the Netherlands
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Like the British, French, and Portuguese, the Dutch were a global colonial power for centuries—a legacy that remains visible across the world today. One such colony was Suriname, a South American nation nestled between Guyana (formerly British Guiana) and French Guiana. Though small in the context of the continent, it is significantly larger than the…
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(re-post from May 10 2025) Most of my life has been occupied with one question: “Why did my Grandfather die?” As far as I am aware and as far as I was told by my family, he was executed by the German occupiers during World War II. It has only been recently I actually found…
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On the morning of May 10, 1940, the Netherlands awoke to the thunder of German bombers overhead and the sound of artillery fire along its borders. After months of tense neutrality, the small, strategically located country found itself swept into the maelstrom of World War II. The invasion of the Netherlands marked a critical moment…
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I often wonder how many really died during the Holocaust and where they did stop being considered a fatality of the Holocaust? I think the real numbers are much higher because I don’t think the numbers include victims who died after the war as a direct result of the Holocaust. Dr. Leonhard Levy was born…
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Victory in Europe Day referred to as VE Day, was the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany’s unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945. It marks the official end of World War II in Europe. For many, that day came too late. Some died that day…
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The address of Bloemenmarkt 7 won’t mean much to most of you, and it probably doesn’t mean that much to some of the people in Geleen. It was the address of a butcher shop and apartment in a square in the suburbs of Lindenheuvel in Geleen, the Netherlands. Today it is the home of a…
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On 4 May 1945, the German Admiral Von Friedeburg at Lüneburg surrendered to British Field Marshal Montgomery on behalf of the German troops in Northwest Germany, the Netherlands, Schleswig-Holstein, and Denmark. On 5 May, Canadian General Charles Foulkes summoned the German Supreme Commander Johannes Blaskowitz to Hotel De Wereld in Wageningen to discuss the effect…
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Between 1816 and 1949, the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia, was a Dutch colony. Between 1941 and 1945 it was occupied by Japan. On 19 and 20 July 1940, 231 people who were on leave from the Dutch East Indies in the Netherlands were arrested by the Germans. They were called ‘Indian hostages’. It was…
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(Re-post from May 4 2021) May 4th is the designated day in the Netherlands to remember all those who died in WWII and other conflicts. At 8pm, two minutes of silence will be observed across the country. A few years ago, I saw a picture that really touched me. It was of a pizza delivery…
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In quiet solemnity, we stand,Upon this hallowed ground,Where memories, like whispers, spanThrough ages that surround. Each name is engraved, a sacred threadThat binds the past to now,In hearts, the echoes of the dead,Their legacy, we vow. On this fourth of May, we pause,To honour those who fell,Their sacrifice, our guiding cause,Their stories, we retell. In…
History of Sorts 