Was it fate that led Wilhelm Rietze to this very spot? Here, on Dunckerstraße 13, stands a plaque. It commemorates a man of courage and conviction. The Wilhelm Rietze Plaque marks the former home of a German communist. He was also a resistance fighter against the Nazi regime.
Wilhelm Heinrich Rietze was born in Köpenick near Berlin in 1903. He grew up in Prenzlauer Berg in a working-class family. His father died early. His mother worked hard as a laundress and newspaper vendor. She provided for her five children. Wilhelm and his siblings helped by delivering newspapers before school. They also delivered laundry in the afternoons.
Rietze completed an apprenticeship as an artistic locksmith in 1922. However, he was repeatedly dismissed due to lack of work. He found employment as a burner, art locksmith, and belt maker. Rietze joined the German Metal Workers’ Union and the workers’ sports club “Fichte”. As a wrestler, he met Werner Seelenbinder. Seelenbinder was a multiple German champion, a communist, and fourth at the 1936 Olympics. In 1930, Rietze joined the Communist Party of Germany KPD. In 1931, he became a member of the Revolutionary Trade Union Opposition RGO. He led a street cell of the KPD.
After the Nazis seized power in 1933, Rietze joined the communist resistance. Under the pseudonym “Otto”, he became the organization leader. He operated in the Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg district of the KPD. He helped distribute illegal publications. On January 29, 1934, he was arrested. He was taken to Columbia concentration camp. There he suffered brutal mistreatment. As a result of these beatings, Rietze had to have fourteen upper teeth and ten lower teeth replaced in 1940. The Kammergericht sentenced Rietze to three years in prison. He was charged with a “treasonous enterprise”. In Luckau prison, Rietze met Heinrich Preuß, Robert Uhrig, and Franz Mett.
After his release on August 1, 1937, Rietze worked. He worked in the illegal KPD organization formed and led by Uhrig. With Preuß and Mett, Rietze built connections in factories. He led illegal groups. He gave them leaflets and information. After the outbreak of war, they agitated in armaments factories. They spoke against the war. They supported the sabotage of war production. Rietze maintained contact with resistance groups. These groups were in the AEG turbine factory in Moabit, the AEG cable factory Oberspree KWO. They were also in the Knorr-Bremse AG in Lichtenberg. Plus, the Bamag-Meguin AG. As an instructor, he was responsible for the communist cell of Osram GmbH in Berlin. Rietze gained more fighters against the Nazi regime, especially in the KWO.
Rietze was arrested again on February 4, 1942. This was during the exposure of the Uhrig organization. He was initially imprisoned in Sachsenhausen concentration camp. On February 15, 1944, he was charged. On July 6, 1944, the “People’s Court” sentenced Rietze to death. He was convicted of preparing to commit high treason. The court cited “aggravating circumstances and aiding the enemy in wartime”.
Wilhelm Rietze was executed by guillotine on August 28, 1944. The execution took place in Brandenburg-Görden Prison. After the execution, his body was burned in the Brandenburg crematorium. In 1946, many urns were transferred. The urns contained ashes of resistance fighters executed during the Nazi era. They came from the Berlin districts of Lichtenberg, Kreuzberg, and Prenzlauer Berg. Many had been beheaded in Brandenburg-Görden Prison. Their remains found their final resting place. They were placed in the Memorial to the Socialists. This was in the urn collective grave near the large porphyry memorial plaque. It is on the right side of the ring wall. Like Wilhelm Rietze, many other resistance fighters received a dignified grave. They also received a memorial.
Since 1977, this plaque on Dunckerstraße 13 commemorates Wilhelm Rietze. Additionally, the Rietzestraße in Prenzlauer Berg was named after him in 1952. The Wilhelm Rietze Plaque serves as a reminder. It reminds us of his sacrifice. It honors his unwavering commitment to justice and freedom.