Ernst Ermann

Fireman, S.S. Har Zion
Died 31 Aug 1940
Commemorated at Tower Hill Memorial
Age 37


Ernst was born on 15 October 1901 in Berlin, Germany to Friedrich Ehrmann and Charlotte nee Heymann and he had two siblings, Johannes and Sibylle. Their father died in 1924 and Charlotte, Johannes and Sibylle fled Germany to Sao Paolo via the United States. Ernst was married to Erika nee Wunsch but they divorced in 1930 and his papers state that he was then working as a bank clerk. Ernst applied for Palestinian citizenship which was granted in March 1939 and he states on his papers that he was a fisherman. It is not known when Ernst enlisted in the Merchant Navy.

Ernst was a fireman on the ship S.S. Har Zion. At 06.15 hours on 31 August 1940, the ship left Liverpool with 1000 cases of spirit and 120 tons of fertiliser to travel to the USA. The Har Zion was attacked by U-boat, U-38 which fired two torpedoes amidships and ship sank north west of Ireland. The master and thirty five crew were killed.

Courtesy National Archives of Israel