Johanna Bechmann

Born:	01-13-1895
Faculty:	Philosophical School
Category:	Expelled student

Johanna BECHMANN, born on January 13^th, 1895 in Vienna/Austro-Hungaria (entitled residency ("heimatberechtigt") for Vienna, Citizenship 1938: Austria), daughter of Dipl.-Ing. Karl Viktor Bechmann (1864-1943, civil engineer, "Oberbaurat") and Regina Elisabeth, née Gruenhut (1864-1920). She lived with her parents in Vienna's 13^th district, Hackingerstrasse 44. Until 1917 she had attended the humanistic Maedchen Gymnasium VI (Viennas 6^th district, Rahlgasse 4), but due to illness she had to interrupt her studies before taking the school-leaving examination (Matura) and only passed it twelve years later in 1929 as an external student at the Bundesgymnasium Klosterneuburg, Lower Austria. She took advantage of this time, however, to enroll in the fall term of 1923/24 at the newly established School of Protestant Theology at the University of Vienna (1921). During the next six years she studied Protestant theology as an extraordinary student, and after passing the school-leaving examination (Matura) in 1929, from the fall term of 1929/30 onwards, she studied for another seven Years as a regular student, but increasingly took courses at the Philosophical School, primarily in History. In the fall term of 1936/37, she formally transferred to the Philosophical School and was enrolled in the spring term 1938 at the Philosophical School in the 3^rd year of her studies and took courses in History, German language and literature Studies and Art History. She was discriminated as a so called "Mischling 1. Grades" - although Protestant A. B. - due to her Jewish grandfather Ludwig Gruenhut (1840-1917) and she could continue her studies at first - valid until revoked. On April 30^th, 1940, she was issued her Absolutorium, and submitted her dissertation in history, entitled "The German Letters of Luther," for licensure. Beginning with the 1^st trimester of 1940, "Mischlinge" had to submit an application to the Reicherziehungsministerium (German Ministry of Education, REM) Berlin for permission to graduate before being admitted to the university. Johanna Bechmann submitted this application to the REM on July 7^th, 1941 for admission to the final examinations and to the doctorate. Since the application had to include a credible statement of loyalty to National Socialism on the part of herself, her siblings, parents and grandparents, and career plans, she announced in her application that she would not be pursuing a teaching position at the Gymnasium - which would have been forbidden to her as a "Mischling" - but that she intended to obtain her doctorate "only for private activities". In the required description of her family, she emphasized that her father was a civil engineer, court expert, and many times honorary citizen in Lower Austrian communities, as well as the founder of the national student fraternity Hilaritas.
The Ministry of Education nevertheless rejected the application on August 26^th, 1941 (WF 3642) without further justification; Bechmann was unable to complete her studies under National Socialist rules and had to leave the University of Vienna.
Only after the end of National Socialism was she able to resubmit her dissertation from 1940 and sit for the final examinations: She did not receive her doctorate from the University of Vienna until May 17^th, 1946. In 1950 she received a concession to operate a lending library at her home address in Vienna's 13^th district, Hackingerstrasse 44.
Little is known about the further life of Johanna Bechmann. Dr. Johanna Bechmann died at the age of 86 in October 1981 and is buried at the Central Cemetery in Vienna.

Lit.: Archive of the University of Vienna/enrollment forms ("Nationale") EVANG-THEOL 1923–1936, PHIL 1937-1940, PHIL GZ 58 ex 1940/41 ONr. 14, graduation registry ("Promotionsprotokoll") PHIL VII (1941-1956) 553; Anzeiger des Oesterreichischen Buch-, Kunst- und Musikalienhandels 1950, No. 1; find a grave in Vienna.

Herbert Posch