Heinz Geiringer was a young Austrian Jewish refugee who tragically perished in the Holocaust. Born on July 12, 1926, in Vienna, he was the son of Erich and Elfriede (Fritzi) Geiringer.
Following the Anschluss in 1938, when German troops marched into Austria to cheering crowds waving Nazi flags, life for Jewish Austrians grew increasingly grim. As borders across Europe closed to refugees, the Geiringer family rushed to make their escape. Erich secured work in the Netherlands. Thirteen-year-old Heinz was sent ahead on his own after suffering a brutal beating at school. His younger sister, Eva, and their mother, Fritzi, followed soon after, selling what possessions they could before leaving.
The family reunited in Amsterdam in February 1940, where they settled into a new sense of normalcy at Merwedeplein 46-I, just across from the home of Anne Frank’s family. In the Netherlands, Heinz flourished. A gifted linguist, he also excelled in music, receiving piano lessons once again. His natural talent allowed him to master Chopin, play jazz by ear, and even take up the guitar. Alongside his musical abilities, he also displayed remarkable skill in painting and drawing, further showcasing his artistic gifts.
After the German invasion in May 1940, the family tried in vain to flee to England. In July 1942, Heinz received a call to report for employment in Germany which resulted in family’s going into hiding in separate locations to avoid deportation to concentration camps. They remained hidden for two years, moving between various safe houses. While in hiding Heinz continued his painting and also wrote poetry in German and Dutch. His numerous paintings and writings reflect his dreams, talents, and emotions.
On May 16, 1944, the Geiringer family was betrayed, captured by the Gestapo and sent to Westerbork. Three days later they were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Heinz was separated from Fritzi and Eva, and was placed in the men's section of the camp with his father, Erich. As the Soviet Red Army advanced, the Nazis began the camp evacuation, forcing prisoners on brutal death marches. On January 18, 1945, Heinz and his father were moved to Ebensee, a subcamp of Mauthausen concentration camp in southern Austria. Tragically, both Heinz and his father died shortly before the camp was liberated in May 1945. Heinz was only 18 years old at the time of his death. Heinz Geiringer’s story, while not as widely known as Anne Frank’s, is equally poignant and tragic.
After the war, his sister, Eva Schloss (née Geiringer), has worked extensively to share her family's story and preserve the memory of her brother through her writings and public talks on Holocaust education and the documentary Eva’s Promise. Some of Heinz's surviving artworks and writings offer a poignant glimpse into the resilience and humanity of a teenager facing unimaginable suffering.
