Alright, since I’ve read that today is the most depressing day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere (3rd Monday of January), why not make a post with all the Conrad Veidt will/estate documents? Morbid, but I’m doing it so if anyone needs to refer to them, they can hopefully find them without doing much digging.
The Swiss National Archives digitized the last dossier I had requested, which were estate-related filings. It very clearly lays it all out, so there’s no need to see the actual will. The last upload in the photoset is the first page of a copy of the actual will, but you have to pay to see the remaining pages. So I very much appreciate the archive staff for digitizing the dossier without asking for any fees, only patience.
Conrad’s most recent will was made in England, December 1936. Not surprisingly, he declares within the will he intends to remain in England. So good call having his ashes interred at Golders Green instead of in Berlin!
Viola got 60% of the $72,000 estate, and it was distributed in monthly payments of $300 (we know this amount from her entry into the United States). Lily got the remaining 40% as an immediate, full payment. And Conny gave Felicitas a monthly £20 allowance which would be paid until she remarried or died.
The document that’s written in French, dated several months after the rest of papers in the dossier, looks to be a strangely detailed “wellness check” of sorts, if I’m interpreting it correctly. The report is basically observing whether Felicitas and Viola were under financial strain, as they relied solely on Conrad’s income to live. The back of the June 26 document expresses a concern that the two might not have enough money to pay all their living expenses. Were the funds delayed?
We also find out that Felicitas and Olivier Zaborowski were still engaged in 1943. I wonder if I should start searching for “Felicitas Zaborowski” if I want to figure out when she died? Granted, she still used Veidt as her surname as late as 1951, and I can’t imagine someone being engaged for ~12 years. But it’s possible Felicitas and Olivier could have had an on/off relationship? Just spitballin’.
