Anton Schmid | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 9 January 1900 |
| Died | 13 April 1942 (aged 42) Stefanska Prison, Vilnius, Reichskommissariat Ostland |
| Cause of death | Execution by firing squad |
| Occupation | Electrician |
| Known for | Saving Jews during the Holocaust |
| Spouse | Stefanie Schmid |
| Children | Gerta Schmid |
| Awards | Righteous Among the Nations |
| Military career | |
| Branch |  Austro-Hungarian Army German Army |
| Years of service | 1918 1939–1942 |
| Rank | Feldwebel |
| Unit | Landeswehr Battalion 898 Feldkommandantur 814 |
| Battles / wars | |
| Righteous Among the Nations |
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| By country |
Anton Schmid (9 January 1900 – 13 April 1942) was an Austrian Wehrmacht recruit who saved Jews during the Holocaust in Lithuania. A devout but apolitical Roman Catholic and an electrician by profession, Schmid was conscripted into the Austro-Hungarian Army during World War I and later into the Wehrmacht during World War II.
Put in charge of an office to return stranded German soldiers to their units in late August 1941, he began to help Jews after being approached by two pleading for his intercession. Schmid hid Jews in his apartment, obtained work permits to save Jews from the Ponary massacre, transferred Jews in Wehrmacht trucks to safer locations, and aided the Vilna Ghetto underground. It is estimated that he saved as many as 300 Jews before his arrest in January 1942. Schmid was court-martialed for actively protecting Jews, sentenced to death, and shot on 13 April 1942.
After the war, Schmid was recognized as Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem for his efforts to help Jews and was seen as a symbol of the few Germans who defied their government's extermination program. His reception was more conflicted in Germany and Austria, where he was still viewed as a traitor for decades. The first official commemoration of him in Germany did not occur until 2000, but he is now hailed as an example of civil courage for Bundeswehr soldiers to follow.