HISTORY


A lifelong battle for


peace But why were the Heymanns pardoned?


Rolf’s father, Philipp, was a war hero who had been awarded the Iron Cross (2nd class) aged 19 for saving a comrade’s life during the Battle of Ypres in 1914. As the Nazis came to desecrate the Jewish community at Kerpen, Rolf’s neighbour, a farrier, spoke of Philipp’s patriotism and gallantry. He’d passed away the year before Kristallnacht, but his heroism saved his son and wife who would shortly go on to start new lives here in Sheffield.


“My father’s bravery is why I’m here talking to you,” Rolf tells us as we meet at the now 92-year-old at his Bolsterstone home. Defying his years, Rolf is sprightly and sharp, speaking so eloquently about the life he has led. Never has a story


Most children on the eve of their 10th birthdays would be going to bed with excitement in their tummies, dreaming of opening presents, eating jelly and ice cream, and celebrating with classmates.


But the night before Rolf Heymann’s 10th birthday was the stuff of nightmares. He and his family spent the night locked in their cellar, fearing for their heads as axes came through each shutter on the house and screams echoed around their small German village. The next morning, all of Rolf’s schoolmates were gone, never to be seen again. That night was 10th November 1938, Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, which started the Holocaust. Rolf and his mother Herta were a Jewish family living in Kerpen, outside of Cologne, when the Nazis massacred their village. Out of 133 Jewish residents, only six lives were spared – Rolf, his mother and aunt being three of them. The others were killed or sent to concentration camps.


“Rolf’s father,


andfreedom Herta, Rolf and Philipp


taken so many fascinating twists and turns, with lots of hilarious anecdotes thrown in for good luck.


Rolf was born on 11th November 1928 – Armistice Day – into a wealthy German family who bred around 450 horses a year, mainly for the German army’s cavalry and haulage needs. In the 1920s, the family was worth around £160,000, so multi- millionaires in today’s money.


Rolf


Philipp, was a war hero who had been awarded the Iron Cross (2nd class) aged 19 for saving a comrade’s life during the Battle of Ypres in 1914.


” Rolf with parents and grandparents 52 aroundtownmagazine.co.uk


Philipp was still a teenager when he joined the German army in the First World War, where he was posted to Belgium to fight the British on the Western Front. Following a sustained attack from the Allies, a fellow German soldier had his legs blown off, with Philipp applying a tourniquet to stop him bleeding to death. For this single act of bravery he received the Iron Cross.


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