Childhood and education

Born in Wegeleben, June 17, 1900 (Saxony-Anhalt), in the Kingdom of Prussia, part of the German Empire

His parents were Theodor Bormann and Antonie Bernhardine Mennong. He had many siblings, and his father died when Martin was three.

Martin studied at agricultural trade school before he joined the military as an artillery gunner in 1918.