The scandal caused outrage: The urn of neo-Nazi Henry Hafenmayer (1974 – 2021) was buried in the grave of the Jewish musicologist Max Friedlaender (1852 – 1934). The Church draws conclusions.
By Steffen Bosse
For the burial of the Holocaust denier in the Südwestkirchhof Stahnsdorf (Potsdam-Mittelmark), Friedlaender’s gravestone was covered with a cloth.
The Evangelical Church Berlin-Brandenburg-Schlesische Oberlausitz (EKBO) has now intensified the examination procedure for the allocation of grave sites. In other words, you want to take a closer look at the reallocation of expired grave sites and at grave sponsorships.
Cemetery administrator Olaf Ihlefeldt: “If someone now says, ‘I like this place with the old tombstone’, then that now needs a lead time.” Possibly sensitive cases would be examined by historians. When in doubt, external experts should also be consulted.
In the case of Friedlaender, the damage is done. The musicologist had converted and was listed as a Protestant in the burial register. Berlin’s anti-Semitism officer, Samuel Salzborn (44), filed a complaint against an unknown person – among other things, on suspicion of disturbing the peace of the dead.
According to the Brandenburg Public Prosecutor’s Office, no preliminary investigation was initiated. An examination revealed that neither the cemetery administration nor the neo-Nazis knew about Friedlaender’s background. There were no indications of a deliberate provocation.
Also read about this
► That’s why the grave was released for the burial of the neo-Nazi
► Neo-Nazi buried in grave of Jewish musicologist
Unbelievable: The former Berlin NPD chief and anti-Semite Uwe Meenen (57) had previously selected the grave site.
The EKBO tries to make amends. The tombstone was moved in November. An information board is to be added to the new memorial in May.
In addition, there will be an event in the fall “that will honor Max Friedlaender’s important achievements as a musicologist in detail,” according to a spokeswoman.
who was max Friedlaender?
Born in 1852 in Brieg, Silesia, Max Friedlaender studied singing and from 1818 turned to historical studies in Berlin. Friedlaender received his doctorate and habilitated as a private lecturer in music at the University of Berlin. In 1888 he married Alice Politzer in Vienna. In 1911 Friedlaender went to the USA as a guest lecturer and received an honorary doctorate from Harvard University. In 1934 he died in Berlin. His son Franz Heinrich Adam Gerhard Friedlaender (1896 – 1989) worked as an actor under the name Franz Röhn.
