Moray teacher Kurt Hahn who stood up to Adolf Hitler and the Nazis is honoured at Gordonstoun

To mark Holocaust Memorial Day a plaque has been unveiled at a Moray school founded by a Jewish refugee from the Nazis.

Kurt Hahn, a German educationalist, was arrested in his homeland in 1933 for speaking out against Adolf Hitler after the newly appointed Fuhrer granted an amnesty to five stormtroopers who had murdered a young communist.

Following five days in prison Hahn was released, due in part to the intervention of Ramsay MacDonald, the Lossiemouth-born Prime Minister.

He then fled to Britain where, the next year, he set up Gordonstoun, a boarding school in the Moray countryside.

The plaque from the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR) was unveiled at the school on Sunday following an interfaith service to mark Hahn’s courage in standing up against the Nazi regime.

Both Princess Anne, who holds the role of ‘Warden’ at Gordonstoun, and John Swinney, Scotland’s First Minister, sent long letters to the school to mark the occasion.

The princess wrote: “Although I’m unable to join you today, it gives me great pleasure to send you this message as we acknowledge and honour Kurt Hahn, whose educational vision had a huge impact on many, including my own family.

“Hahn was an undemonstrative but brave man, who had the courage to stand by his principles even in the face of extreme adversity.

“This was never more clearly demonstrated than when he publicly challenged the Nazi party as it rose to power in the early 1930s.

“As headmaster of Salem School in Southern German he presented a simple choice to all those associated with the school: choose either the Nazi party or Salem, but they could not support both.

“This decision eventually led to his imprisonment, and it was only through the intervention of Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald, himself a Lossiemouth boy, that he was released and was able to seek refuge in Britain, where he travelled to Scotland to found Gordonstoun.”

The princess continued: “Hahn had a holistic conception of education in which physical exercise to strengthen the body was matched with academic training to develop the mind.

“His educational philosophy was centred around service and compassion, and his vision has spread across the world via such organisations as the Outward Bound, United World Colleges, Round Square and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.

“That vision is perhaps more pertinent today than ever as we see a world of oppression, intolerance, repressive authoritarianism, and selfish individualism.

“I am most grateful to the Association of Jewish Refugees for their initiative of honouring Hahn with a commemorative plaque, and to Gordonstoun for making their proposal a reality.

“The AJR has mounted a number of plaques around the country that pay tribute to the Jewish émigrés who made an everlasting contribution to their adopted homeland, and to those sites of memory where the history of the refugees can live on.

“This plaque will also serve as a warning of what happens when a society succumbs to the dangers of indifference in the face of extremism and racial hatred.”

Princess Anne also referred to her father, Prince Philip, who was a pupil of Hahn’s, both in the Sale school in Germany and then, later, at Gordonstoun.

“My late father, The Duke of Edinburgh, thrived during his time here and counted Kurt Hahn as a personal friend, having already benefited from his wisdom in his formative years in Germany.

“I am sure that he would have deeply approved of this unveiling.”

“As today we also mark Holocaust Memorial Day, it is also a source of great pride to me that his mother, my grandmother, has a connection to the Jewish refugee story. Princess Alice is recognised as a Righteous Among the Nations for providing sanctuary to a Jewish family facing Nazi oppression and persecution in Greece, in so doing saving their lives.

“The values Kurt Hahn espoused are ones that continue to form the ethos of Gordonstoun and I am so grateful to all those involved for this wonderful tribute that will see him remembered in perpetuity.”

John Swinney’s written message also highlighted Hahn’s “remarkable story”.

The First Minister added: “The atrocities inflicted upon the Jewish people during the Holocaust remain one of darkest periods of human history, but it is the bravery of individuals such as Mr Hahn that can inspire the rest of us to stand in solidarity against forces which seek to target the most vulnerable members of our society.”

Holocaust Memorial Day today also marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp on January 27, 1945.

The special service at the school recognising the achievements of Hahn was supported by Interfaith Scotland.

Maureen Sier, that’s organisation’s director, said: “The plaque was to be unveiled by Holocaust survivor, Kathy Hagler from Inverness, who sadly passed away last year. So, as we remember Kathy, we also remember all those who suffered in the Holocaust and subsequent genocides.”