Heinrich Maier was not a political person. He was a chaplain in Vienna and a man of faith. But the regime of violence and repression in the Third Reich made him a man of resistance. Maier could not and would not subordinate his faith and his opinions to the Nazis and came to the conclusion that an end must be put to the regime.
As a member of one of the leading resistance groups in Austria, he remained unbending and began to share strategic information with the allied forces in 1940. Ultimately, he was arrested, interrogated, tortured and taken to the Mauthausen concentration camp. On 22 March 1945, he was one of the last resistance fighters that were killed by the Nazis only shortly before the end of the war. His faith in God as well as his love for Austria remained unharmed. They formed the point of departure for a story that is told for the first time in this book.

»In Prisoner 2959, author Berhard Kreutner succeeds not only in tracing Heinrich Maier’s life and suffering and demonstrating this man’s admirable attitude on the basis of the interrogation protocols, but also in making his despair and unconditional devotion to his God palpable in harrowing and equally touching inner monologues. What a character!«
Sortimenter Brief

»With this non-fiction book, Bernhard Kreutner not only provides very authentic insights into Heinrich Maier’s biography, but also encourages us to reflect: Would we ourselves have had the courage to resist?«
glaubeaktuell.net

»Heroes like Maier, who fought against injustice at the risk of their lives, were and are rare at all times.
An important book!«
freiheits-akademie.at

»A sensitive, half-documentary, half-fiction book.«
Salzburger Nachrichten

»Some had the courage to resistance, but hardly anyone went their way with such consistency as Chaplain Heinrich Maier.«
Martinus

»Supplemented with extensive documentation, this history of Heinrich Maier is an immensely important publication!«
magazin KLASSIK