Heinrich Preuss

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Heinrich Preuß (also: Preuss ; born May 23, 1886 in Mauenfelde (later Russian Ключи / Kljutschi), Gerdauen district , East Prussia ; † August 28, 1944 in Brandenburg-Görden ) was a German politician ( KPD ), trade unionist and resistance fighter against the National Socialism .

Life

Memorial plaque on the house at Stargarder Straße 13, in Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg

Preuss had been unionized since his apprenticeship as a baker and became a member of the SPD before the First World War . He joined the KPD in East Prussia shortly after it was founded and worked for it as a functionary in his home town until he moved to Berlin . In the capital, he worked in the Wittler bread factory in Wedding and was a member of its works council for a while . However, after a major strike in June 1928, he was fired from the factory. Preuss then took on leading positions in the German Association of Food and Beverage Workers (Denag).

After the " seizure of power " by the National Socialists and the ban on trade unions in 1933, he illegally continued his work among the trade unionists. In May 1935, he was therefore arrested and to four years in prison convicted. After his release from Luckau prison , he continued his resistance work. He was one of the leading functionaries in the KPD resistance group led by Robert Uhrig and maintained contact with illegal company groups. In February 1942, the Gestapo arrested him again. He was sentenced on July 7, 1944 death, and on August 28 with his closest comrades Rietze Wilhelm by the guillotine executed.

Honors

Preuss lived at Stargarder Strasse 13 in Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg . There has been a memorial plaque there since 1950. A street in the same district has been named after him since 1952.

literature

  • Luise Kraushaar : German resistance fighters 1933-1945. Biographies and letters . Volume 2. Dietz, Berlin 1970, pp. 537f.
  • Hans-Joachim Fieber et al. (Ed.): Resistance in Berlin against the Nazi regime 1933 to 1945. A biographical lexicon . Volume 6. Trafo Verlag, Berlin 2005, p. 82.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Preuss, Heinrich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Preuss, Heinrich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German politicians (SPD, KPD), trade unionists and resistance fighters against National Socialism
DATE OF BIRTH May 23, 1886
PLACE OF BIRTH Mauenfelde, Gerdauen district, East Prussia
DATE OF DEATH August 28, 1944
Place of death Brandenburg on the Havel