Object numberM2018/018:019
DescriptionPostcard from Hungarian forced labourer Emil Reisz to his father, Ignacz. It is addressed to the apartment in Budapest to which Emil's parents had fled due to the anti-Semitic government harrassment occuring in their home village of Kunszentmiklos.
The post stamp dates this card to 15 October 1942, from a camp in an unknown location. Emil reports that he is healthy, and that he has received word that is brother and fellow forced labourer Feri is too. He requests warm clothes.
The postcard is standard issue stationary, bearing the slogan "The persistence and sacrifice of Hungary makes our weapons victorious!"
Emil was born in 1915 to Ignacz and Margit Reisz (nee Herceg). The Reisz family were successful businesspeople and owned farmland in the village of Kunszentmiklos, south of Budapest. They were a prominent and integrated local family. Emil had one brother, Feri (b. 1911) and a sister, Ilona (b. 1916).
Emil was a gifted athlete - accomplished primarily in discus and javelin, as well as long jump and hurdling. By the time of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, he was allegedly considered a likely candidate for an Olympic medal in discus. However, as a Jew he was excluded from selection for the Hungarian team. It was around this time that the family began to use a Hungarianised form of their name: Rabay.
Emil was also a talented artist, and had a keen interest in agriculture. He and his brother were barred from entering university due to the Horthy government’s restrictive anti-Jewish quotas outlined in the ‘Numerous Clausus’ law of 1920.
In the years leading up to the war, Emil and Feri were conscripted into the army, like many other young Hungarian men. While home in Kunszentmiklos in the early years of the war, they became the focus of police harassment and were interned.
They were subsequently segregated from other non-Jewish conscripts, drafted into the Jewish Labour Service, and transported to forced labour camps. They may have both spent time in forced labour at Nagykanizsa - a camp which was home to some famous Jewish actors and intellectuals. They are believed to have died in separate camps near the river Don (present-day Russia) at some time in 1943. The family later heard that a lack of sufficient footwear may have contributed to Emil’s death.
The post stamp dates this card to 15 October 1942, from a camp in an unknown location. Emil reports that he is healthy, and that he has received word that is brother and fellow forced labourer Feri is too. He requests warm clothes.
The postcard is standard issue stationary, bearing the slogan "The persistence and sacrifice of Hungary makes our weapons victorious!"
Emil was born in 1915 to Ignacz and Margit Reisz (nee Herceg). The Reisz family were successful businesspeople and owned farmland in the village of Kunszentmiklos, south of Budapest. They were a prominent and integrated local family. Emil had one brother, Feri (b. 1911) and a sister, Ilona (b. 1916).
Emil was a gifted athlete - accomplished primarily in discus and javelin, as well as long jump and hurdling. By the time of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, he was allegedly considered a likely candidate for an Olympic medal in discus. However, as a Jew he was excluded from selection for the Hungarian team. It was around this time that the family began to use a Hungarianised form of their name: Rabay.
Emil was also a talented artist, and had a keen interest in agriculture. He and his brother were barred from entering university due to the Horthy government’s restrictive anti-Jewish quotas outlined in the ‘Numerous Clausus’ law of 1920.
In the years leading up to the war, Emil and Feri were conscripted into the army, like many other young Hungarian men. While home in Kunszentmiklos in the early years of the war, they became the focus of police harassment and were interned.
They were subsequently segregated from other non-Jewish conscripts, drafted into the Jewish Labour Service, and transported to forced labour camps. They may have both spent time in forced labour at Nagykanizsa - a camp which was home to some famous Jewish actors and intellectuals. They are believed to have died in separate camps near the river Don (present-day Russia) at some time in 1943. The family later heard that a lack of sufficient footwear may have contributed to Emil’s death.
Production placeHungary
Production date 1942-10-01 - 1942-10-15
Subjectconscription, forced labour camps, labourers, loved ones' final contacts, family life, separation
Object namepostcards
Materialpaper
Techniquehandwritten
Dimensions
- length: 147.00 mm
width: 105.00 mm
Language
- Hungarian The persistence and sacrifice of Hungary makes our weapons victorious!
Official notes: Checked 15 / 10 / 1942
Sender -
Name: Emil Reisz
Rank:
Camp mail number: 257/77
Post stamp dated 15 October 1942
To:
Ignacz Reisz
34 Szigony Street, Floor 1, Apartment 3, Budapest
Dear Mummy and Daddy, I received your cards and I am glad that you are all healthy. I am also well. Have you received my request for warm clothes? I have received a message about Feri, who is also healthy. Best wishes to everyone, with love,
Your loving son, Emil.
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Ester Sarkadi-Clarke