the economic situation in Palestine was quite poor, so much so that Kaufmann received no more commissions after 1937. Return to Europe Because of the Palestinian economic situation, Kaufmann was forced to return to Europe in 1939. His many contacts helped him on his journey, but the outbreak of World War II kept him from reaching his intended final destination, England. The new, restrictive travel laws also made it impossible for Kaufmann to travel back to Palestine, as it was a British protectorate at the time. After September 1940, Kaufmann and his wife settled in Bucharest. However, the rising pressure put on the Romanian Jewish community by the fascist government of Ion Antonescu and Horia Sima forced them to move once again, to Hungary. The situation for Jewish war refugees in Hungary was better than in surrounding countries, but still grim. Kaufmann's wife was not able to survive the harsh conditions and died in Hungary in 1942. Kaufmann avoided the mass deportation of Jews that took place in Hungary in 1944, but he was without income and found his financial situation worsening. Final years In 1947, the new Hungarian government, under President Zoltán Tildy, decreed that any artist over the age of 60, which included the then 74-year-old Kaufmann, would receive a state pension. Kaufmann was also able to continue his architectural work through government commissions. When Kaufmann died in Budapest at the age of 83 in 1956, he had produced two more theaters. His final work, which was completed four years after his death, was the renovation of the Madách Theater in Budapest. Literature Berkovich, Gary. Reclaiming a History. Jewish Architects in Imperial Russia and the USSR. Volume 2. Soviet Avant-garde: 1917–1933. Weimar und Rostock: Grunberg Verlag. 2021. P. 193. External links A room in the Krolloper References Hungarian architects Jewish architects Hungarian expatriates in Germany Karlsruhe Institute of Technology alumni Hungarian emigrants to Israel Hungarian Jews People from Sântana 1873 births 1956 deaths