The Palestine Immigrant Certificate of Julius Löwenhardt, born in Sterkrade, Germany, on 15 November 1902. The certificate was issued by the Jewish Agency office in Amsterdam on 16 January 1934 when Julius was 31 years of age. Julius was the only grandchild of Levi Löwenhardt who turned to Zionism and left Germany for Palestine. His life was cut short just a few months before the state of Israël was proclaimed. [continued below]
Subsequent pages of the certificate shed light on the history of Julius’ aliyah (immigration to Palestine / Israël). In Germany he was a member of the Zionist youth movement Hechalutz which had branches across Europe and in Russia, the USA and Canada. Julius was in command of two languages, his native German and Hebrew. In August 1933, seven months after Hitler had come to power, Julius applied for a Palestine Certificate.
At the time he was living at Gottliebstrasse 99 in Duisburg-Hamborn. On 10 September he left and at Zevenaar walked across the German-Netherlands border. Julius went to Amsterdam and stayed with his younger brother Saly at Swammerdamstraat 10”’, waiting for his certificate to be issued. It was granted on 12 January 1934 and issued in Amsterdam four days later.
In Marseille on 19 January, Julius embarked on the S.S. Mariette Pacha bound for Jaffa. He took clothing and his plumbing tools with him, and in his certificate a bill for stamp duty of £ 3/10. Possibly the Mariette Pacha was diverted from Jaffa to Haifa, possibly upon arrival Julius was moved from Jaffa to Haifa overland; he stayed in the Haifa immigration hostel from his disembarkation on 25 January to the first of February 1934, the day he paid his debt to the Jewish Agency.
Julius died in December 1947 in the British Oil Refinery Massacre. His grandchildren were born in Haifa in 1961 and 1969, his six great-grandchildren between 1987 and 1999.
Sources:
Palestine Certificate (original with Julius’ grandson Menachem) and Amsterdam City Archives (aliens register).
Read also the story ‘Of four Juliuses’ where this Julius is identified as Julius II.
