Lessing Meets Feingold
Remembering Marko Feingold, 1913 - 2019
Interview By Hannah Lessing
Top Photo: Hannah Lessing, Secretary General of the Austrian National Fund for the Compensation of Victims of National Socialism, with Marko Feingold, President of the Jewish Community, in Salzburg, 2013. Franz Morgenbesser
The following are translated excerpts of an interview that Hannah Lessing conducted with Marko Feingold in Salzburg in December 2016. Translated and edited by Thorsten Eisingerich.
Hannah Lessing: Dear Marko, it is a real honor to conduct this interview. As you were raised in Vienna, what was your relationship to Salzburg?
Marko Feingold: Well, I had a happy childhood in Vienna and only later on went to Salzburg a few times as a commercial agent to sell liquid soap. Commercial agents always sell things that nobody needs. In Vienna, I lived in the Prater. There you could witness not only spectacular things in the Luna Park, but also Vienna’s underbelly and seedy side. The early contact with criminal elements was in the end very useful for me: We spoke the same dialect and had a common understanding, so I got to know essential things like where to get forged papers etc. which proved essential after my arrests by the Nazis for my survival.
Lessing: Interesting. Unlike you and my dad who returned to Austria in 1946, most survivors did not return. Why did you decide to come back and how did you end up in Salzburg and not in Vienna?
Feingold: Ever since the Americans liberated us from [the concentration camp in] Buchenwald, I wanted to return to Austria. By mid-May 1945, I was already doing a bit better health wise. There were 28 nations in Buchenwald and 27 of them were brought back to their homelands - except for the Austrians. So we had three buses of the public transportation of Weimar confiscated and drove towards Austria, escorted by an American Jeep. Thus, after a trip via Nuremberg, Munich, Salzburg, and Linz, we finally reached the border of the Soviet occupation zone but the Russians did not let us through as [the social-democrat Federal Chancellor of the provisional Austrian Government] Karl Renner had indicated that there would be no returns and no restitutions to Jews: the apartments of 66.000 murdered Jews which had been occupied by Nazis would remain in their hands. This is why we were not allowed back and so the Americans were tasked to return us to Buchenwald. What a unique situation: Wherever survivors returned to, they were received like kings—except for us… So while some had escaped already, we were on our way back and stopped right in front of a police station in Salzburg; I turned back and asked: “Who else is stepping out of this bus with me now?” In the end, we were six of us. The bus left and as it was already 8.30 p.m. and a curfew was in place since Salzburg had only been liberated 14 days ago by the Americans, they told us to sleep at the gym of the school next door which had been transformed into a makeshift hospital. The next morning, we went to the Austrian police and they gave us registration papers. A very nice policeman asked: “Do you have anywhere to stay?” Of course we did not, so he told us to head to Haydnstrasse 2 in town and take over the apartment on the upper floor—which had previously housed the office of the Nazi Friendship Organization —since it would be big enough for six people. Thus, a colleague and I moved into the one room with a balcony. However, as it used to be an office before, it was crammed with desks with no beds to be found. We therefore decided to cross the street into a school which also had been turned into a makeshift hospital to trade the desks for some beds—thus, we were finally settled and furnished! However, the view from the balcony offered only devastation. But the view to the left shocked me even more: a bunch of Jewish refugees in an abominable, pitiful state.
Barbara Prammer, Speaker of the Austrian National Council, congratulates Marko Feingold during this reception to mark his centenary in 2013
Photo: www.neumayr.cc
Lessing: I find that fascinating: You pitied the Jewish refugees looking out of your window while you did not weigh more than 36 kilograms (70 pounds) yourself?
Feingold: Well, that was my weight at the liberation. As you can see on the photo taken later on (pictured on p. 45), I was already rested. Just this striped suit looked odd.
Lessing: Especially in combination with these shoes….
Feingold: Well, I had organized these too: One day in 1943, one of our inmates was working at the Nazi barracks and spotted these shoes under a bed. A few days later, they were still there so he just took them to exchange them for food. As they were fairly small, only Feingold could fit into them - though it was extremely dangerous to wear them as they had Nazi insignia on the sole… Anyway, these Jewish refugees were on the so-called Bricha (Hebrew for “escape”), trying to make their way to Palestine on the three only pathways: Via Hungary, Romania and Greece; via Germany, Austria and Italy, and finally via the French port of Marseille.
Lessing: But the British [holder of the League of Nations’ Mandate for Palestine] blocked the routes?
Feingold: The British opposed the Jewish Aliyah (Hebrew for “immigration”) to Palestine. But they also had a Jewish Brigade which had helped to kick the Germans out of Africa and which was by then stationed in Italy—until the British realized that they were letting all the Jews pass through. So they dissolved the Jewish Brigade. But these guys stayed and continued to organize the Jewish passage.
Lessing: From your vintage point, how was the cooperation with the U.S. occupation troops in Salzburg? Did they close their eyes and let you organize the transports?
Feingold: The Americans were unhappy and told us that the transports must stop as the British were pressuring them. But the leaders of Bricha Movement told them: “Sorry that is not possible. We will continue even this very night.” In the end, we had a great understanding with the Americans which was also helpful whenever the Austrians did not like what we were doing. For example: The Americans told me that old military vehicles were being collected at the Salzburg Government’s Office. The official there knew me already and wanted to turn me down: “Sorry, we cannot give you vehicles for this purpose!” I told them, “Listen, either you give me the cars or all these Jews will stay here.” “How many cars do you need,” was their answer! This is how I got five transport vehicles. So I rounded up 300 people and off we went to the Italian border. No British troops anywhere. Only Italians. So I went into their border post with wine and other things and pretended that I was returning Italians whom the Nazis had abducted to Germany. Luckily, nobody went to check. This is how we were able to bring up to 100,000 Jewish refugees to Italy. This went on until the summer of 1947 when there was talk of the possible creation of the State of Israel and the British started to block everybody once more. But we just had about 5000 Jews in the Austrian town of Saalfelden—what to do with them? So we decided to bring them to Italy via the Krimmler Tauern Mountain Pass and got the landlady of the restauranthostel Krimmler Tauernhaus to cooperate with us. Her husband would even get food by horse cart for the refugees as no cars were usually driving up there—except for us: Every night, up to five trucks brought people up there.
Lessing: Meaning up to 150 people per time?
Feingold: Exactly, three or four times a week.
Lessing: You told me before that 250,000 Jews were transferred via Salzburg?
Feingold: Indeed, about 100,000 were brought to Italy by me and the other 150,000 had relatives in America, Australia, etc. and were quickly transferred by the Americans.
Lessing: Very impressive indeed! Now back to the city of Salzburg: Was there anything special the city already had to offer in these days?
Feingold: Well, the Salzburg Festival was reinstated immediately after the war. Mr. Feingold had access to everything that was lacking, be it the sought after tickets for the festival or for the cinema. I was already well known in Salzburg, so I got whatever I wanted.
Lessing: But how many Jews were around during that time?
Feingold: About 600 Jews lived in Salzburg in 1946. Most of them were refugees. Not more than 15 of the 285 Jews who had lived in Salzburg before the Anschluss in 1938 returned after the war as even in 1925, anti-Semitism had been that strong that people already started to leave. Those who returned found out they are not welcome and left. Only one who had owned a shopping mall and another one who owned a charcoal trade stayed.
Lessing: Is there a favorite place for you in Salzburg?
Feingold: For me? No doubt: It’s the Mirabellgarten. And the Residenz Palace. This is where I celebrated my 100th birthday with a musical choir, VIPs, the Speaker of the Austrian House of Representatives (First President of the Austrian National Council), etc. It was just amazing! But there is also a painful history connected to the Old Residence: In 1498, the resident Archbishop hat expelled or burnt all the Jews. Never would a Jew ever settle in Salzburg again. But in the 19th century, Albert Pollak, a Jew from Burgenland, liked the city very much and was able to settle there in the end thanks to the Austrian Imperial Basic Law on Human Rights of 1867 which provided for the equality of all citizens. The reaction of the mayor spoke volumes: “Okay, we had to accept this one, but he will be the last one.” Little did he know that 30 years later, already 100 Jews had settled again in Salzburg. A high ranking official in the building department—who turned out to be a Jew—bought the plot for the synagogue which was built subsequently.
Lessing: Is that the present synagogue?
Feingold: Indeed. Furthermore, a Jewish Center was inaugurated in the Residenz Palace almost two decades ago. The Israeli Ambassador David Govrin had traveled to Salzburg many times and always took me along to his meetings. After he left, I pressed on and after I had gotten support for the project from the Catholic and the Protestant churches, I was finally successful with Rector Heinrich Schmidinger. The only thing missing were the funds until I was finally able to secure 400,000 euro ($444,000) from an American donor.
Lessing: What binds the Americans to Salzburg? The Sound of Music? You may know that my dad took the set photos with Julie Andrews and the others. Does that mean anything to you? Or is that kitsch? What about the Lederhosen?
Feingold: Not at all! Actually, the Salzburg tour guides came to see me for advice as they had already had plenty of Jewish tourists after the war and wanted to learn more about them and Jewish culture to anticipate their questions. Also, at the end of each summer, up to five groups of 60 mainly former German and Austrian Jewish tourists would step out of their Danube cruises, be bussed to our synagogue and listen to my stories. All satisfied.
Lessing: What does home mean to you?
Feingold: Salzburg it is, and has been for the last 71 years. I guess I have been asked a thousand times why I would not settle in Palestine. My answer is always the same: “If you move to Rome, I will move to Palestine.”
Lessing: Well, this is also how I see it: Home is where the heart is. Home is where I was born.
Feingold: Indeed. No problem to get there on holidays. Furthermore, you never know what will happen and one day the Arabs might want to invade Israel again.
Lessing: One last question: You are one of the most active survivors that I know, going to Auschwitz with politicians or into a school to testify for children. Where do you get the energy and when did you start your activities in the matter?
Feingold: It started right away in 1945. Nuns came on their own initiative to hear my story. Then came the teachers, and in 1977 the Ministry of Education in Vienna. I must also confess: My audiences are always very satisfied listening to me in spite of my old age. But there is a difference: Before I reached the age of 100, I held two hour lectures standing. Nowadays, I have to sit.
Lessing: What is your message to the adolescents? What is your legacy?
Feingold: I have lived under [the Austro-fascist dictator] Dollfuss, Hitler and Mussolini. I know what dictatorship means and I totally oppose it—not only in the political realm, but also in the religious field.
Lessing: Thank you so much, Marko!
Hannah Lessing is the Secretary General of the Austrian National Fund for the Compensation of Victims of the Holocaust. She is also responsible for the administrative and organizational management of the fund for the Restoration of the Jewish cemeteries in Austria and Co-Head of the Austrian Delegation of the “International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.”
Marko ‘Max-Mordechai’ Feingold, 1913-2019
Marko Feingold was the President of the Jewish Community in Salzburg since 1979. He was born before World War I on May 28, 1913, as a citizen of the Austro- Hungarian Empire, to Heinrich, a railway worker, and Zilli, a housewife who passed away in 1936. Marko was the third boy after Fritz and Ernst, and the big brother for Rosa. Growing up in Vienna, he concluded a traineeship in commerce and sales.
The economic downturn in Austria in 1934 forced Marko and his brother Ernst to leave for Italy to make a living. A coincidence led to his arrest by the Germans who annexed Austria in the beginning of 1938, just when the two brothers came back to renew their passports. The family was forced to leave Austria for Prague, and then on to Poland. A failed escape attempt led Marko and his brother Ernst to the labor camp in Auschwitz. Only after the war Feingold found out that his father was killed in 1939, during the German bombing on Warsaw, his brother Ernst in 1942 in the Neuengamme concentration camp. The fate of Rosa and Fritz is still unknown.
Marko Feingold passed away on September 19, 2019 at the age of 106.
Marko Feingold shortly after the liberation of Buchenwald concentration camp in April 1945
Photo: Marko Feingold