Walter Frankenstein, Holocaust Survivor and U-boat, Dies at 100

Walter Frankenstein, who survived the Holocaust by hiding in Berlin over two years, passed away in Stockholm at 100. His life story highlights the immense danger faced by Jewish citizens during WWII and the extraordinary resilience required to evade the Nazis.

Walter Frankenstein, living testament to the resilience of humanity during the Holocaust, has passed away at the age of 100 in Stockholm. He was part of a group of Jewish families categorically classified as "U-boats," evading Nazi capture while taking refuge in bombed-out environments across Berlin for over two years. U-boats was a term used for Jews who sought to escape detection, metaphorically hiding like submarines amid a sea of danger.

In one particularly harrowing incident in 1944, while he and his family were hiding in a vacant building, Frankenstein found himself on a train when military police demanded to see identification. In an interview, he recounted how he cleverly fabricated a story about being a forced laborer. When the officer considered calling his employer, Frankenstein, knowing the peril he faced, admitted to being Jewish. Surprisingly, the officer spared him, preferring to seek out deserters instead.

Richard N. Lutjens Jr., a historian specializing in modern German history, noted that U-boats like Frankenstein frequently had to change locations—sometimes a dozen times due to relentless air raids and the lurking danger of neighbors reporting them. Of the estimated 6,500 Jews who attempted to blend in while evading the Nazis in Berlin, approximately 1,700 survived the war.

Frankenstein had relocated to Stockholm in 1956, ultimately living a full century. His passing marks not just the end of a life but also a poignant reminder of the extraordinary courage shown by those who endured the horrific conditions of the Holocaust and the battles fought for survival in the darkest of times.