World War II in AmsterdamBefore I can tell anything about World War II in Amsterdam I have say that I can only tell you about a few events. So many things happened during this awful period in our history that I won't be able to give credit to the real story. So see this webpage as a short summary of events.
On April 10, 1940 the Germans entered the Netherlands. World War II had started. The occupants were shocked. Up to that moment they thought that they could stay neutral. After Rotterdam had been bombed severely and with the threat of bombing more large cities the Dutch surrendered. Soon we would learn how big the impact would be on the country and its capital Amsterdam. At first the influence of the occupation seemed to be rather small but soon it became apparent what lack of freedom meant. One of the new things that the Dutch had to get used to were the blinding instructions for their windows at night. This had to ensure that allied bombers could not find their targets. The Germans tried to win the Dutch for their national socialism but most of them did not fall for their propaganda. The first signs of anti-jewish steps can be seen in 1940 when all civil servants had to fill out a form in which they had to account for their family lines. A lot of anti-jewish actions would be taken after that. Because of that and the deportation of 425 Jewish men there was a massive protest against the discrimination of jews in Amsterdam, called the February Strike. After that the oppressor became more aggressive. Life becomes much harder, especially in the city. Food, gas and coals could only be bought with coupons. This was to divide the goods more evenly. The black markets began to prosper. Schools were almost the only place where the war wasn't as noticeable as in other fields of life. The Dutch valued (still do) religious schools a lot (almost every religious group has their own school). The Germans did not want to run into a conflict with the churches so they decided not to focus too much on schools. By the end of World War II schools had to close down because there were no coals to heat them. Half way 1943 young men had to report in to be sent to Germany for forced labor. A lot of them went into hiding. Because of that resistance soon became a widely spread network. The Germans replied with intimidation and violence. Almost 20,000 Dutch ended up in prison because of their resistance work against the oppressor. 2,000 were executed while another 10,000 died in other ways during World War II. In the early days of September 1944 the first reports came that allied forces were on their way to free us. It was all over the (illegal) radio programs. People were happy and ready to welcome the liberators but good things do not happen that fast and the worst still had to come.
The winter of 1944 was so bad that a lot of people died with the end in sight. City people were hungry and would do anything to get food. They even ate tulip bulbs and were willing to walk for miles until they found a farm to trade or beg for food. Everything they owned was sold to get something to eat. More than 20,000 people died out of hunger. The ground was too hard to dig graves and in Amsterdam the bodies were stacked in the Zuiderkerk (South Church). There was no wood for coffins... By the end of the winter in February 1945 the Red Cross started to distribute Swedish flour among bakeries. Finally a little food became available. In April planes dropped food over the Netherlands. The real distribution only got moving after the liberation in May. On May 5th 1945 the Germans finally surrendered. After that day a chaotic period started in which still quite a lot of people died because of lawlessness. At the same time the occupants were dancing in the streets because it was all finally over. The real end of the war was in August 1945 when the Japanese occupier left Nederlands-Indië (now called Indonesia). Still every year the Dutch remember the people who died during World War II (and fallen soldiers in the years after that in wars in which the Netherlands played a role) on May 4th by hanging the flag half way the flag pole and a silent remembrance of 2 minutes followed by the national anthem at 8 pm. Flower wreaths are brought to war monuments, for instance on the Dam in Amsterdam by the Queen and the Crown Prince and Princess. The next day we celebrate Liberation Day with lots of free concerts and open air markets. If you happen to be around on that date please stick around for a day full of fun and happiness!
source: Dutch Resistance Museum |
