An historian who fled Nazi Germany as a child refugee and later taught for three decades at the University of Southampton has returned there as he celebrates his 100th birthday.
Dr Edgar Feuchtwanger who lives near Winchester and saw Adolf Hitler in the flesh, visited a new exhibition called University of Southampton: A Place of Refuge, which features his personal story.
His visit coincides with the university achieving University of Sanctuary status, recognising its commitment to creating a culture of safety, inclusion and support for refugees.
Edgar, who was appointed OBE in 2021 for services to Anglo-German understanding and history, remains one of the university’s History department’s longest serving members of staff, having taught at the university from 1959 to 1989.
Reflecting on its new University of Sanctuary status, Edgar, who turned 100 on September 27, said: “Unfortunately the world is full of conflict, so it is important that there is a place for refugees. The world should be more tolerant and make less people refugees. It’s not a nice thing to happen, and my experience was a good one. It felt like I had left an evil empire once I arrived in the UK.”
Edgar was born to Jewish parents in Munich in 1924. As a child, his family were neighbours of Hitler on the Prinzregentenstrasse, Munich, occasionally seeing him in passing.
“I don’t think there are many people still alive who have seen Hitler face to face,” he said. “Some might think it’s remarkable."
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