Hans von Dohnanyi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hans von Dohnanyi
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Hans von Dohnányi
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| Born | 1 January 1902 |
| Died | 8/9 April 1945 (aged 43) Sachsenhausen concentration camp, Nazi Germany
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| Nationality | German |
| Occupation | Jurist |
| Spouse(s) | Christel Bonhoeffer |
| Children | Klaus von Dohnanyi Christoph von Dohnányi Barbara von Dohnanyi-Bayer |
| Relatives | Dietrich Bonhoeffer (brother-in-law) |
Hans von Dohnanyi (1902 – 1945) was a brave German lawyer. He used his position in the government to help Jewish people escape Nazi Germany. He also worked with the German resistance to fight against the Nazi government. After a failed attempt to remove Hitler, he was accused of leading the plan and was executed by the SS in 1945.
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Hans's Early Life
Hans von Dohnanyi was born in Vienna in 1902. His father was a famous composer, and his mother was a pianist. After his parents divorced, Hans grew up in Berlin.
He went to school there and became good friends with Dietrich and Klaus Bonhoeffer. From 1920 to 1924, he studied law in Berlin. He earned a special degree in law in 1925.
In 1925, he married Christel Bonhoeffer. She was the sister of his school friends. Hans and Christel had three children: Klaus, Christoph, and Barbara. Klaus later became the mayor of Hamburg, and Christoph became a famous orchestra conductor.
Working for the Government
Dohnanyi began his career working for the government. In 1929, he started working at the Reich Ministry of Justice. He was a personal advisor to several justice ministers. This job gave him access to many secret government documents.
He learned about the terrible things the Nazi government was doing. This included their unfair treatment of Jewish people and others.
Joining the Resistance
In 1934, the Nazi government ordered murders without trials. These events pushed Dohnanyi to join the German resistance. He secretly collected evidence of the Nazi government's crimes. He wanted to have proof if the Nazi rule ever ended.
In 1938, Dohnanyi was moved to a different job in Leipzig. This happened because his critical views of the Nazi government's racial policies became known.
Just before World War II started, Hans Oster asked Dohnanyi to join the Abwehr. This was a German military intelligence agency. It was led by Wilhelm Canaris and quickly became a center for resistance against Hitler. Dohnanyi protected his brother-in-law, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, from being forced into the army. He brought Bonhoeffer into the Abwehr, saying his contacts could help Germany.
Saving Lives: Operation U-7
In 1942, Dohnanyi helped two Jewish lawyers from Berlin, Friedrich Arnold and Julius Fliess. He helped them and their families escape to Switzerland. He disguised them as Abwehr agents. In total, 13 people were able to leave Germany safely. This was thanks to Dohnanyi's fake documents and a secret plan called "Operation U-7."
Dohnanyi even went to Switzerland himself to make sure the refugees would be allowed in. He also made sure they received money to support themselves.
Fighting Against Hitler
In early 1943, Dohnanyi helped Henning von Tresckow with a plan to kill Hitler. They smuggled a bomb onto Hitler's plane. However, the bomb failed to explode.
On April 5, 1943, the Gestapo (Nazi secret police) arrested Dohnanyi at his office. They accused him of breaking foreign currency laws. This was because he had sent money to a Swiss bank for the Jewish people he had saved. Both Bonhoeffer and Christel Dohnanyi were also arrested. Christel was released about a month later.
A military judge, Karl Sack, who was also part of the resistance, purposely delayed Dohnanyi's trial. However, in 1944, Dohnanyi was sent to Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
His involvement in the 20 July Plot (another plan to remove Hitler) became clear after the plan failed. The Gestapo found some of the secret documents Dohnanyi had hidden. They decided Dohnanyi was the "spiritual head of the conspiracy" against Hitler. On Hitler's orders, Dohnanyi was sentenced to death by an SS court on April 6, 1945. He was executed two or three days later.
After the War
After the Nazi government fell, the judges who sentenced Dohnanyi were put on trial. However, they were later found not guilty.
In 2002, on the 100th anniversary of Dohnanyi's birth, a high-ranking German judge spoke out. He called those who sentenced Dohnanyi to death "criminals calling themselves judges." He said the earlier ruling was shameful.
On October 23, 2003, Israel honored Dohnanyi. He was recognized as one of the Righteous Among the Nations. This honor is given to non-Jewish people who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. His name is now written on the walls at Yad Vashem, the Holocaust remembrance center in Jerusalem.
Hans von Dohnanyi's grandson, Justus von Dohnányi, played a role in the 2004 film Downfall.
See also
In Spanish: Hans von Dohnanyi para niños
- List of members of the 20 July plot
- Widerstand
- Bonhoeffer Family
- Pius XII and the German Resistance
