Hennen, Léon

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Description de l'interview extraite du site US Fortunoff / Biographie à venir

Leon Hennen was born in Verviers, Belgium in 1918. He recalls the family's bakery; military service in 1940; deserting rather than surrendering; returning home; joining the Resistance; an encounter with collaborators; blowing up electrical lines; arrest on May 22, 1942; four months solitary confinement in the Citadelle de Liège; transfer to Bochum; forced factory labor; sabotaging the work; praying with other prisoners; transfer with other French and Belgian "Nacht und Nebel" prisoners to Esterwegen after four months; a friend sharing bread with him when he was sick; organized exercise and discussion groups; a failed escape attempt; transfer to Börgermoor, then Untermassfeld; liberation by United States troops; repatriation; reunion with his family; living with his sister in Ostend; and benefits as a former prisoner. Mr. H. notes his optimism in camps; not learning about the Jewish Holocaust until after liberation; and not sharing his experience until recently.

(Copyright : Fortunoff Video Archives for Holocaust Testimonies – Yale)

Ressources

Fiche interview

Code interview : YA/FA/079
Date interview : 21/06/1995
Lieu interview : Centre Audiovisuel de l’Université Libre de Bruxelles
Durée interview : 5h06
Langue interview : Français
Interviewers : Michel Rosenfeldt et Frédéric Fichefet
Cameraman : Dimitri Gilis
Consultation : Autorisée
Indexation thématique : non
Séquençage interview : non