Hedwig Wachenheim was a politician and historian.

 

She came from an upper middle-class Jewish family in Mannheim that could trace its roots back to the 18th century. Her father died when she was seven. When she decided to become a welfare worker, which went against the norms of her social status, it caused a rift between her and her mother.

 

Wachenheim went to study at the Alice Salomon University in Berlin in 1912, after which she returned to Mannheim as a welfare worker, before holding various administrative and political positions in Berlin, including the National Women's Service. She also joined the SPD. In 1919, she co-founded the social welfare organisation Arbeiterwohlfahrt (AWO) and acted as a member of its committee, editor of its journal, and director of its school.

In 1928 she was elected to join the Prussian state parliament, but lost her mandate and position when the Nazis came to power. She had her home searched and was required to report to the police every day. Wachenheim fled to France, then to England, and then to the US in 1935, where she also became a citizen. She returned to Germany after the war and worked in various US offices in Stuttgart and Frankfurt, before going to the University of California to research the German labour movement of 1844-1914.

 

Wachenheim died on a visit back to Germany. She is buried at the Jewish cemetery in Mannheim.

 

Sources:

Hedwig-Wachenheim-Gesellschaft

Wikipedia (1, 2)