Arthur Kronfeld

Life & Legacy

Arthur Kronfeld (January 9, 1886 – October 16, 1941) was a German psychiatrist of Jewish origin, and eventually a professor at the University of Berlin. His sister Maria Dronke found fame as an actor in New Zealand. Later in life, Kronfeld took up an important position in Moscow. On 10 October 1936, an exchange between Kronfeld and fellow exiled German-Jewish psychiatrist, James Lewin, was recorded in the proceedings of a meeting of the Moscow Society of Neuropathology and Psychiatry.
In 1941, he wrote the pamphlet "Degenerates in Power", in which he made psychiatric diagnoses for Hitler and his associates, and also participated in anti-fascist programs on Moscow radio. It is believed Kronfeld and his wife committed suicide at the approach of German troops. However, there is some controversy on exactly how they died.