother at the hands of fascist insurgents in Yugoslavia in 1946 thanks to the Red Cross, however the organisation was not able to inform Leo's family of Hermine Steiner's death at Maly Trostenets extermination camp until 2000, four years after Leo's passing.
Production placeGeneva, Switzerland, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Production date 1944-05-25 - 1944-05-25 1944-09-14 - 1944-09-14
Object nameletters
Dimensions
- letter (i) length: 210.00 mm
letter (i) width: 150.00 mm
letter (ii) length: 205.00 mm
letter (ii) width: 131.00 mm
envelope (i) length: 162.00 mm
envelope (i) width: 115.00 mm
envelope (ii) length: 228.00 mm
envelope (ii) width: 101.00 mm
Language
- English N/A
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Pauline Shavit