Max Mannheimer

Max Mannheimer (6 February 1920 – 23 September 2016) was an author, painter and survivor of the Holocaust. Except for one brother, he lost his entire family in the Holocaust, including his new wife. For decades, he did not speak about his experiences, despite nightmares and depression. In 1986, while traveling in the United States, he happened to see a swastika and the sight of it triggered a nervous breakdown. After that, he began to speak about his experiences at the hand of the Nazis, giving talks to young people and adults, at school and universities. Mannheimer won many honors and awards for his work.

Early life Mannheimer was born in Neutitschein, North Moravia, in what was then Czechoslovakia and is today in the Czech Republic. His mother, Margarethe (Markéta), née Gelb, was born 4 April 1893 in Uherský Brod, near the Hungarian border. His father was Jakob Leib Mannheimer, born 24 May 1888 in Myślenice, Poland.

Within months, Nazi troops and military units were being seen in their new city and the square near their home was renamed after Adolf Hitler. Their freedoms were increasingly restricted by the laws against Jews, but Mannheimer nonetheless was married and began to make a life for himself.

In 1942, Mannheimer's brother, Erich, was deported to Auschwitz. In January 1943, Mannheimer, his mother, father, brothers Ernst (Arnošt) and Edgar, his 15-year-old sister, Katharina (called Käthe), and his 22-year-old wife, Eva (née Bock), were transported from Uherský Brod and after a brief stop at Theresienstadt, on 1 February 1943 (four days before Mannheimer's 23rd birthday) they all were deported to Auschwitz. Mannheimer lost most of his family upon arrival at Auschwitz. His parents, sister and wife were taken in the first selektion. Shortly thereafter, his brothers Erich and Ernst were taken. Mannheimer survived three selections — and an operation in the Auschwitz hospital by a doctor who was also a prisoner. He began painting under the name ben jakov (son of Jakob), in the 1950s. His first attempt to make paintings about the past was in 1954. His first show was in 1975 and numerous one-man shows in Germany and other countries followed. Paintings by "ben jakov" are untitled.

Mannheimer was an honorary member of Gegen Vergessen – Für Demokratie ("Against Forgetting - For Democracy"), the chairman of which was Joachim Gauck. Mannheimer was also chairman of "Lagergemeinschaft Dachau" and vice president of Comité International de Dachau (International Dachau Committee). He died on 23 September 2016, aged 96.

Honors and awards Mannheimer was awarded the Waldemar von Knoeringen Prize from the Georg von Vollmar Academy. The prize is awarded every two years to outstanding individuals who advance the cause of labour and democratic socialism. Other awards and honors include:

Knight of the French Legion of Honor (Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur) Georg von Vollmar Medal Wilhelm Hoegner Prize Auschwitz Cross Honorary citizen, City of Neutitschein Upper Bavarian Cultural Prize, 2005 Federal Cross of Merit Bavarian Order of Merit Bavarian Constitutional Medal, (silver) Honorary doctorate, LMU Munich, 2000 Bavarian Constitutional Medal, (gold), 2009

Books Spätes Tagebuch. Pendo Verlag, Zürich 2005, A Diary Delayed. (English translation by Kathryn Woodard). Oettingen Press , 2018.