My Dear Ones: one family and the Final Solution
JONATHAN WITTENBERG

After attending the funeral in Jerusalem of one of his aunts, Jonathan Wittenberg, rabbi of the New North London Synagogue, volunteered to help clear out her flat. A linen bag of letters came to light in an old suitcase, prompting an intense investigation into the lives of ancestors whom Wittenberg – brought up in England – had heard of but had never known. His skilful and moving recreation of his family history has compensated to some extent for a deep regret at never having questioned his father about his experiences while he was still alive.

For several generations, Wittenberg’s paternal ancestors had been prominent members of the German Jewish community; his great-grandfather and two great-great grandfathers had been well respected rabbis. It was, of course, the advent of Hitler and the Nazi regime that changed everything.