Julius Hirsch (bottom row, second from right), was one of the top-performing German footballers of h
Julius Hirsch (bottom row, second from right), was one of the top-performing German footballers of his time. Hirsch was at the height of his soccer career when World War I broke out. He fought for Germany in the war, but when he returned home, he was no longer accepted as a star athlete or war hero–he was treated as an enemy because he was Jewish. In 1933 he was cut from the soccer club after the Nazis’ rise to power. Due to rising antisemitic measures, he also divorced his non-Jewish wife in order to protect her and their children. In March 3, 1943, Hirsch was deported to Auschwitz in German-occupied Poland. He wrote to his daughter while he was en route: “My dearest! I arrived safely, and everything is well! I am headed to Upper Silesia, which is still in Germany. Heartfelt greetings and kisses, your Juller!” It is the last anyone heard from him. In 1950, the district court declared May 8, 1945, as the day of his death.United States Holocaust Memorial Museum -- source link