Embedded Files
Felicias Baumgarten-Campetti
In addition to what follows, see the other pages I have created for (1) letters that she has written, (2) her dispute with Samuel Faust, and (3) memories written by Jarosława Iwaszkiewiczów.
Mom's Memoirs:
Mom's Memoirs:
[Just couple lines:]
My mother Maize (Mina Magdalena) was the youngest of five, a brother Julek (or Julian) and three sisters, Franka (Francesca), Rosier (Rosa), and Fela (Felicitas).
...
[Description from photo album:} ... (my mother) with sisters in a row boat (who is rowing??) with Franka and Fela longing on a lawn with their mother in dark (so dark she barely shows up against the hedge behind her).
Email
Email
Unfortunately she was not a very nice woman.. I don't remember the exact circumstances, but the ISS (International Student Service) gave me a grant during the war, via her address, and she kept most of that money for herself.[1] She was already over 40 when she married Campetti, and we never met him.
...
You know that my mother's sister Fela (Felicitas Aum) was an Esperantist(?). She was married to a Campetti and lived in Florence. ... My mother never corresponded with her again after she pocketed the money the International Student Service gave to her to transmit to me...
Letter from Magdalena to Franka, October 23, 1946
Letter from Magdalena to Franka, October 23, 1946
Excerpted from letter shown in full here.
In your letters, you constantly return to the issue of... Fela, whose affairs in the face of Rózia's situation and mine with Janka must be placed in the background. You write that when she came to you, she spoke of a divorce (sic!!) from her husband. She had already threatened you (and you me) with this in 1939! How many times have I told you then that it was blackmail on her part, to take pity on you, that as a Catholic he could not get a divorce at all, that at most he could separate, but he had to continue to support her. Do you really still come up with such things? We met here in 1941.[2] One of the students from Lucca (I don't remember his last name, I think it was Vitali), said
Marriage Announcement Dec. 26, 1935
Marriage Announcement Dec. 26, 1935
See notes from Jarosława Iwaszkiewiczów suggesting that she was married in a synagogue in Copenhagen.
Vittorio Campetti book
Vittorio Campetti book
Aunt Fela's nephew (son her husband's brother) was a young teen during the war and has written and illustrated a book “Una storia a fumetti”[3] about his memories during Fascism and Nazism in S. Andrea di Compito. One page and one drawing relates to Aunt Fela.
Google translate from Italian:
"The German Army Corps Command, commanded by Gen. Dolster [actually Dostler], was installed in the Villa Borrini. They had escaped from Buti where they had been bombed. At Task they were a bit safer, in fact (fortunately for us!) The allied planes never managed to locate him. They continually passed over the sky of Compito fighter-bombers in search of targets, but they went to unload the bombs in other areas, at the Tassignano airport. Gen. Dolster had his studio at the Villa Borrini, but slept at the Villa Campetti[4], where he stayed with other German officers. In the morning, if he did not go to the Villa Borrini to his study, he would leave in his Mercedes together with his major aide-de-camp and, I believe, they would go to inspect the front on the Arno. In the evening they returned tired from the front and the major sometimes stayed in the garden of Villa Campeti sitting in an armchair to enjoy the cool of the evening and did not disdain to drink a glass of wine and talk to his "Italian friends", that is to say with my uncle Gaetano and aunt Fela (her name was Felicia Baumgarten, Jewish of Polish origin) who spoke German well. Thanks to this "friendship" my aunt was able to save some people prisoner of the Germans who were to be shot!
"Alongside the Gen. Dolster there was a mysterious character, a certain Count G .... who acted as an internpreter to the general. He was a tall and distinguished man who claimed to be from Puglia and to have followed the German army throughout the Italian campaign. Naturally we all had a strong distrust and a great fear of this man, because he could be a spy in favor of the Germans and, considering the clandestine meetings that took place in the Campetti house, he could prove to be a very dangerous person. In fact, clandestine meetings of partisan leaders, such as Captain Rubolotta or Colonel Salani, were held in this house, behind the backs of the Germans, who decided how to organize the resistance. In this context, my aunt Fela was also able to obtain valuable information on the movements of the German troops, while in the evening they were having a conversation in the garden with the aforementioned major. Considering these events today, I cannot help but think how unconscious we were: if they had discovered not only that the aforementioned meetings were held, but also that my aunt was Jewish! We could have been shot at any time!"
Day of Memory
Day of Memory
On January 28, 2017, a "Day of Memory" was held to honor Aunt Fela and another resident of the Commune. A Facebook page of the Commune has some text and photos of the occasion.[5]
Google translate:
"Touching and participatory morning today at the Compitese Cultural Center in Pieve di Compito, where the day was held in memory of Myriam Plotkin and Felicia Baumgarten, two women of Jewish origin who during the Second World War carried out an important work of civil resistance in the area to fascism and Nazism, helping the community. Vittorio Campetti, Felicia's nephew, and Piero Nissim, Myriam's son, told the most significant episodes to the audience, made up of citizens as well as pupils from the first grade secondary school of San Leonardo in Treponzio. The latter bore his testimony by accompanying the words to the music of the guitar. Introducing the meeting were Emmanuel Pesi, historian and manager of the "La via della Memoria" project of the Municipality of Capannori and the mayor Luca Menesini, who recalled the importance of passing on the local memory, to enhance all women and men who have made an important contribution to the community. The mayor then handed Campetti and Nissim a parchment in which the municipal administration remembers the commitment of the two women. The morning continued at the Camellieum Compitese, where two camellias dedicated to Myriam and Felicia were planted, as the plates affixed to the base of the cultivars recall.[6] The two women lived in Compitese carrying out an important work of civil resistance, helping the local population and the Resistance movement in the area. Myriam Plotkin, of Lithuanian origin, was the wife of Giorgio Nissim, in charge of the protection and assistance network of Jews in Tuscany and main collaborator of Arturo Paoli, while Felicia Baumgarten, of Polish origin, was the wife of Gaetano Campetti one of the main protagonists of the Resistance in the Compitese. The morning was enhanced by the Philharmonic "Giacomo Puccini" of Colle di Compito, which highlighted the most important moments. The Equal Commission of Capannori and the Arturo Paoli Documentation Fund also participated. The event was part of "Remember .. to make the right choices", the program of initiatives promoted by the Municipality of Capannori with the patronage of the Tuscany Region on the occasion of the 2017 Memorial Day which until March 1 includes events including three exhibitions and screenings."
From Trapped in Tuscany Liberated by the Buffalo Soliders: The True World War II Story of Tullio Bruno Bertini. According to the screenshot, on page 217 of the book is the following:
After the war, my uncle Nello was honored by the Italian government and given the title of Cavaliere.
Israel also gave him the following proclamation[7]:
A forest of 3,000 trees has been planted in Israel to honor the memory of Felicia Baumgarten-Campetti and to recognize the merits of the Reverend Don Nello Marcucci who has helped Jewish families in in the time of German persecution.
Esperanto
Esperanto
From American Esperanto Magazine, Mar/Apr 1953: "In Italy, Esperanto classes are now becoming extremely popular in a wide variety of institutions and organizations. At the famous health re- sort, Montecatini Terme, for instance, an Esperanto class now under in- struction at the Public School of Technical Studies is being subsidized by both the city administration and the management of the spa. The class is taught by Professor Gaetano Campetti. He also teaches an Esperanto class for members of the Catholic Workers' Association at Lucca."
From Esperanto revuo International (April 1959): Listed as donors to the Zamenhof Foundation "D-ro Campetti Gaetano kaj edzino, S-ino Felicja Baumgarten-Campetti 30.- gld"
Translator
Translator
Listing of books that I have found that she was a translator for. Apparently she used the name Felicia Aum, too:
"Kobiety u studni : powieść / Knut Hamsun ; autoryz. przekł. z norw. Felicji Aum
Knut Hamsun's "Konerne ved Vandposten" ("Women at the Pump"). From Norwegian to Polish (1925); second edition (1933).
Knut Hamsun's "Siste capital" ("The Last Chapter"). From Norwegian to Polish (1927).
In an article on Hamsun and Poland, the author, Karolina Drozdowska, notes that (Google translate from Norwegian):
Felicja Aum translated Hamsun novels published in the aforementioned series (Konerne ved vandposten published in 1925 and 1933) and Siste kapitel (1927). In these cases too, it was indicated on the colophon that the translations were made directly from Norwegian.
Apparently there is a book series in Polish of Nobel prize authors, and her translation of Hamsun got one Polish bookseller looking into who she was in a blogpost (Google translate):
- You'd have to check out F. Aum., the authorized translation of Hamsun's Norwegian novels. Women at the well. Maybe it's an abbreviation of some woman's name?
– I know, my dear Watson, that you share with me a love of extraordinary things, beyond conventions and the tiresome monotony of everyday life. The pseudonym here was Felicja Baumgarten-Campetti. In the Weekly Chronicles, Piotr Choynowski lashed out at her translation, claiming that she oppressed Knut cruelly, in a manly way, and knew no mercy. He summarized the last chapter after the first part, he didn't even look at the second part.
– What a polyglot! She translated Greenlandic fairy tales, she knew all Scandinavian languages, Italian, and Polish, because she was from Łódź! – Miss Rarożek was bitten by the bug – Maybe someone mentioned something about her in the newspapers or diary?
– A fierce Esperantist! Oh, this Iwaszkiewicz , Portraits on the Margins , Travels to Italy ... Literary gossip would wither without Jarosław! He first met her in 1932 in Copenhagen. She married Gaetan Campetti in Tuscany, Lucca, the city of Puccini and Cipollini. The first gay of the Polish mining industry was worried about getting cold in her twelve-room marble apartment on Antonio Mordini Street. She promised him that she would heat the apartment when he arrived - she lit the fireplace with two large pine cones.
– He probably caught a cold of virtue and in retaliation, at the Congress in Florence he immortalized Felicja's Danish roommate, Miss Goethe, instead. Do we know anything more about the translator from Łódź?
– Her sister Franciszka Baumgarten-Tramer was a well-known professor of psychology in Switzerland. I advise you to sit down, yes, I found something else. In Israel, three thousand trees and a small forest were planted in honor of Felicja, because during the war, with the help of her husband and Miriam Plotkin, she organized rescue for Jews. But who would remember this on the Vistula River...
East-West Congress
East-West Congress
On 4 and 5 June 1949, as announced, a preparatory meeting took place in Pisa to allow initial contact with a view to convening an "East-West Congress"[7] in 1950.
The committee was composed of the following people: Roberto Assagioli, Florence; Alessandro Bausani, Rome; Eugenia Bersotti, Milan; Lamberto Borghi, Livorno; Felicia Campetti, Lucca; Aldo Capitini, Pisa; Marcel Coret, Paris; W.-W. Langebartel, Philadelphia; Giuseppe Mastrangelo, Milan; Mm. D. Schmidt-Nagcl, Geneva; Bhikshu Nirmalananda, Madras; Ferdinando Tartaglia, Florence; Alan Thornhill, Oxford; Ida Vassalini, Milan. The first East-West Congress will be held from August 26 to 30, 1950, in Perugia. It will be open to all those who wish to contribute to the study and examination of Asian and Western civilizations, their relations, their oppositions, and their relationships. The work of the congress will be divided into:
a) Comparison between current values of the East and the West. b) Current situation of Eastern religious positions. c) Current philosophical conceptions and pedagogical and psychological experiences in the East. d) Attitude of current social movements in the East.
The work will include the reading of papers or communiqués, and discussions. Those intending to send a paper or communication are requested to do so before 30 May 1950, to the Congress Secretariat: Aldo Capilini, Congresso Oriente-Occidenle, Perugia (Italy). Each paper should be accompanied by a brief summary. In addition to the Congress itself, there will be the possibility of organizing special meetings or exhibitions (art, theater, books, educational activities, Gandhism, etc.). Proposals for these will be received by the Secretariat until 31 May 1950. The three official languages planned are Italian, French and English. It would be advisable to hold preparatory meetings in various countries now, in order to ensure the complete success of the Congress. Funds are obviously needed, and the Secretariat will gratefully receive any donations. Furthermore, the preparatory meetings may be used to appoint delegates to the congress and to find money to cover other expenses.
Notes:
Don't know if this is a reference, but see what Granny writes to Franka in 1940. Also, Aunt Franka was still on friendly terms in 1932 (from letter from Uncle Tramer).
Suggests that Fela visited in England?
For a picture of him when the book was published, see this article from May 18, 2014.
From the "Memory Route: in the Tourism Portal of Capponari: "3. S. Andrea di Compito, Villa Campetti (today Villa Torregrossa). With Villa Borrini, it hosted the German headquarters, but it used to be the house of prof. Gaetano Campetti, socialist and president of the local CLN section, married to Felicia Baumgraten, a Polish jew, who had to be the interpreter for the German troops."
I was first alerted to this ceremony when I was sent a link (no longer extant) an article from the La Gazzetta di Lucca (Italty) newspaper. The article--"Ricordare... per fare le scelte giuste': il programma di iniziative varate dal comune in occasione del Giorno della Memoria"--is from the January 20, 2017, issue of the newspaper. From Google translate:
Among the many events planned deserves special attention the one promoted to remember and pay tribute to Miriam Plotkin and Felicia Baumgarten on Saturday, January 28 at 11 am at the Cultural Center of Compitese. The two Jewish women have lived in Compitese doing an important work of civil resistance by helping the local population and the local resistance movement. Myriam Plotkin was the wife of Giorgio Nissim responsible for the safety net and Jewish support in Tuscany and main collaborator Arturo Paoli, while Felicia Baumgarten was the wife of Gaetano Campetti one of the main protagonists of the Resistance in Compitese.
...
Saturday, January 28 at 11 am - Pieve di Compito, Cultural Center of Compitese, Pieve di task, day in memory of Miriam Plotkin and Felicia Baumgarten. Historical reconstruction edited by Emmanuel Pesi, historian and head of the project The Road to the City of Capannnori memory. With the testimony of Vittorio Campetti (nephew of Felicia) and musical performance and testimony of Piero Nissim (son of Myriam). With the participation of the Equal Opportunities Commission of Capannori, the Comprehensive San Leonardo in Treponzio, the Fund Documentation Arturo Paoli and the Filarmonica 'Giacomo Puccini' of Colle di Compito. The two women will be entitled to two dwelling put in camelias camellias Compitese.
There is a website for the Camelia Gardens, but I have not found a picture of the Felicias Baumgarten camelia.
I had written to Yad Vashem to see if they had any knowledge of the recognition, but they have no records [CAS-238375: "thank you but I could not find any information about your relative in our database. "] I suspect that someone just bought trees through the Jewish National Fund. I also wrote to the author's son, but he could not find the source for the statement.
Totally accidental discovery; now have to see if I can find out anything more about her involvement with this.
Geni Data
Geni Data
Birth: January 19, 1887
Death: Italy
Immediate Family:
Daughter of Rafael Isek Ioachimow Baumgarten and Leonore Baumgarten
Wife of Gaetano Campetti
Sister of Julek Baumgarten; Jytta Baumgarten; Freidel Francisca Tramer; Rosa Baumgarten and Mina Magdalena Jonas
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