Writer, born in Beuthen on the Oder, Germany. He studied theology, and wrote historical novels including Der Vater (1937) about King Friedrich Wilhelm I. His writing, including poetry, is pervaded by his deep Protestant beliefs. His diaries Unter dem Schatten deiner Flügel (1956) are devastating, particularly in light of the fact that he, his Jewish wife, and her daughter committed suicide in 1942.
Jochen Klepper (March 22, 1903 – December 11, 1942 was a German writer, poet and journalist.
Klepper was born in Bytom Odrzański, Poland, the son of a Silesia Lutheran minister. He was fired from his work with Berliner Funk in June 1933, and was later fired from Ullstein Publishing House in September 1935 for the same reason.
In December 1940, he was drafted by the German Army - a bureaucratic mistake since citizens married to Jews were not to be drafted. While he did not see combat, he served in a supply unit for forces through Bulgaria, Poland and Russia before being discharged in 1942 to tend to his wife.
On December 11, 1942, after Adolf Eichmann refused a Visa for the couple's second daughter, the three of them committed suicide by turning on a gas valve - Jochen writing in his journal just before they died: Tonight we die together. After their death, the diary was given by Jochen's sister Hildegard, to the Allied trial against Adolf Eichmann where they were used as evidence against him (Session 51).
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