Christabel Bielenberg
Encyclopedia
Christabel Bielenberg was a British
writer who was married to a German
lawyer, Peter Bielenberg. She described her experiences living in Germany during the Second World War in two books: The Past is Myself (1968) and The Road Ahead. She was educated at St Margaret's School
, Bushey
, Hertfordshire
.
to Anglo-Irish
parents. Her mother, also named Christabel (née Harmsworth), was the sister of Lords Northcliffe
, Harmsworth
and Rothermere
. Christabel Mary won a scholarship to Oxford
but decided to study music in Germany. While there she met Peter Bielenberg (1911–2001), two years her junior, who was studying law with a view of joining his father's practice in Hamburg
.
They married in 1934 and she took German citizenship, which required her to relinquish her British citizenship. The Bielenbergs lived initially in Hamburg
, then moved to Berlin
and had three sons, Nicholas, Christopher and John. The heavy Allied bombing raids led Mrs Bielenberg and her children to leave the city, and they eventually settled in the village of Rohrbach
in the Black Forest
.
Both Christabel and Peter Bielenberg were opposed to Nazism
and following Hitler's rise to power in 1933, participated in anti-Nazi activity. Peter Bielenberg was a close friend of Adam von Trott zu Solz
, who was involved in the von Stauffenberg bomb plot against Adolf Hitler
of 1944, and as a result of his suspect political views and this close association was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned in Ravensbrück concentration camp
following its failure.
In an effort to secure his release, Christabel Bielenberg asked to be interviewed by the Gestapo
in order to convince them of her and her husband's political naivety and innocence. She was successful and he was released to a punishment unit but mistakenly allowed leave before joining it. He managed to slip away and remained in hiding near his family until the fighting ended.
After the war, she returned to the UK with her children, visiting Germany as a war correspondent. In 1948, the family settled in Tullow
, County Carlow, Ireland, buying a dilapidated farm called "Munny House", which they transformed into a commercial success. As well as writing her autobiography she became involved with the Irish Peace Marches of the 1970s and lectured in Germany. She was made a Commander of the German Federal Order of Merit and was also awarded a Gold Medal of Merit by the European Parliament
.
. Elizabeth Hurley
starred in the title role. Christabel's experience of attempting to shelter Jews hiding from persecution was described by her in the television series The World at War in 1974.
for a portrait in clay. The correspondence file relating to the Bielenberg bust is held in the archive of the Henry Moore Foundation
's Henry Moore Institute in Leeds
and the terracotta remains in the collection of the artist.
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer who was married to a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
lawyer, Peter Bielenberg. She described her experiences living in Germany during the Second World War in two books: The Past is Myself (1968) and The Road Ahead. She was educated at St Margaret's School
St Margaret's School, Bushey
St Margaret's School is an independent boarding and day school for girls aged 4–18 in Bushey, Hertfordshire.As well as day places for all age groups the school offers a range of flexible boarding options for both UK and international pupils from year 7 and is situated in of countryside...
, Bushey
Bushey
Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. Bushey Heath is situated to the south east of Bushey on the boundary with the London Borough of Harrow.-History:...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
.
Biography
Christabel Mary Burton was born in HertfordshireHertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
to Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used primarily in the 19th and early 20th centuries to identify a privileged social class in Ireland, whose members were the descendants and successors of the Protestant Ascendancy, mostly belonging to the Church of Ireland, which was the established church of Ireland until...
parents. Her mother, also named Christabel (née Harmsworth), was the sister of Lords Northcliffe
Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe
Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe rose from childhood poverty to become a powerful British newspaper and publishing magnate, famed for buying stolid, unprofitable newspapers and transforming them to make them lively and entertaining for the mass market.His company...
, Harmsworth
Cecil Bisshopp Harmsworth, 1st Baron Harmsworth
Cecil Bisshopp Harmsworth, 1st Baron Harmsworth , was a British businessman and Liberal politician. He served as Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department in 1915 and as Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs between 1919 and 1922.-Background:Harmsworth was born at Alexandra Terrace,...
and Rothermere
Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere
Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere was a highly successful British newspaper proprietor, owner of Associated Newspapers Ltd. He is known in particular, with his brother Alfred Harmsworth, the later Viscount Northcliffe, for the development of the London Daily Mail and Daily Mirror....
. Christabel Mary won a scholarship to Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
but decided to study music in Germany. While there she met Peter Bielenberg (1911–2001), two years her junior, who was studying law with a view of joining his father's practice in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
.
They married in 1934 and she took German citizenship, which required her to relinquish her British citizenship. The Bielenbergs lived initially in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, then moved to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and had three sons, Nicholas, Christopher and John. The heavy Allied bombing raids led Mrs Bielenberg and her children to leave the city, and they eventually settled in the village of Rohrbach
Rohrbach
Rohrbach can refer to:* Heidelberg-Rohrbach, a district of the city of Heidelberg in Germany* Rohrbach, Switzerland, in the canton of Bern*municipalities in Germany:**Rohrbach, Bavaria, in the district of Pfaffenhofen, Bavaria...
in the Black Forest
Black Forest
The Black Forest is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres ....
.
Both Christabel and Peter Bielenberg were opposed to Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
and following Hitler's rise to power in 1933, participated in anti-Nazi activity. Peter Bielenberg was a close friend of Adam von Trott zu Solz
Adam von Trott zu Solz
Adam von Trott zu Solz was a German lawyer and diplomat who was involved in the conservative opposition to the Nazi regime, and who played a central part in the 20 July Plot...
, who was involved in the von Stauffenberg bomb plot against Adolf Hitler
July 20 Plot
On 20 July 1944, an attempt was made to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of the Third Reich, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia. The plot was the culmination of the efforts of several groups in the German Resistance to overthrow the Nazi-led German government...
of 1944, and as a result of his suspect political views and this close association was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned in Ravensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück was a notorious women's concentration camp during World War II, located in northern Germany, 90 km north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück ....
following its failure.
In an effort to secure his release, Christabel Bielenberg asked to be interviewed by the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
in order to convince them of her and her husband's political naivety and innocence. She was successful and he was released to a punishment unit but mistakenly allowed leave before joining it. He managed to slip away and remained in hiding near his family until the fighting ended.
After the war, she returned to the UK with her children, visiting Germany as a war correspondent. In 1948, the family settled in Tullow
Tullow
Tullow is a town in County Carlow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney where the N81 road intersects with the R762.-History:There is a statue of Father John Murphy, one of the leaders of the 1798 Rebellion, who was captured near Tullow and executed in the Market Square on 2 July...
, County Carlow, Ireland, buying a dilapidated farm called "Munny House", which they transformed into a commercial success. As well as writing her autobiography she became involved with the Irish Peace Marches of the 1970s and lectured in Germany. She was made a Commander of the German Federal Order of Merit and was also awarded a Gold Medal of Merit by the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
.
Legacy
Her experiences in World War II were made into the BBC television drama serial Christabel (1988) adapted by Dennis PotterDennis Potter
Dennis Christopher George Potter was an English dramatist, best known for The Singing Detective. His widely acclaimed television dramas mixed fantasy and reality, the personal and the social. He was particularly fond of using themes and images from popular culture.-Biography:Dennis Potter was born...
. Elizabeth Hurley
Elizabeth Hurley
Elizabeth Jane Hurley is an English model and actress who became known as a girlfriend of Hugh Grant in the 1990s. In 1994, as Grant became the focus of worldwide media attention due to the global box office success of his film Four Weddings and a Funeral, Hurley accompanied him to the film's Los...
starred in the title role. Christabel's experience of attempting to shelter Jews hiding from persecution was described by her in the television series The World at War in 1974.
Portrait bust
Christabel Bielenberg sat for sculptor Alan ThornhillAlan Thornhill
Alan Thornhill is a British artist and sculptor whose long association with clay developed from pottery into sculpture. His evolved methods of working enabled the dispensing of the sculptural armature to allow improvisation, whilst his portraiture challenges notions of normality through rigorous...
for a portrait in clay. The correspondence file relating to the Bielenberg bust is held in the archive of the Henry Moore Foundation
Henry Moore Foundation
The Henry Moore Foundation is a registered charity in England, established for education and promotion of the fine arts — in particular, to advance understanding of the works of Henry Moore. The charity was set up with a gift from the artist in 1977...
's Henry Moore Institute in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
and the terracotta remains in the collection of the artist.
Family
She had three sons, Nicholas, John and Christopher. Nick's son Andy is a historian at University College Cork; Kim works as a journalist in Dublin. Nicholas's wife was Charlotte, daughter of Fritz-Dietlof von der SchulenburgFritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg
Fritz-Dietlof Graf von der Schulenburg-Tressow was a German government official and a member of the German Resistance in the July 20 Plot against Adolf Hitler.-Personal development:...
.
External links
- BBC interview broadcast 4 November 2003 with Christabel Bielenberg and with Elke Atcherley, daughter of the Bielenbergs' neighbour Carl LangbehnCarl LangbehnCarl Langbehn was a German lawyer and member of the resistance to Nazism.He was born in Padang, Sumatra. During the Weimar Republic he was a members of the German People's Party. In 1933 he joined the Nazi Party, but during the 1930s he began to grow increasingly critical of the regime...
, who was executed following the plotJuly 20 PlotOn 20 July 1944, an attempt was made to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of the Third Reich, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia. The plot was the culmination of the efforts of several groups in the German Resistance to overthrow the Nazi-led German government...
to kill Hitler.