Henny Gurland (nee Gertrud Kauders, 1900-1952) was a German-Jewish political activist, photographer, and psychoanalyst who played a significant role in anti-Nazi resistance networks and later became the second wife of Erich Fromm.
Who Was Henny Gurland?
Born in Germany in 1900, she was active in leftist and anti-fascist circles before fleeing the rise of the Nazis.
She was married to Jose Gurland, with whom she had a son, Jose “Joe” Gurland.
During World War II, she fled to France, where she was part of the refugee network that included Walter Benjamin and Lisa Fittko.
In September 1940, she was part of Walter Benjamin’s escape group through the Pyrenees to Portbou.
Escape and Life in Exile
After Benjamin’s tragic death, Henny and her son managed to reach Portugal and later emigrated to New York.
She became connected to Erich Fromm, likely through psychoanalytic and political circles.
Marriage to Erich Fromm & Move to Mexico
She married Erich Fromm in 1944, after Fromm’s first marriage to Frieda Fromm-Reichmann had ended.
Fromm relocated to Mexico, partly due to Henny’s poor health (likely tuberculosis).
In Mexico, Fromm was instrumental in establishing the Mexican Psychoanalytic Society, and Henny was part of the intellectual and cultural circles there.
Her Death
Henny Gurland died in 1952, likely due to complications from her long-standing health issues.
Her death deeply affected Fromm, and he remarried in 1953 to Annis Freeman.
Legacy
Henny Gurland remains a lesser-known but historically significant figure in the resistance against the Nazis and the exile networks of Jewish intellectuals. While she is often remembered as Fromm’s second wife, her role in helping refugees and her survival from the Nazi persecution make her an important historical figure in her own right.
