Walter Freud facts for kids

Anton Walter Freud (born April 3, 1921 – died February 8, 2004) was a smart chemical engineer. He was also a brave soldier in the British Army during World War II. He worked with special groups like the Royal Pioneer Corps and the Special Operations Executive. Walter Freud was the grandson of the famous Sigmund Freud, who was a very important thinker. Walter and his family had to leave their home in Vienna, Austria, when things became dangerous there.

Early Life and Escape

Walter Freud was born in Vienna in 1921. He was the first child of Jean-Martin Freud, who was a lawyer, and his wife Ernestine. He was named after a friend of his grandfather, Sigmund Freud.

In March 1938, Walter and his family had to escape from Vienna. This was because of a difficult time called the Anschluss, when Germany took over Austria. Walter and his father went to Britain. His mother and sister went to Paris and later moved to the USA.

While Walter was studying at Loughborough College in Britain, something unexpected happened. In May 1940, he and his father were held by the government as "enemy aliens." This meant they were from a country that Britain was fighting against, even though they had escaped from there. Walter was first held in a prison in Leicester and then on the Isle of Man. Later, he was sent far away to Australia on a ship called the HMT Dunera.

Joining the War Effort

Walter was allowed to return to the United Kingdom in October 1941. This was because the rules about who could be held were changed. Soon after, he joined the Royal Pioneer Corps in the British Army. He worked there for about a year and a half.

Because Walter could speak German very well, he was able to join a special group called the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in 1943. The SOE was a secret organization that carried out important missions during the war.

In April 1945, Walter had a very daring mission. He parachuted into a mountainous area in Austria called Styria. His job was to help the British Army get ready before another army, the Red Army, arrived. Even though he got separated from his team, Walter was very clever. He managed to trick his way into an important airfield called Zeltweg. He pretended to be a representative from the British Army and convinced the commander there to surrender the airfield to the Allied forces. This was a very brave and smart thing to do!

After the War

After World War II ended, Walter Freud continued his important work. He joined the War Crimes Investigation Unit. This group looked into terrible crimes that happened during the war.

Walter was one of the first people to question a man named Bruno Tesch. Tesch's company had supplied a dangerous gas used in Nazi camps. Walter's investigation helped lead to Tesch being tried for his actions. Walter also helped investigate other important cases. These included looking into a company called Krupp Industries, which had used forced labor. He also helped investigate the sad case of twenty Jewish children who were part of cruel experiments.

In January 1946, Walter went to Denmark to find and investigate another suspected war criminal, Gustav Jepsen. While he was in Copenhagen, he met Annette Krarup, who worked for the Danish government. They fell in love and got married in August 1947. Walter left the army in September 1946 with the rank of Major.

Life After the Army

In January 1947, Walter became a British citizen. He then went back to Loughborough College and finished his degree in chemical engineering. He started working for a company called British Oxygen Corporation. Later, he worked for British Nylon Spinners.

In 1957, he joined British Hydrocarbons in London. This company later became part of BP Chemicals. Walter worked there until he retired at the age of 55 in 1977.

In 1994, Walter Freud visited Vienna again for the first time since he had to leave. The Austrian government invited him as a special guest. They even held a dinner to honor him for his brave actions in liberating the Zeltweg airfield during the war.

Walter Freud and his wife, Annette, are buried in a special place called "Freud Corner" at Golders Green Crematorium in London. In 2022, a TV show called Nazijäger – Reise in die Finsternis was made about Walter's work with the War Crimes Investigation Unit.

See also

• Freud family