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The Remarkable Resistance of Lilo

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Factual: History

BBC Radio 4 - The Remarkable Resistance of Lilo

Lilo and her husband Erich Gloeden hid Jews from the Nazis in wartime Berlin

Fergal Keane charts the lives of a respected middle class German couple whose half-Jewish identity left them perilously vulnerable in Nazi Germany.

In the heart of Hitler’s Nazi Germany, members of the Resistance worked tirelessly and at great risk to themselves to help those whose lives were threatened. Amongst them was Elisabeth Charlotte Gloeden – known as Liselotte or “Lilo” – who, along with her husband Erich, hid Jews in their home in Berlin, before arranging safe passage for them out of Germany. 

Both Lilo and Erich had Jewish fathers. Hers was a prominent skin specialist and he was hounded from his job by the Nazis. Lilo’s Jewish heritage led to her being driven from the legal profession at the outbreak of war in 1939. 

The couple’s efforts went undetected until 1944 when they took in General Fritz Lindemann, who was being hunted by the Gestapo for being part of the plot to assassinate Hitler. They stood trial in November 1944 before one of Germany’s most feared judges, Roland Freisler.

This programme tells the remarkable story of the couple and of others who hid and were hidden in Nazi Berlin.

Presenter: Fergal Keane
Producer; Alice Doyard
Editor: Andrew Smith

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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