Ernst, Jonkheer de Jonge

Growing up in the Dutch East Indies, Ernst de Jonge came to the Netherlands for military service, after which he commenced his studies at Leiden University. The president of student rowing club Njord, he competed with Karel Hardeman and Hans van Walsem in the coxed pairs at the 1936 Olympics. The boat finished last in their heat, and although they fared better in the repêchage, they failed to qualify for the final. Upon completion of his studies, de Jonge started working for oil-company BPM (a subsidiary of Shell). As he was based in Curaçao (Netherlands Antilles) during the time of the German invasion, he was able to move to London in 1941. There, de Jonge successfully sought to join the Dutch resistance. In February 1942, he was dropped off on the coast of the Netherlands to spy for the Allies. In May, de Jonge was captured and held in various prisons, before being transported to Rawicz in September 1944. While most of the group he departed in was later killed in Mauthausen, it is uncertain what happened to Ernst de Jonge. He is assumed to have died either in Rawicz, or during transport thereto. De Jonge was posthumously decorated with the Bronzen Leeuw and Verzetsherdenkingskruis. In the 1978 Paul Verhoeven movie “Soldaat van Oranje”, on the life of Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema, Ernst de Jonge also features prominently, played by Dutch actor Jeroen Krabbé.