Rüdiger Maria Bertossi

Rüdiger Maria Bertossi was born in Vienna as the legitimate son of the ministerial official Roger Bertossi and Elvira, née Timolini. He has a twin brother. After finishing school, he trained as a machinist and then worked in various companies. He left the Catholic Church in 1923.

The staunch Austrian joined the Vienna Heimatschutz in 1928. As such, he reported illegal National Socialists to the police. After 1934, Rüdiger Bertossi joined the Vaterländische Front and also took a firm stand against National Socialism.

On March 12, 1938, Rüdiger Bertossi witnessed the demise of an independent and free Austria with the invasion of the National Socialists. He was arrested by the Gestapo on May 5, 1938 and deported to Dachau concentration camp on May 24, 1938. On September 27, 1938, he was transferred from there to the Flossenbürg concentration camp and was transferred back to the Dachau concentration camp on March 2, 1940. He finally regained his freedom on June 26, 1942, but had to report to the local police station in Vienna every third working day.

After his release from prison, Rüdiger Bertossi continued to make no secret of his opposition to National Socialism. He was therefore remanded in custody on March 24, 1944 for 'offenses under the Espionage Act'. No charges were brought and Rüdiger Bertossi was released on July 15, 1944 and immediately conscripted into the Wehrmacht.

As a prisoner of war, Rüdiger Bertossi experienced the liberation of Austria. He then became involved in the ÖVP-Kameradschaft der politisch Verfolgten und Bekenner für Österreich