Walter Friedmann

Walter Friedmann, a German salesman, was detained by the Nazis during Kristallnacht (9-10 November 1938) and interned at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Following his release on 29 December, he married Elfriede Mathias, who was also Jewish. The couple planned to flee Germany, but could only afford one ticket to Cuba. Walter sailed from Hamburg on 13 May 1939 on the SS Saint Louis. On arrival in Cuba, however, the refugees were barred entry, obliging the ship to return to Europe. 

Walter Friedmann settled in Brussels, where he made frantic attempts to be reunited with his wife. He even wrote successfully to the Belgian Queen Elisabeth. The palace expressed an interest in his case, but the matter was suspended following the German invasion on 10 May 1940. Walter was arrested that same day by the Brussels police and handed over to the French authorities. He was subsequently interned at Saint-Cyprien, Gurs and Les Milles, before being sent to the Drancy transit camp on 11 August 1942. Walter Friedmann (42) was deported via Transport 19 three days later. There is no trace of him following his arrival at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Walter’s wife, Elfriede Mathias, was deported from Germany, and ended up in the Lodz ghetto. Neither of them survived.