Horst Bernard

Biography

Horst Bernard grew up as the son of politically active, antifascist parents and alongside his sister Alice Hornung. Because his father was Jewish and the family opposed National Socialism, they were forced to flee Saarbrücken in 1935 after the Saar region came under Nazi rule. They first went into exile in the French Pyrenees and later settled in Agen, where they survived with the help of local supporters and continued to assist other refugees. As a child in France, Horst experienced not only the constant threat of arrest but also the solidarity of people resisting fascism. Even at a young age, he narrowly escaped death during a violent crackdown on resistance members and endured the hardships of life in hiding when the Nazis occupied southern France. After returning to Saarland following the Second World War, Horst dedicated his life to antifascist remembrance and political activism. He became deeply involved in the Vereinigung der Verfolgten des Naziregimes – Bund der Antifaschisten (VVN-BdA), serving for many years as its Landesvorsitzender (state chairman) and, later, as its honorary chair. Bernard has worked tirelessly as a contemporary witness and educator, giving talks in schools, leading guided tours at the Gestapo-Lager Neue Bremm memorial site, and engaging youth and community groups with first-hand accounts of resistance and persecution under National Socialism. He has also published and edited books and historical contributions about resistance fighters and victims, helping to preserve their stories for future generations. For his decades of commitment to antifascist remembrance and education, Horst Bernard has received numerous honors, including the Federal Cross of Merit (Bundesverdienstkreuz) and the Saarland Order of Merit.