17/10/1904 - 2/5/1993
Record updated 02-May-20
Eddie Hertzberger was a wealthy Dutch industrialist with interests in confectionary and clothing. An all-round sportsman, he did some boxing and was also a keen sailor and skier.
His business interests enabled him to enjoy his other passion, motor racing and in 1935 he acquired a MG Magnette K3 (K3031), finishing 4th in the Circuit d'Orleans in May. He drove his MG with "Raph" (Marquis Raphaël Béthenod de las Casas) at Le Mans, retiring after 92 laps when the supercharger broke.
He raced the MG again in 1936 taking 7th in the Coupe de Provence at Miramas at the beginning of May and taking a win in the Grand Prix des Frontières at Chimay on the 31st, though only four cars finished the race. He entered the Spa 24 Hour race with Albert Debille but they failed to finish. There was no Le Mans in 1936 due to strikes in France.
He won the Grand Prix des Frontières at Chimay again in 1937 though this time only two cars made it across the line! He also drove at Le Mans in an Aston Martin Speed Model with Debille, retiring after 136 laps.
His Aston Martin Speed Model (H6/711/U H15692) was unlike other Aston Martins as it had a different radiator, different wings and very low mounted headlights. Painted bright orange, he entered it in the Mille Miglia in 1938, driving with Debille but failing to finish. On May 8th he won the 2 Litre Coupe de Paris at Montlhéry with it and entered the Grand Prix d'Anvers on the 22nd, failing to finish.
He quit racing that year after getting married. During WWII, as a Jew he had to escape from the Netherlands. With his wife, he made his way through Belgium and France to Switzerland, where he stayed for more than a year before traveling back through Vichy France to Spain. In Madrid he joined the Dutch intelligence service working for the Dutch government, which was based in London at the time. His wife, Lore, wrote a book about their journeys.
After the war he rebuilt his businesses and lived in Holland and in the USA. He made a brief return to racing in 1953 with a Ferrari 212 Inter Coupé Ghia (0225 EL) competing at Zandvoort.
He eventually moved to Switzerland, where he died in 1993.
hr