In Hiding


  • 1st Picture for document

The Krakauers spent the first night at a Jewish lady’s with whom they were friends. Then, a Jewish friend’s Christian widow gave them a place to stay until they eventually found a hideout in retired postal worker Hans Ackermann’s home.


When his apartment was destroyed in an air raid on March 1, 1943, they had to move on. When they parted, Hans Ackermann altered his postal identification by gluing in a picture of Max Krakauer; he thus “lent” his identity to the persecuted man. Under the assumed name of “Hans Ackermann”, Max Krakauer acquired an unstable and extremely fragile identity until the end of the war.


Two Christian acquaintances, who were the next to give them a place to stay, referred the fugitives to the Confessing Church in Berlin. Pastor Wilhelm Jannasch not only provided shelter for one night. He also provided the addresses of Confessing Church pastors and congregational members in Pomerania who were willing to take in refugees.


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  • © Reproduction German Resistance Memorial Center