Johann Nobis

Johann Nobis (born April 16, 1899 in St. Georgen bei Salzburg; died January 6, 1940 at Plötzensee Prison) was an Austrian conscientious objector.

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Life

Johann Nobis was born to a farmer in the Holzhausen municipality St. Georgen bei Salzburg. As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, he refused to take the oath of alliegiance to Adolf Hitler. He was arrested and sentenced to death due to decrease of defence power by the Reich's court-martial on November 23, 1939.

He was imprisoned at Plötzensee Prison on December 20, 1939, where he was executed on January 6, 1940. On the day of his execution, five other Jehovah's Witnesses from Salzburg were executed as well.

His farewell letter to his mother is archived at the DÖW, donated by Gertrud Feichtinger-Nobis.

Stolpersteine

On July 19, 1997 the artist Gunter Demnig installed two stolpersteine for Johann Nobis and his brother Matthias Nobis in front of their birth house in Sankt Georgen bei Salzburg at the invitation of Andreas Maislinger.[1] Gunter Demnig was a guest of the Arts Initiative KNIE in Oberndorf bei Salzburg. He has installed over 20,000 stolpersteine for victims of the National Socialist regime. In the nearby Sankt Radegund a Stolperstein for the beatified Franz Jägerstätter was set up in 2006.

Further reading

References

  1. ^ "Stoplersteine zur mahnenden Erinnerung" Jehova's Witness press release. (July 17, 1997) (German)