Dr. Bruno Franz Kaulbach: An Austrian Jewish Lawyer from Hall in Tyrol

The history of Hall in Tyrol, like many towns in Austria, includes a chapter that is often overlooked: the story of its Jewish residents who were persecuted by the Nazi regime. One of these individuals was Dr. Bruno Franz Kaulbach, a lawyer whose fate serves as a somber reminder of this dark period. (Blog Dr. Bruno Franz Kaulbach)

Key Details of His Life and Persecution:

1. Family and Origins: Dr. Bruno Franz Kaulbach was an Austrian jurist. He belonged to the Kohn family, which originated from Bennisch in Silesia (known as Horní Benešov in the present-day Czech Republic). This area was part of the former Habsburg Empire.
2. Life in Hall in Tirol: At the time of the Nazi annexation of Austria (the Anschluss) in 1938, Dr. Kaulbach was living at Wallpachgasse No. 3 in Solbad Hall (now known as Hall in Tirol). His presence there is a significant historical fact, as it is not widely known that Hall in Tirol had Jewish residents who were later deported.
3. Arrest and Deportation: As part of the systematic persecution of Jewish citizens, Dr. Bruno Franz Kaulbach was arrested. The records indicate he was deported to the Dachau concentration camp on August 13, 1943. Dachau was the first Nazi concentration camp, opened in 1933, and was primarily used for political prisoners. His deportation there marks him as a victim of the Nazis' brutal machinery of oppression and genocide.

A Lost History:
It is a history that remains largely unknown to many current residents of Hall in Tirol. The stories of Jewish citizens like Dr. Kaulbach were systematically erased. Remembering his name and his story is an act of restoring a piece of that lost history and honoring the memory of those who suffered.

Important Distinction: It is crucial to note that this Dr. Bruno Franz Kaulbach from Austria is a different person from Dr. Bruno Kaulbach, the Jewish resistance fighter in Berlin who was executed in 1945. They shared the same name and profession and were both victims of Nazism, but their stories and fates were different. Your information helps ensure that the memory of the Austrian victim is accurately preserved.

Dr. Bruno Kaulbach: A Jewish Lawyer in the German Resistance
​

Dr. Bruno Kaulbach (born March 28, 1893, in Elberfeld; died May 8, 1945, in Berlin) was a German-Jewish lawyer who became a courageous and significant figure in the German resistance against the Nazi regime.
His story is particularly notable because he operated from within the very system that was persecuting him and his family.

Key Aspects of His Life and Resistance Work:

1. Professional Background: Before the Nazis came to power in 1933, Kaulbach was a successful and respected lawyer in Berlin. As a decorated veteran of World War I, he initially held a somewhat protected status under the Nazis due to the exemptions for Jewish front-line fighters. This allowed him to continue practicing law longer than most Jewish lawyers.
2. Role in the Resistance: Kaulbach used his legal office as a central hub and "safe house" for the resistance. His most important connection was to the "Red Orchestra" (Rote Kapelle), a major resistance network involving artists, intellectuals, and military officers who distributed anti-Nazi leaflets and gathered intelligence for the Allies.
   • He provided legal counsel and defense for arrested resistance members and their families.
   • He acted as a courier, passing messages and information between different resistance cells.
   • He helped hide persecuted individuals and arranged for financial support for the families of those who had been arrested.

1. The Ultimate Betrayal and Arrest: Kaulbach's activities were discovered largely due to the betrayal of Johann Wenzel, a Gestapo informant who had infiltrated the resistance. Wenzel gained Kaulbach's trust and gathered extensive evidence against him.
2. Imprisonment and Death: The Gestapo arrested Kaulbach on September 17, 1942. He was subjected to brutal torture but refused to betray his comrades. He was tried by the notorious Nazi "People's Court" (Volksgerichtshof) and sentenced to death for "preparing to commit high treason and favoring the enemy."

1. • Tragically, Bruno Kaulbach was not liberated. He was murdered by SS guards in the Lehrter Straße prison in Berlin on May 8, 1945—the very day World War II ended in Europe.

Legacy: 

Dr. Bruno Kaulbach is remembered as a hero who demonstrated immense moral courage. Despite the extreme danger to himself and his family (his wife, Charlotte, was also arrested and sent to a concentration camp but survived), he used his skills, position, and bravery to fight against tyranny and injustice. A "Stolperstein" (stumbling block) memorial plaque has been laid in front of his former home at Keithstraße 24 in Berlin-Charlottenburg to honor his memory.