Magda Goebbels
| Magda Goebbels | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Johanna Maria Magdalena Ritschel 11 November 1901 Berlin, German Empire |
| Died | 1 May 1945 (aged 43) Führerbunker, Berlin, Nazi Germany |
| Political party | National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP) |
| Spouse(s) |
|
| Children | 7 |
| Parents | Auguste Behrend & Oskar Ritschel |
| Alma mater | Ursuline Convent |
| Profession | Mother, propagandist, First Lady |
| Awards |
Golden Party Badge  Cross of Honor of the German Mother |
Johanna Maria Magdalena "Magda" Goebbels (née Ritschel; 11 November 1901 – 1 May 1945) was the wife of Nazi Germany's Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels. A prominent member of the Nazi Party, she was a close ally, companion and political supporter of Adolf Hitler. Some historians refer to her as the unofficial "First Lady" of Nazi Germany, while others give that "title" to Emmy Göring.
As Berlin was being overrun by the Red Army at the end of World War II in Europe, she and her husband fatally poisoned their six children in their sleep before they committed suicide. Harald Quandt, her son from a previous marriage survived her.
Magda was born in 1901 in Berlin, Germany to Auguste Behrend and engineer/Berlin developer Oskar Ritschel, according to historian and Goebbels biographer, Peter Longerich. The couple were married later that year and divorced in 1905. Some sources, including Hans-Otto Meissner (son of Otto Meissner), suggest that the marriage took place before her birth, but there is no particular evidence to support that claim. When she was five, her mother sent her to stay with Ritschel in Cologne. Ritschel took her to Brussels, Belgium, where she was enrolled at the Ursuline Convent in Vilvoorde. At the convent, she was remembered as "an active and intelligent little girl".
Her mother Auguste married Jewish businessman and leather-goods magnate Richard Friedländer (born 1881) and moved with him to Brussels in 1908. In 2016, it has been reported that Friedlander may be Madga's biological father. Friedländer's residency card, found in Berlin archives, stated that Magda was his biological daughter. The card was discovered by author Oliver Hilmes.
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