David Bloch

On the morning of the 14th of May, 1940 David Bloch and Betje Bloch- Goedhart committed an attempt to suicide.

A doctor is on the spot for first aid,  they were taken to the hospital.

They both died 2 days later. On the 20th of May, 1940 they were burried on the Jewish cemetery in Muiderberg.

Police report stated as cause: time conditions.

Source: City Archive of Amsterdam: police reports.

Meer informatie over de zelfmoord van het echtpaar David en Betje Bloch-Goedhart, is te vinden in het boek van Lucas Ligtenberg: Mij krijgen ze niet levend: de zelfmoorden van mei 1940 (Amsterdam 2017) 149, 167.

It is still an extremely sensitive topic: suicide during the Second World War. Historians have not known what to do with it for a long time. What is the place of suicide in war history?

Remarkably little has been written on this subject and there seems to be no list of names or memorial books at all. The Digital Monument (www.joodsmonument.nl) offers a place where relatives, sometimes for the firs…