Johanna "Hanna" Kirchner (née Johanna Stunz; 24 April 1889 – 9 June 1944) was a German opponent of the Nazi régime.
Johanna Stunz came from a social-democratic family from Frankfurt, Hesse-Nassau. Her grandfather was one of Frankfurt's first social-democratic aldermen. At 14, she joined the Socialist Worker Youth, and at 18 became a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands – SPD). She worked avidly in the women's movement. In Frankfurt, she became friends with Eleonore Wolf, whose life was taking a similar path.
During the First World War, Kirchner, now a mother of two daughters, busied herself in communal welfare, dedicating herself to needy women's and children's welfare. After that, she worked in the Workers' Welfare organization (Arbeiterwohlfahrt; AWO), which she founded together with Marie Juchacz in 1919. Her special concern here was children who were underfed as a result of the war and the widespread inflation that struck Germany later. Many of these children suffered from damaged health and stunted growth. They had had their childhood taken away from them by events over which they had no control. Kirchner took many of these children to Switzerland for their health. During the Ruhrkampf, a brief civil war in Germany in 1920, Kirchner helped evacuate thousands of children from the Ruhr district, sending them to stay with families in Hesse.
In 1933, Adolf Hitler came to power, and the dedicated anti-fascist had to go underground, as her help in freeing an anti-Nazi from the Gestapo became known, leading to the danger of her possible arrest. She fled, without her family, to Saarbrücken, which was then still under League of Nations administration. There she worked at kitchen jobs and as a waitress, also caring for German émigrés through, among other means, the Persecuted Anti-Fascists' Aid Committee .
When the Second World War broke out in 1939, Kirchner fled to Forbach, Metz (both in Alsace-Lorraine, France), and then finally Paris. Even while abroad, she helped the resistance movement in Germany: she led the Saar Refugees' Committee (Saarflüchtlingskommitee), drew up plans and reports for the SPD's executive in exile, and produced and distributed illegal leaflets.
Even though Kirchner belonged to the SPD and Eleonore Wolf did illegal work for the Communist Party of Germany (KPD), they worked quite closely together in the Saar region as they organized the emigration of many officials of the workers' movement out of the Reich. . From this they also published, under Wolfgang Abendroth's editorship "die Einheit der Arbeiterbewegung in der antifaschistischen Arbeit" (The Unity of the Workers' Movement in Anti-Fascist Work).
In 1942, Kirchner was arrested by the Vichy Régime and handed over to the Gestapo. She was sentenced to ten years' hard labour ("Zuchthaus") for treason, the first year of which she spent in a prison in Cottbus, which she shared with several female members of the Red Orchestra resistance group, whose goal was to hasten the Nazi régime's collapse. These women's solidarity greatly helped Kirchner overcome the ordeal of being thrown in prison. However, Kirchner's case was brought back before the Volksgerichtshof in 1944. This time, Roland Freisler, the Chief Justice at the Volksgerichtshof, sentenced her to death, and she was beheaded at Plötzensee Prison in Berlin. The judgment accused Kirchner of having "treasonably rooted herself in the evilest Marxist high-treason propaganda". It also accused her of "treasonably gathering cultural, economic, political, and military intelligence and communicating" the same.
"Keep Goethe's words in mind," wrote Kirchner in a letter to her children on the day of her death, "'Die and become'. Don't cry for me. I believe in a better future for you."
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Some of their strengths
Johanna Kirchner has many admirable traits.
Based on spiritual traditions from around the world, they are someone who can be described as Artistic, Optimistic, Strong, Trustworthy, Perseverent, Idealistic, and Independent.
Strong and Diligent
According to Mysticism’s Astrology tradition, Johanna Kirchner is someone who is a strong, diligent, and trustworthy person who approaches life with honesty and perseverance, but who is also physical, sensual, and artistic. A person who sees life as a journey not a destination.
Constant and Serious
Based on Daoism’s Ba-Zi or ‘Chinese Zodiac’ tradition, people who know Johanna Kirchner well know them as someone who can be determined, unmoving, and firm, like a rock or a high mountain.
Independent and Organized
According to Hinduism’s Jyotisha or ‘Vedic Astrology’ tradition, many would also describe Johanna Kirchner as someone who is independent, organized, inventive, and generous.
A person who is curious and a loves learning, who seems to always know what to say, who has an optimism that can overcome any difficult situation, and who seems to be able to master almost any skill.
Intelligent and Leadership-oriented
Based on the Mayan Tzolk’in or ‘Mayan Astrology’ tradition, Johanna Kirchner is someone who is able to see things that others don't, and who can be an effective guide or mentor to others.
They are also someone who is altruistic, tolerant, and sophisticated, and who tends to be a perfectionist who is always working to try and make everything and everyone better.
Patient and Compassionate
According to Judaism’s Kabbalah tradition, Johanna Kirchner tends to be someone who approaches life with grace and compassion, and who has a powerful and commanding personality. Who can be analytical, patient, and deliberate, avoiding risks and seeking out stability instead.
Some of Johanna Kirchner's challenges
While Johanna Kirchner has many strengths, nobody is perfect. They also have some challenging traits they need to manage.
For example, Johanna Kirchner can be Stubborn, Idle, Rebellious, Emotionally Distant, Difficult, Perfectionist, and Domineering.
Stubborn and Idle
One of Johanna Kirchner's key challenges is that they are someone who can be seen as stubborn and, at times, lazy.
Johanna Kirchner must also exercise caution as they can have difficulty dealing with responsibility, authority, or criticism.
Domineering and Impatient
Johanna Kirchner is someone who can be demanding, egotistical, and controlling, can have a lack of judgment regarding personal finances, be argumentative and stubborn, and who can have a tendency to be withdrawn and spend time in self-imposed isolation.
Materialistic and Aggressive
Finally, Johanna Kirchner also can be materialistic, emotional, aggressive, stubborn, inconsistent, and be prone to big temper outbursts.
