Esther "Ettie" Steinberg (11 January 1914 – 4 September 1942; married name Ettie Gluck) was one of only a few Irish

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

murdered in

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

Early life

Steinberg was born to Aaron Hirsh Steinberg and Bertha Roth, on 11 January 1914, in Veretsky,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

; the family moved to

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

in 1925. Her family included six siblings and lived at 28 Raymond Street, off the South Circular Road in

. They were educated in St Catherine's School, opposite to the top of Dufferin Avenue.

Life

Steinberg worked as a

seamstress A dressmaker, also known as a seamstress, is a person who makes clothing for women, such as dresses, blouses, and evening gowns. Dressmakers were historically known as mantua-makers, and are also known as a modiste or fabrician. Notable d ...

in Dublin where she met and married Belgian Vogtjeck Gluck in Greenville Hall synagogue in Dublin on 22 July 1937. The couple returned to his home in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. However the rising tensions of the Nazi actions meant they moved to be further away, and Leon, their son, was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Death

They continued to flee the approaching Germans and eventually succeeded in gaining visas to travel to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, arranged by the Steinberg family in Dublin. However the papers arrived a day too late. The family were rounded up and put on a train to

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

. Clearly aware of what the danger was, Steinberg wrote a postcard to her family and threw it from the train. It read "Uncle Lechem, we did not find, but we found Uncle

Tisha B'Av Tisha B'Av ( ; , ) is an annual fast day in Judaism. A commemoration of a number of disasters in Jewish history, primarily the destruction of both Solomon's Temple by the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the Second Temple by the Roman Empire in Jerusal ...

" which meant "we did not find bread (Hebrew לחם), but we found destruction (תשעה באב, a holiday that marks several tragedies in Jewish history)." A stranger found the postcard and posted it. Steinberg, her husband and her son arrived at Auschwitz on 4 September 1942 and were immediately murdered in the

gas chambers A gas chamber is an apparatus for killing humans or animals with gas, consisting of a sealed chamber into which a poisonous or asphyxiant gas is introduced. Poisonous agents used include hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide. History Gener ...

Memorials

A memorial to her is at a secondary school in

Malahide Malahide ( ; ) is an affluent coastal settlement in Fingal, County Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, situated north of Dublin city. It has a village centre surrounded by suburban housing estates, with a population of 18,608 as per the 2022 ...

, Co Dublin, as well as at the Irish Jewish Museum in

Portobello, Dublin Portobello (, meaning 'beautiful harbour') is an area of Dublin in Ireland, within the southern city centre and bounded to the south by the Grand Canal (Ireland), Grand Canal. It came into existence as a small suburb south of the city in the 18t ...

. In June 2022, a ''

Stolperstein A (; plural ) is a concrete cube bearing a brass plate inscribed with the name and life dates of victims of Nazi extermination or persecution. Literal translation, Literally, it means 'stumbling stone' and metaphorically 'stumbling block'. ...

'' memorial was placed outside her primary school on Donore Avenue, along with similar markings for her husband, son, and three other Irish Jews murdered in the Holocaust.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Steinberg, Ettie 1914 births 1942 deaths 20th-century Irish women Executed Irish women Irish emigrants to Belgium Irish Jews who died in the Holocaust Executed people from County Dublin 20th-century Irish Jews