Wartime Letters of Richard and Hilda Löbl 1939
Object numberM2021/036:008
TitleWartime Letters of Richard and Hilda Löbl 1939
DescriptionLetter from Richard and Hilda Löbl (nee Gerstl), Berlin, to George and Dora Fekete (nee Löbl), 18 February 1939, Sydney.
Part of a collection of letters written by Richard and Hilda Löbl (nee Gerstl) from Berlin and Shanghai to their daughter, Dora, their son-in-law, George Fekete, and their granddaughter, Susie, who were in Sydney, between 1939 and 1941.
George Fekete was born in Hungary in 1901. Anti-Semitism at Budapest University forced him to study civil engineering in Berlin. There he met Dora Löbl, born in 1902. They married in 1927 and in 1932 their daughter Susie was born.
According to the donor, "George did not want Susie to go to a Jewish ghetto school, nor did he want her to go to a school where they espoused Nazi principles, so they decided to emigrate". The Feketes fled to Budapest and later to Australia, arriving in Sydney on 10 February 1938.
Although Dora's parents, Richard and Hilda Löbl, were booked to travel to Australia on the RMS Strathmore on 6 November 1939, their landing permits were cancelled with the outbreak of World War II.
The 38 Berlin letters, written during 1939, are a record of correspondence between Richard and Hilda who were stranded in Nazi Germany, and the Fekete family who were newly settled in Sydney.
Richard and Hilda managed to escape to Shanghai in April 1940. They were on the final voyage made by the SS Conte Rosso, one of four Italian ships which carried Jewish refugees from Trieste to Shanghai - prior to Italy joining the Axis alliance.
The 53 Shanghai letters follow the narrative of the Löbl's lives in Hongkew between 11 July 1940 and 15 November 1941. They provide political commentary of the German-Jewish experience in the Shanghai ghetto during World War II. The letters also provide first-hand social commentary on the intersection between Eastern and Western cultures. Following the attack on Pearl Harbour, it became impossible for Richard and Hilda to send letters to Australia.
Dora and George had no further correspondence until May 1945, when a note arrived from Richard via the Red Cross; "Since July 21 1942 am alone. Mama died of typhus without suffering. Her thoughts were always with you. Your good news is my only comfort."
Richard arrived in Australia in 1946 and lived with the Feketes. He passed away on 2 August 1964.
Dora and her parents were prolific correspondents, writing almost weekly. Dora wrote long letters, sometimes nine pages in length, detailing the lives of her family in Sydney. The letters that Dora wrote to her parents have not survived, however, the letters which they wrote to her mostly did. Richard and Hilda's letters were much shorter due to the 5-gram weight restriction, having to pay more if the letter exceeded that weight.
As far as is possible, the English translations of these letters are an accurate record of the experiences shared between family members separated by long distances.
Part of a collection of letters written by Richard and Hilda Löbl (nee Gerstl) from Berlin and Shanghai to their daughter, Dora, their son-in-law, George Fekete, and their granddaughter, Susie, who were in Sydney, between 1939 and 1941.
George Fekete was born in Hungary in 1901. Anti-Semitism at Budapest University forced him to study civil engineering in Berlin. There he met Dora Löbl, born in 1902. They married in 1927 and in 1932 their daughter Susie was born.
According to the donor, "George did not want Susie to go to a Jewish ghetto school, nor did he want her to go to a school where they espoused Nazi principles, so they decided to emigrate". The Feketes fled to Budapest and later to Australia, arriving in Sydney on 10 February 1938.
Although Dora's parents, Richard and Hilda Löbl, were booked to travel to Australia on the RMS Strathmore on 6 November 1939, their landing permits were cancelled with the outbreak of World War II.
The 38 Berlin letters, written during 1939, are a record of correspondence between Richard and Hilda who were stranded in Nazi Germany, and the Fekete family who were newly settled in Sydney.
Richard and Hilda managed to escape to Shanghai in April 1940. They were on the final voyage made by the SS Conte Rosso, one of four Italian ships which carried Jewish refugees from Trieste to Shanghai - prior to Italy joining the Axis alliance.
The 53 Shanghai letters follow the narrative of the Löbl's lives in Hongkew between 11 July 1940 and 15 November 1941. They provide political commentary of the German-Jewish experience in the Shanghai ghetto during World War II. The letters also provide first-hand social commentary on the intersection between Eastern and Western cultures. Following the attack on Pearl Harbour, it became impossible for Richard and Hilda to send letters to Australia.
Dora and George had no further correspondence until May 1945, when a note arrived from Richard via the Red Cross; "Since July 21 1942 am alone. Mama died of typhus without suffering. Her thoughts were always with you. Your good news is my only comfort."
Richard arrived in Australia in 1946 and lived with the Feketes. He passed away on 2 August 1964.
Dora and her parents were prolific correspondents, writing almost weekly. Dora wrote long letters, sometimes nine pages in length, detailing the lives of her family in Sydney. The letters that Dora wrote to her parents have not survived, however, the letters which they wrote to her mostly did. Richard and Hilda's letters were much shorter due to the 5-gram weight restriction, having to pay more if the letter exceeded that weight.
As far as is possible, the English translations of these letters are an accurate record of the experiences shared between family members separated by long distances.
Production placeBerlin, Germany
Production date 1939-02-18 - 1939-02-18
Object nameletters
Materialpaper
Techniquetypewritten
Language
- German 18th February 1939
My dear children,
I am freezing as I sit at the machine. Something is wrong with the boiler, so we can’t heat the room up today. In addition, it is really winter, and an hour ago, it snowed. Today, Saturday, evening the boiler is supposed to be working again. But we won’t be at home at that time, as we have to go to a cultural association.
[In English] Have jou get oll the letters which we had written? Apologies if I suddenly write in English, but the conversion to German is now difficult for me. And if you are not ready to translate one or the other that I will sometimes write, there will be enough people in the English-speaking lands who would be able to translate for you. [In English.] Do you understand?
Now we only have to count two more days. You must think it is strange, that we still count, when you are probably used to it by now. We will only breathe easy when you have landed. [In English] We shall be very glad when you arrived in Sydney.
In our situation there is nothing new to report. Max wrote to us, through Julius, that he is ready to deposit $5,000 in America, if we have the intention and the possibility of going there. We don’t have that intention, but even if we did, there is no telling when we, with our Czech quota, would get in the queue. Also, Leon wrote to us, that he will help us in Chile as a blood relation. However, the paperwork from Paris hasn’t arrived in Chile yet. On 15th February applications were accepted again. Provisionally we can do nothing, only wait and see. The consulate has heard nothing yet, and the Prague lawyer doesn’t answer, although I wrote to him about how the request would have been done. I was not given the availability of the search number and the name of the department. In the meantime, our friend Max was at the consulate, and heard there that some applications were returned, with the directive that the applicants have to include a certificate of the place of residence of the parents and grandparents, and a confirmation that they are not recognised as being German nationals. I don’t have these papers and in any case, I have written to the municipal authorities in Miloschitz and Schönlinde, whether they can find the birth certificates despite my inaccurate information.
Herr Krenitze was able to take care of his things and was in London for a few days. He came back with a huge cold. [In English.} The poor man.
Tomorrow, Sunday, he wants to come to us, and in about eight days, go to Riga. We will miss him a lot as he is a really good friend.
Last night we had young visitors, Paul Stein and his wife, the Weinbergs and Paul. They were very jolly, and stayed till 12.30 a.m. It always gives us a lot of pleasure, that young people feel so comfortable with us old fogies. [He wrote the German word for eccentrics, but I don’t think that is accurate.] The Weinbergs have received a visitors’ permit with unlimited time, for London. They are just preparing an affidavit for America.
From the Neumanns in Prague we recently received a four-page letter. Every line dripped with friendship and love. They regarded us as their second parents, and no one was closer to them than we were. In these difficult times, a letter like that lifts one’s spirits. In M. Ostrau, George does not feel well, either with his private life or with his business. He was in hospital again, and had to have an intestinal fistula operation. They hope that in autumn of this year, with their affidavit, they will be in the queue, but are afraid that it might take longer.
P2 missing
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Hazel Hillier
In appreciation to the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) for supporting this archival project.