Waldemar Rosental
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Waldemar Rosental | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 August 1921 Guaratingueta, São Paulo, Brazil |
| Died | 23 August 2003 (aged 82) Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Buried | Cemitério Israelita de Vila Rosali |
| Allegiance | Brazil |
| Service/ | Brazilian Army |
| Years of service | 1942–1958 |
| Rank | First Lieutenant |
| Unit | Brazilian Expeditionary Force |
Waldemar Rosental (15 August 1921 – 23 August 2003) was a Jewish soldier from the Brazilian Expeditionary Forces[1] during World War II.
Personal life
Waldemar Rosental was born in São Paulo, Brazil on August 15, 1921 and died in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on August 23, 2003. He came from a family of immigrants from Sokyryany in Bessarabia[2] and spoke Yiddish until getting into first grade. He was the eldest son of Yoel Rosental and Rivka Lea Rosental, and had two brothers, Jayme Rosenthal and Jose de Julio Rozental. After returning from Italy he graduated as a Topological Engineer at the Military Institute for Engineering, and spent several years working on the terrain settlements at Furnas. In 1953 he married in the Rio De Janeiro Great Synagogue to Thereza Rosental and two of them would have three children.
Military career
As the war in Europe erupted, he enlisted in the Brazilian Army to fight the Germans and Italians in Europe. Promoted to first Sargent, Rosental later enter the school for officers[3] of the Brazilian Army where he graduated as Second Lieutenant right before 1943. On September 1944 Rosental was stationed at the island of Fernando de Noronhas[4] as part of the 11th Infantry Regiment[5] a period during which the area came under attack by U-boats.[6] He was subsequently summoned to Rio de Janeiro, and on September 22 1944, he boarded the USS Mann,[7] a U.S. Navy vessel, bound for Italy. Upon his arrival in Italy, he was assigned to a group commanded by General Zenóbio da Costa.[8] Lieutenant Rosental was one of the "few known Jewish men in the FEB squadron heading to Europe," serving alongside a soldier named Salli Szajnferber.[9]
Lieutenant Rosental sustained an injury during the storming of a German bunker in the hills of Italy when he was hit by a bullet to his leg and was in need of medical hospitalization. He had no recollection of the events surrounding this incident, which were later recounted to him by his platoon. According to their narrative, an Australian soldier positioned next to him in a dugout was shot in the head despite Rosental's attempt to warn him to lower his head. In a state of shock, Rosental lit a cigarette, took a few puffs, and then, seemingly unaware of his leg injury, stormed out of the dugout towards the bunker from which the Germans were firing and threw a fragmentation grenade (Frag Grenade)[10] into the machine gun opening, successfully blowing up the insides of a German bunker. Following this, he kicked open the bunker door and opened fire on the German soldiers. After emptying his rifle, he picked a Luger pistol as a memento and sat down on the entrance of the bunker and lit another cigarette. His lack of the event's recollection, despite performing them suggested he was in a dissociative fugue state[11], a common psychological response to traumatic combat experiences.[12] The narrative recalled by his platoon highlights that heroism can emerge from a state of shock and instinct rather than conscious, deliberate decision-making.
After recovering from his injuries, Lieutenant Rosental returned to the port of Rio de Janeiro and was awarded a medal of bravery. He kept his cigarette box from that moment throughout his life. Due to strict security instructions, his wife remained unaware of his deployment during the war. He also brought back a Luger pistol from the bunker as another token of this episode; while the Luger's present whereabouts are unknown, the cigarette box remains with his family.
References
- ↑ "The Brazilian Expeditionary Force in the Battle of Monte Castello". Serviços e Informações do Brasil. Archived from the original on 2025-07-17. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
- ↑ "Sokyryany".
- ↑ "Página Inicial". www.esao.eb.mil.br. Archived from the original on 2025-05-23. Retrieved 2025-07-24.
- ↑ Carvalho Darós, Carlos. A artilharia brasileira e a defesa de Fernando de Noronha durante a 2ª Guerra Mundial.
- ↑ Calkins, Derreck (2011). "A Military Force on a Political Mission: The Brazilian Expeditionary Force in World War II".
- ↑ VE Tarrant (1989). The U-Boat Offensive 1914-1945 Arms & Armour. Arms and Armour. ISBN 0-85368-928-8.
- ↑ W. CHARLES, ROLAND. "wwii_Troopships" (PDF). p. 124.
- ↑ "Biography of Marshal Euclides Zenóbio da Costa (1893 – 1963), Brazil". generals.dk. Retrieved 2025-07-25.
- ↑ "Jewish Influences in WW II". www.geni.com. Retrieved 2025-07-24.
- ↑ "American Grenades". tgrm.foxed.ca. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
- ↑ "What Is Dissociative Fugue?". WebMD. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
- ↑ Services, Department of Health & Human. "Dissociation and dissociative disorders". www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
External links
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