Memories of resistance: Ingrid Schaeffer-Rahtgens tells

Memories of resistance: Ingrid Schaeffer-Rahtgens tells

Ingrid Schaeffer-Rahtgens, 85 years old, is a woman with a moving life story she revealed in a conversation with Susanne Hengesbach in a Cologne café. On August 30, 1944, 81 years ago, her father, Carl Ernst Rahtgens, was executed in Berlin-Plötzensee. The reason for his death penalty was his active role in resistance to the Nazi regime, in particular his participation in the overthrow efforts of July 20, which planned an assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler. Ingrid had her father for only four years, but the memories of him are of great importance for her.

The connection to her father describes it as very narrow. Carl Ernst Rahtgens was not only a nephew of Feldmarschall Günther von Kluge, but also a man who had a deep Christian understanding of values. Ingrid remembers him as a "happy, Christian and funny people". Despite the grief for the loss, she also shaped her life by the commitment to classical music, where she organized the “Sounds of the City” concert series in Bergisch Gladbach. This proves that her father has an impact on her life beyond his early death.

the resistance and consequences

The tragedy started when the Gestapo conveyed the death sentence in September 1944 and at the same time issued a confiscation. From that moment on, Ingrid and her siblings were underhoving. It was a psychological burden accompanied by humiliations at school. Ingrid felt the Stigma to be the daughter of a "fatherland traitor", which also made growing up in Germany during the Nazi rule. She sees the "resistant" as an integral part of her life and regularly takes part in mental celebrations on July 20, who have become like a big family for her.

The biography of Carl Ernst Rahtgens

Carl Ernst Rahtgens was born on August 27, 1908 and had an impressive military career before his arrest. As an officer candidate, he entered a Potsdam infantry regiment in 1928. His military career led him through various stations until he finally served in 1942 as a lieutenant colonel in the leadership headquarters "Wolfsschanze" in East Prussia. There was a special friendship with Günther Smend, in which they discussed the current war situation. But the regime was not ready to tolerate dissenters. Rahtgens was sentenced to death on August 30, 1944, the day of his execution, after he had already been arrested by the Gestapo in Belgrade.

Ingrid reminds us of the importance of resistance to injustice and the people who were on the side of the civil courage in a time great dangers. She not only sees herself as the daughter of a resistance fighter, but as part of a continuous movement that counteracts the collective forgetting.

In a society that is often shaped by indifference, Ingrid demands awareness of the values that ultimately form the basis of our democracy. "If he doesn't live, I have to keep my fist up," she says - a strong appeal that Hengesbach also recorded in her interview.

The reports about Carl Ernst Rahtgens and the stories about the resistance invite us to think about civil courage and the memories of deceased resistance fighters and to draw attention to the dangers of forgetting - a reminder that is more than ever relevant.

Kölnische Rundschau , Memorial German Resistance , Federal Center for Political Education