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Arthur Schiff

Born: 05-13-1871
Faculty: Medical School | Medical University Vienna
Category: Expelled teacher

Arthur SCHIFF (born on May 13th, 1871 in Vienna, died on July 12th, 1953), son of Max Schiff (1829-1903, merchant, owner of the Gaivapol company, co-founder of the Wiener Musikverein) and Lina, née Schlesinger and died on June 12th, 1939 in Vienna. He was lecturer ('Dozent') and extraordinary professor for inner medicine (s. 1919) at the Medical School of the University of Vienna.

He was the uncle of the philosopher Sir Charles Popper and married Margarete Breuer (1872-1942), daughter of Dr. Josef Breuer (1842-1925, mentor of Sigmund Freud) on May 27th, 1900 in Vienna. She was deported to Theresienstadt on August 27th, 1942 [Terezín/Czech Republic] and died there on September 9th, 1942.
Their son, Eric(h) Schiff (1901-1992), emigrated to the USA and became professor for political economics, their daugther Hanna Schiff (1902-1942), painter and grafic artist died 1942 while arrested by the Nazis and their daughter Elisabeth ("Lilli") Schiff (1903-1941) emigrated to the USA.
His brother Walter Schiff (1866-1950) was professor for political economics at the Vienna Univrsity (1934 he was removed from the office of statistics of the City of Vienna for political reasons, in 1936 professor emeritus at the university) and had to emigrate in 1938 to Great Britain. He returned after 1945 to Vienna and became president of the governmental office fo statistics.

Arthur Schiff was persecuted in times of Nazism as a Jew lost his position and was forced to leave the university on April 22nd, 1938.

He died a year later in Vienna on June 12th, 1939 and was burried at the Doebling cemetery on June 20th, 1939.


Lit.: Archive of the University of Vienna/graduation registry ("Promotionsprotokoll") MED M 33.7 (1894-1898), personnel roster 1937/38, 30, personal file S 304.1106, rectorate GZ 680 ex 1937/38, MED GZ 1097 ex 1937/38; Municipal and Provincial Archives of Vienna WStLA/Serie 2.5.1.4.K3 - D-Antiquariat | Meldezettel; MERINSKY 1980, 235-236; MUEHLBERGER 1993, 32; UB MedUni Wien/van Swieten BlogMÜLLER 1999GAUGUSCH A-K, 2011, 335; REITER-ZATLOUKAL/SAUER 2023; information from Irene Uffrecht-Peters, Dallas, TX/USA 09/2009.


Herbert Posch


List of those persons who are not allowed to take the obligatory oath of service to Adolf Hitler in March 1938 because they are considered "Jewish" in the NS, including tit. ao. Prof. Arthur Schiff, © Archive of the University of Vienna
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