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Today, 18-months after applying, I received confirmation of my naturalisation as a German citizen.
But the story of how I am eligible for a German passport is tragic...
But the story of how I am eligible for a German passport is tragic...
I applied for it to avoid any tangible consequences of Brexit. As a UK citizen who has spent more of my adult life living in EU countries other than the UK, it was necessary.
I was able to get it through my grandfather, Stefan Paul Ludwig Brienitzer...
I was able to get it through my grandfather, Stefan Paul Ludwig Brienitzer...
Stefan was born in 1928 in Breslau, Germany, (today it is Wrocław in Poland) to a Jewish family.
At the age of 10, his family took him to Berlin, put him on a train - the kindertransport - and he was evacuated from Germany and taken to Scotland. He never saw his parents again.
At the age of 10, his family took him to Berlin, put him on a train - the kindertransport - and he was evacuated from Germany and taken to Scotland. He never saw his parents again.
He found out after the war that both his parents were killed in Auschwitz.
He was adopted by a Scottish family - the McGregors - and in turn, my grandad adopted Scotland as his country.
He was adopted by a Scottish family - the McGregors - and in turn, my grandad adopted Scotland as his country.
By the time I was born, he had decided to Anglicise his name to Stephan Brent after one of his bosses complained that he couldn’t pronounce his name.
I knew him as papa.
You can read his story in his own words here - http://eastlothianatwar.co.uk/Jewish%20Refugees.html
I knew him as papa.
You can read his story in his own words here - http://eastlothianatwar.co.uk/Jewish%20Refugees.html
When he first arrived in Scotland he could not speak a word of English. By the time I got to know him, I’m not sure he could speak a word of German. Or if he did, he didn’t want to.
I told him when I was around 20 that I was going to go on a two-week holiday to Germany
I told him when I was around 20 that I was going to go on a two-week holiday to Germany
and his reply was “why the f**k would you want to go there?” He followed this statement with his customary cheeky grin.
But it is true, my grandad and I were born in different eras. I am lucky enough to have been raised in a united Europe and I appreciate this so much.
But it is true, my grandad and I were born in different eras. I am lucky enough to have been raised in a united Europe and I appreciate this so much.
He died in 2018, two years after the Brexit vote that he described as “utter nonsense”.
It was only after his death that my dad, sister and I started the process to become German, so I do not know what he would have thought about it.
It was only after his death that my dad, sister and I started the process to become German, so I do not know what he would have thought about it.
I can imagine that he would say to me, “why the f**k would you want to do that?” with a cheeky and knowing grin.
He may not have been the biggest fan of Germany, but he absolutely understood the importance of unity between countries, people, cultures and beliefs. Brexit is entirely the opposite of that, unfortunately.
So, I am now a German citizen, around 70 years after my grandad was evacuated from there and my great-grandparents were murdered there. It feels a bit strange, but it also is a marker of how much progress has been achieved in that time.
We should all look out for each other, regardless of the country we are born in. As my grandfather said:
“I consider myself very lucky, something I have often thought about. I survived thanks to my parent’s awareness, their foresight in preparing for the worst, their sacrifice in selflessly saving their children and to being given a home by the McGregors...
“The McGregors were non-church going Presbyterians who knew what was happening and wanted to rescue a Jewish child. I was that lucky child.”
Some of the last pictures I have of us together...
