| Born: | 12-10-1916 |
| Faculty: | Philosophical School |
| Category: | Expelled student |
Adele MONTESER (married: WARDLE), born on December 10th, 1916 in Vienna/Austria (entitled residency ('heimatberechtigt') for Vienna/Austria, Citizenship: Austria), daughter of Theodor Monteser (1881-1956, editorial journalist of the journal 'Die Stimme') and Frieda Monteser (nee Bratter, 1885-1939, journalist), lived in Wien 9, Grundlgasse 1. After passing her A-levels at the Gymnasium Albertgasse and taking a visiting term at the University of Exeter/England she was enrolled finally in the spring term 1938 at the Philosophical School in the 3rd year of her studies and took courses in Art History and German language and literature Studies.
Only a few days after the "Anschluss" she escaped to Paris/France, where she had to wait for her emigration. Her mother had written some articles for the American magazines "Die Hausfrau" and "Das goldene Buch" which helped her after receiving a visa in 1940 to emigrated via Holland to the USA. She could not finish her studies and worked first as a secretary, then as an editor in New York. She was married from 1945-1949 and had a daughter, Monteser Diana Wardle, later married Kohn. She visited Vienna many times after the war, but did not feel she could reestablish a life here again. Adele Monteser was always enterprising and energetic and in her fifties took up scuba diving and began writing travel articles and doing animal rescue work.
She died on October 31, 2012 in New York City, just a few weeks short of her 96th birthday.
The exhibition "Ausgegrenzt, Vertrieben, Ermordet" (January 22nd - May 14th, 2010) at the Department of History of Art of the University of Vienna is dedicated to the memory of Adele Monteser and 20 other former students of the University of Vienna focused on art history.
Lit.: Interview at the Austrian Heritage Collection am Leo Baeck Institute New York, 2008 [AHC 1453]; Exhibition "Ausgegrenzt, Vertrieben, Ermordet" 2010, information from her daughter Monteser Diana Kohn, 2013; KNIEFACZ/POSCH 2017c.
Katharina Kniefacz
