A German Jew’s Triumph: Fritz Oppenheimer and the Denazification of Germany

When Prussian soldier Fritz Oppenheimer left the World War I battlefield with two Iron Crosses, he could never have imagined that the pinnacle of his military career would come 27 years later at the German surrender in World War II, when he took top Nazi leaders into captivity and interrogated Wilhelm Keitel, head of the Wehrmacht.

A towering personality packed into a 5’3＂ frame, Oppenheimer was a wealthy Jewish Berliner who fled the Third Reich in mid-1938, joined basic training in the U.S. Army at 45, and ultimately became General Eisenhower’s legal aide and translator, tasked with helping to build a sustainable postwar democracy in his former homeland. This historical biography presents an untold David-and-Goliath story, demonstrating how one person’s efforts can help change the course of history and forge a more hopeful future.

Cindy Schweich Handler’s work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek, Redbook, Huffington Post and a host of other national publications. She is currently a writer for The USA Today Network in northern New Jersey.