Hansi (1873-1951) was born Jean-Jacques Waltz in Colmar, in the French region of Alsace. A pro-French activist in a German-occupied area following the Franco-Prussian War, he worked as an artist and produced satirical drawings which mocked the German authorities. He started publishing under the pseudonym 'Oncle Hansi' or just 'Hansi'. He was imprisoned several times, including in Leipzig in 1914, from where he escaped back to France and joined the military during the First World War. In 1941 he was nearly assassinated by the Gestapo, but fled to Switzerland. He never recovered from his injuries and died in Colmar in 1951. He is a hero in Alsace, where his books and drawings are widely reproduced.
