Roman Erich Petsche
Encyclopedia
Roman Erich Petsche was an Austrian teacher, school attendant and painter. He was awarded Righteous among the Nations
, by the memorial site Yad Vashem
.
He was raised in Gottschee, a German linguistic enclave in Slovenia
, as the son of a German speaking teacher and a Galizian aristocracy originated mother, whom he later described as a “nationality aware Pole”. In 1919 the family moved to Salzburg
, where, after the flight from Gottschee, which was now part of the Serbian
, Croatian
and Slovenian
kingdom, his father found work in teacher education in Salzburg. After finishing school in 1925 Petsche studied in Vienna. From 1929 on he worked as a teacher, at first in Salzburg, from 1931 to 1933 in Ried im Innkreis and from 1933 on in St. Pölten.
In 1944 Petsche was an officer of the Wehrmacht
in the city of Novi Sad
where he was accommodated by the Jewish family Csarneyi. The Jewish attorney Dr. Tibor, his wife Vera and their five year old twin daughters also lived in the same house.
On March 25th 1944, 4000 Jews were supposed to be deported to Auschwitz concentration camp. Roman Erich Petsche decided to save the two underage daughters of Dr. Tibor and travelled with the children and a housemaid to Budapest
to an aunt of the children. Petsche passed the housemaid as his wife and the children as his own. That very same night Roman Erich Petsche travelled back to Novi Sad to help Dr. Tibor and his family members to get train tickets, so they could leave Novi Sad. The ill grandmother of the Tibors stayed back in Novi Sad. Petsche took her to a hospital and took care for her until she died. Nevertheless Vera Tibor, her daughters and their aunt were arrested and deported to Auschwitz. The Aunt and the children survived and settled down in Israel after the war.
After World War II, Petsche worked in Linz as a teaching instructor from 1945-1950, then from 1950 on for the school supervisory board, and among other things as inspector for art education for several states. He retired in 1972 and moved back to Ried im Innkreis. Besides his career he kept active as a painter, although he never offered his paintings on the art market. He preferred figurative motives, which, with age, he almost exclusively created in a headstrong collage technique made out of colourful chalk drawings and light prints, that he called Lumigraphie. Museums in Ried and Graz, amongst others, still show his art.
By 1983 Petsche who was by then court counsellor (Hofrat), was awarded Righteous among the Nations by the Israelian memorial site Yad Vashem for the rescue of the family Tibor. As reasons for his actions Petsche stated “the self-evident human command, to help others in need”. He was also aware of his mother’s family destiny, who lost several family members in concentration camp.
In 2002 at the 11th Braunauer Zeitgeschichte-Tage
his paintings were shown in combination with the theme civil courage and resistance
in dictatorships in Kultur im Grugg.
Righteous Among the Nations
Righteous among the Nations of the world's nations"), also translated as Righteous Gentiles is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis....
, by the memorial site Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem is Israel's official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953 through the Yad Vashem Law passed by the Knesset, Israel's parliament....
.
He was raised in Gottschee, a German linguistic enclave in Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, as the son of a German speaking teacher and a Galizian aristocracy originated mother, whom he later described as a “nationality aware Pole”. In 1919 the family moved to Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, where, after the flight from Gottschee, which was now part of the Serbian
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Croatian
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
and Slovenian
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
kingdom, his father found work in teacher education in Salzburg. After finishing school in 1925 Petsche studied in Vienna. From 1929 on he worked as a teacher, at first in Salzburg, from 1931 to 1933 in Ried im Innkreis and from 1933 on in St. Pölten.
In 1944 Petsche was an officer of the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
in the city of Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
where he was accommodated by the Jewish family Csarneyi. The Jewish attorney Dr. Tibor, his wife Vera and their five year old twin daughters also lived in the same house.
On March 25th 1944, 4000 Jews were supposed to be deported to Auschwitz concentration camp. Roman Erich Petsche decided to save the two underage daughters of Dr. Tibor and travelled with the children and a housemaid to Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
to an aunt of the children. Petsche passed the housemaid as his wife and the children as his own. That very same night Roman Erich Petsche travelled back to Novi Sad to help Dr. Tibor and his family members to get train tickets, so they could leave Novi Sad. The ill grandmother of the Tibors stayed back in Novi Sad. Petsche took her to a hospital and took care for her until she died. Nevertheless Vera Tibor, her daughters and their aunt were arrested and deported to Auschwitz. The Aunt and the children survived and settled down in Israel after the war.
After World War II, Petsche worked in Linz as a teaching instructor from 1945-1950, then from 1950 on for the school supervisory board, and among other things as inspector for art education for several states. He retired in 1972 and moved back to Ried im Innkreis. Besides his career he kept active as a painter, although he never offered his paintings on the art market. He preferred figurative motives, which, with age, he almost exclusively created in a headstrong collage technique made out of colourful chalk drawings and light prints, that he called Lumigraphie. Museums in Ried and Graz, amongst others, still show his art.
By 1983 Petsche who was by then court counsellor (Hofrat), was awarded Righteous among the Nations by the Israelian memorial site Yad Vashem for the rescue of the family Tibor. As reasons for his actions Petsche stated “the self-evident human command, to help others in need”. He was also aware of his mother’s family destiny, who lost several family members in concentration camp.
In 2002 at the 11th Braunauer Zeitgeschichte-Tage
Braunauer Zeitgeschichte-Tage
The Braunau Contemporary History Days are a series of conferences organised by the association for contemporary history. Scientifically guided by Andreas Maislinger, it has annually taken place in Braunau am Inn since 1992.- History :...
his paintings were shown in combination with the theme civil courage and resistance
Resistance movement
A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance or the use of armed force...
in dictatorships in Kultur im Grugg.