Peter Briess collection

This collection documents in part the lives and fates of members of the Briess family and related families who emanated from what is now the Czech Republic, formerly Czechoslovakia, Bohemia and Moravia. The papers show how a once wealthy, thriving, well established  and well respected Jewish family was persecuted by the Nazis, many of whose members were murdered or forced to flee their homeland. 

The patriarchal figures, Ignaz Briess Senior and Ignaz Briess Junior, had established themselves as grain trader and malster respectively. These areas of commerce had become dominated by Jews after the liberalisation of employment laws with respect to Jews in the latter half of the 19th century. The two Ignazes became major players in their respective fields.

For a more detailed account of the family, its origins and the fate of family members, readers are encouraged to consult The House That Saved Us, by Peter Briess, Life Book Ltd., 2015