Annie's Diary's file / תיק – יומנה של אני: קולות מריגה הכבושה

The sources present the fascinating story of I am Hazelson., a Jewish girl from Riga who wrote a personal diary in German between 1934 and 1939. The writings reveal A young and sensitive soul which documents her coming of age alongside the rise of Nazism and the grave fear for the future of European Jewry. Through the diary excerpts, accompanied by photographs and articles from the "Jerusalem Post" newspaper, the Her identity was only revealed in retrospect. After the diary arrived at Yad Vashem. The texts describe the Her literary aspirations, her strong attachment to Zionism and her complex feelings towards her family and social environment. These documents serve as A moving historical testimony The life of a girl who apparently perished in the Holocaust, but whose voice remains alive in her handwriting.

The documents before us reveal the moving and tragic story of I am the Jackalson (initially known as "I X"), a Jewish girl from Riga who documented her life and the turbulent political events of the 1930s in her diary (H22-4f, H22-5f).

The sources and their context

The sources include excerpts from Ani's diary (including handwritten pages in German and Hebrew) and articles from the Jerusalem Post newspaper from 1986 (H22-2f, H22-4f). The diary was written between 1934 and 1939, from when Ani was 11 to 16 (H22-4f, H22-10). It was found in Riga by a German soldier in 1941, sent to Berlin for safekeeping, and eventually ended up at Yad Vashem (H22-5f, H22-6). The identity of the writer was only revealed following the publication of the articles in the newspaper, when she was identified as a daughter of the Haskelson family (H22-10).

Major events

• The rise of Nazism and political changes: In her diary, I describe the fear that gripped me with the death of President Hindenburg and the appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor (H22-3f, H22-4f). She mentions events such as the assassination of Austrian Chancellor Dollfuss in 1934 and the Italian invasion of Ethiopia (H22-3f, H22-8).
• Zionism and the connection to the Land of Israel: The diary is filled with musings on the Zionist movement and the desire to immigrate to the Land of Israel (H22-2f, H22-5f). I mention the events of the Arab revolt in 1936 and express concern for the fate of the Jewish settlement (H22-2f, H22-9).
• Life in Riga under occupation: Later sources describe the fate of Riga's Jews. On July 1, 1941, the city was occupied by the Germans, and mass murders by the SS and Einsatzgruppen began, mainly in the Rumbola Forest (H22-10).

Central places

• Riga, Latvia: Ani's place of residence and the scene of the events described in the diary (H22-4f, H22-10).
• Land of Israel (Palestine): The destination she aspired to reach, a place that occupied a central place in her dreams and writing (H22-2f, H22-9).
• Rombola Forest: The place where most of the Jews of the Riga ghetto were murdered, and where Ani apparently found her death (H22-10).

Key figures

Jewish victims and figures

• Anni Hazkelson: The diary writer. Described as a gifted, lonely, and dreamy girl, who was murdered in the Holocaust (H22-5f, H22-10).
• Ilya Haskelson: Ani's father, owner of a brass manufacturing business (H22-10).
• Maria Haskelson: Ani's mother, an English teacher (H22-10).
• Lucy: Ani's little sister, mentioned frequently in the diary (H22-4f, H22-10).
• Itta Fuhr-Albin and Edith Tanklowitz-Lewin: Ani's classmates who survived and provided testimony about her character (H22-10).
• Sophie Heller: A relative of mine who lives in Tel Aviv and helped identify her (H22-10).
• Theodor Herzl: A role model for Ani, about whom she wrote extensively in her diary, criticizing the fate of his children (H22-2f, H22-3f).

Nazis and hostile figures

• Adolf Hitler: Mentioned in the diary as a terrifying figure upon his rise to power (H22-4f).
• The SS and the Einsatzgruppen: The units responsible for the murder of the Jews of Riga and the liquidation of the ghetto (H22-10).

List of sources

• H22-2-3f : Photographs of handwritten diary pages dealing with Theodor Herzl and the fate of his children.
• H22-2f : An article in Hebrew titled "My Diary" presenting the writer's story of discovery.
• H22-3f : Hebrew translation of selected passages from the diary describing personal and political events.
• H22-4-1f : A page from the Jerusalem Post that includes the beginning of the translation of the diary into English and a discussion of its importance.
• H22-4-5f : Translated diary excerpts dealing with political issues, Zionism, and concerns about the future.
• H22-4f : The cover story in the Jerusalem Post from November 1986 that first introduced "The Diary of Me X."
• H22-5f : A follow-up article revealing Ani's last name and details about the fate of her relatives.

 

– H22-1f

– H22-2f

– H22-2-1f

– H22-2-3f

– H22-3f

– H22-4f

– H22-4-1f

– H22-4-5f

– H22-5f

** end of Annie's Diary files **

**Press to go back to Holocaust Table**