The circumstances surrounding the original publication in 1959 were mysterious - and although the diary had clearly been written during the fall of Berlin, it had probably been revised in the years immediately afterwards, he suggested. After reading the text her partner at that time wanted nothing more to do with her.’Įnzensberger added: ‘She didn’t agree to a new edition in her lifetime after she was accused of besmirching the honour of German women.’īisky, however, is unrepentant, claiming last night that the diary could only be regarded as an accurate historical document if the identity of its author were known.
She wanted to spare herself further indignity until after her death. ‘The author knew very well why she wanted to remain anonymous. ‘These are the hidden investigations of snoopers,’ he said. Last week, however, one of Germany’s leading literary editors, Jens Bisky, identified the author as Marta Hillers - a German journalist who had studied at the Sorbonne, travelled extensively in Europe, and had written for German newspapers and magazines.Įnzensberger, furious at the revelation, accused Bisky of ‘shamelessness’. Many of the woman’s neighbours had made similar deals with Russian soldiers in the desperate final weeks of the war.Įarlier this year the distinguished German poet and essayist Hans Magnus Enzensberger republished A Woman in Berlin, insisting that its author, who had died two years ago, should remain anonymous. She describes the arrangement as ‘sleeping for food’. In the days that followed, the woman - who was well educated and spoke Russian - sought out the highest-ranking Soviet officer in the neighbourhood and made herself available to him.
The woman recalls how, on the ‘catastrophic’ night of 27 April 1945, she was dragged out into a corridor and gang-raped by the soldiers.
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