Franz Herbert Chales de Beaulieu grew up in a Huguenot officer’s family in Bremen. He studied theology and was a convinced pacifist. In 1939 he was drafted into the Wehrmacht and performed his military service in the army general staff. From there, he occasionally passed on classified information to acquaintances.
In Berlin, he met Eva John and they began a relationship. She was classified as a “first-grade Mischling (half-breed).” Chales de Beaulieu was in contact with a Quaker youth group. He was also part of an anthroposophical circle formed around Rudolf Pachali, where the members helped Jews. A Jewish friend of Chales de Beaulieu and John, Ruth Lilienthal, wanted to go underground and escape to Paris in 1942. Chales de Beaulieu began forging an identity card for her at home but was unable to finish. He was arrested while leaving his workplace, for carrying copies of confidential documents. A friend managed to burn the forged identity card just in time. Chales de Beaulieu was sentenced to seven months’ imprisonment and deployment in a penal battalion. After the war, he lived in France. He changed his name to François de Beaulieu and became a pastor.
(Franz) Herbert Chales de Beaulieu’s student identity card, summer semester 1941. Source: Privatbesitz/Private
Pastor François de Beaulieu, around 1970. Source: Privatbesitz/Private
