Wilhelm Guddorf

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Wilhelm Guddorf (alias Paul Braun; born 20 February 1902 in Melle, Belgium; died 13 May 1943 in Berlin-Plötzensee) was a journalist and resistance fighter against the Third Reich. He was reputedly a member of the Red Orchestra (Rote Kapelle) resistance group.

[edit] Life

Guddorf completed studies in philology. In 1922, he joined the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and from 1923 worked for several of the party's newspapers. After the Nazi party seized power in 1933, he began distributing articles against the régime under his alias. He was arrested in April 1934 and later sentenced to hard labour at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where he was held until 1939.

After he was released from Sachsenhausen, Guddorf developed contacts with the Red Orchestra and introduced Eva-Maria Buch to the group. He was arrested once again in 1942 and in February 1943 was sentenced to death. He was executed at Plötzensee Prison in Berlin on May 13.

In 1972, a street in Lichtenberg, a Berlin borough, was named after Guddorf (see external link below).