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Felix Raymond Freudmann
| Felix Raymond Freudmann | |
|---|---|
![]() | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 April 1918 Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Died | 17 August 1975 |
| Nativity | Netherlands |
| Religion | Jewish |
| Awards | American Campaign Medal |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | |
| Branch | |
| Arm / service | Field Artillery |
| ASN | 01184825 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Rank at Ritchie | Second Lieutenant |
| Camp Ritchie | Class 12 (27 September – 25 November 1943) |
| Teams | MII 512-G, MII 445-G |
| American Campaign Medal | European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal | World War II Victory Medal |
{{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.
Felix Raymond Freudmann (8 April 1918 – 17 August 1975) was an Amsterdam-born Ritchie Boy (Class 12) who served as an intelligence officer in Northwest Europe and later taught French literature.
Biography[edit | edit source]
Felix Raymond Freudmann was born on 8 April 1918 in Amsterdam, where his family had moved from Antwerp during the First World War; after that war he grew up in Antwerp. As a young man he was fluent in French, Flemish, Dutch, German, English, Italian, classical Greek, and Latin. After the German invasion of Belgium in May 1940 he escaped with his parents via France, Spain, and Portugal to the United States.
Freudmann enlisted in the U.S. Army in June 1942. He took basic training at Camp Blanding, Florida (October 1942–January 1943), completed the officers’ course at Fort Sill, Oklahoma (May–August 1943), and trained at Camp Ritchie (Class 12) from about May to November 1943, rising eventually to captain. Sent to England on 22 June 1944 and to Normandy in July, he used his languages and European background for intelligence work, including operations in Antwerp. For that service he received a certificate of merit from the Antwerp municipality and knighthood in Belgium’s Ordre de Chevalier de la Couronne.
Demobilized in July 1946, he worked in the diamond trade in the United States and Israel, completed a Ph.D. in seventeenth-century French literature at Columbia University in 1953, taught at New York University, and from 1962 to 1967 lectured at Bar-Ilan and Tel Aviv Universities before returning to the United States in July 1967. He died on 17 August 1975.
Research notes[edit | edit source]
- OCR (80%) of `5704387439583130.jpg` (CAMP RITCHIE, MILITARY INTELLIGENCE TRAINING CENTER)
- Belgian Ordre de Chevalier de la Couronne and Antwerp certificate of merit are described in the family narrative; no matching local ribbon assets added to the awards block.
- Family survivors listed in the packet notes are not copied into the public biography.
Gallery[edit | edit source]
Technical record[edit | edit source]
| Field | Imported value |
|---|---|
| Approx Age at Death | 57 |
| Class_ASN | 184825 |
| Class_Name | FREUDMANN, Felix R. |
| match_method | asn_partial_name_exact |
| row_source | both |
Timeline[edit | edit source]
- 8 April 1918 — Born in Amsterdam; grew up in Antwerp after World War I.
- May 1940 — Escaped German-occupied Belgium via France, Spain, and Portugal to the United States.
- June 1942 — Enlisted, U.S. Army.
- October 1942 – January 1943 — Basic training, Camp Blanding, Florida.
- May – August 1943 — Officers’ course, Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
- May – November 1943 — Camp Ritchie Class 12 intelligence course; later captain.
- 22 June 1944 — To England; July 1944 to Normandy; intelligence work including Antwerp.
- July 1946 — Demobilized; diamond business; Columbia Ph.D. (1953); teaching in New York, then Bar-Ilan / Tel Aviv (1962–67).
- July 1967 — Returned to the United States.
- 17 August 1975 — Died.
Sources[edit | edit source]
- RB Archive narrative notes for Felix Raymond Freudmann (family / Fold3 research summary; private packet text not uploaded as a file)
- Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data
- Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records
- NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
- 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)
- Ritchie Boys of WWII Facebook page, post dated 2022-09-23 (1 post)
- OCR-reviewed Facebook gallery document: 5704387439583130.jpg

