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Kriegserinnerungsmedaille [War Commemorative Medal], 1914-1918 awarded to a Jewish soldier

Object | Accession Number: 2005.517.3

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    Kriegserinnerungsmedaille [War Commemorative Medal], 1914-1918 awarded to a Jewish soldier
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    Overview

    Brief Narrative
    Commemorative medal awarded to Adolph Blau for his service in the Austro-Hungarian Army during World War I. It was designed by by the Austrian sculptor, Edwin Grienauer. Adolph, his wife, two children, and his mother-in-law were deported by the Germans from Vienna, Austria, to Theresienstadt in 1942. His daughter, Trudy, was deported to Auschwitz in 1944. Trudy rejoined the family in the spring of 1945. They lived in Terezin until the International Red Cross took over administration of the camp from the Germans on May 2, 1945. The family then was transferred to Deggendorf displaced persons camp in Germany where they lived until their emigration to the United States in 1948.
    Date
    commemoration:  1914-1918
    Geography
    issue: Austria
    Credit Line
    United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Jeffrey A. Gordon
    Markings
    front, below eagle, embossed : FÜR ÖSTERRIECH [FOR AUSTRIA]
    back, center within wreath, embossed : 1914-1918
    back, near wreath, bottom border, embossed in very small type : GRIENAUER (?)
    Contributor
    Subject: Adolph Blau
    Artist: Edwin Grienauer
    Biography
    Adolph Blau was born in Vienna, Austria. During World War I (1914-1918), he served in the Austrian-Hungarian Army and was awarded the Iron Cross and the Silver Medal of Bravery. After the war, he received a license from the Austrian Government to sell tobacco, a trade reserved for veterans. In 1924, Adolph married Elsa Rosenthal at the Turkish Temple, a Sephardic synagogue. They were observant Jews and had two children, Gertrude, born March 14, 1925, and Herbert, born July 28, 1931.

    On March 12, 1938, German troops marched into Austria and annexed the country. Anti-Jewish legislation was soon enacted to exclude Jews from Austrian society. The November 1938 Kristallnacht [Night of Broken Glass] pogrom was particularly brutal in Austria. Thousands of Jews were arrested and deported to concentration camps. Adolph's status as a decorated, disabled war veteran gave the family some preotection and, with the help of friends, he was able to maintain his tobacco trade a while longer. In August 1942, the family, which included his mother-in-law, Fanny Rosenthal, was deported to Theresienstadt concentration camp in Czechoslovakia, avoiding Auschwitz possibly because of his veteran's status. The family was separated, as men and women were housed in different barracks. Elsa served as forced labor in a Messerschmitt airplane factory. Some elements of family life were maintained, as Herbert was Bar Mitzahed by Rabbi Leo Baeck in 1944. Soon afterwards, however, Gertrude was deported to Auschwitz.

    On May 2, 1945, the Germans transferred administration of the camp to the International Red Cross. Gertrude had located and rejoined them around this time. The family was sent to Deggendorf displaced persons camp in Germany, where Adolph served on the Jewish Committee and as a director of the ORT (Organization for Rehabilitation through Training) vocational school. In November 1947, with the assistance of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, Adolph and his family were permitted to immigrate to the United States. They eventually settled in Vineland, New Jersey, where Adolph died in 1958.

    Physical Details

    Language
    German
    Classification
    Military Insignia
    Category
    Medals
    Object Type
    Medals, German (lcsh)
    Physical Description
    Circular, bronze medal embossed on the front with an image of a dexter eagle displayed and elevated, perched on the flat edge of a shield, and the Austrian coat of arms, decorated with straight rows divided by a rectangular band. There is German text along the bottom border. It has a suspension ring attached on the top. The reverse has an embossed oak wreath enclosing dates and German text.
    Dimensions
    overall: Height: 1.625 inches (4.128 cm) | Width: 1.375 inches (3.493 cm) | Depth: 0.250 inches (0.635 cm)
    Materials
    overall : metal

    Rights & Restrictions

    Conditions on Access
    No restrictions on access
    Conditions on Use
    No restrictions on use

    Keywords & Subjects

    Administrative Notes

    Provenance
    The medal was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Jeffrey A. Gordon, the son of Gertrude Blau Gordon.
    Record last modified:
    2023-08-31 14:51:10
    This page:
    https:​/​/collections.ushmm.org​/search​/catalog​/irn523255

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