Archive

London, Brisbane and Canberra- The Competing Centres of Power within the Dutch Wartime Alliance

When Germany invaded the Netherlands in May 1940, Queen Wilhelmina and the Dutch Government escaped to London, where they continued as the internationally recognised government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Constitutionally, the situation appeared straightforward: the Queen remained Head of State, Prime Minister Pieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy led the government, Read more

By DACC, ago

The Challenge of Government in Exile – How War Forged an Enduring Dutch–Australian Partnership

Why Australia’s Partnership with the Netherlands Government-in-Exile and the Netherlands East Indies Still Matters By Paul Budde “What does it actually take to establish a government-in-exile?” It is a deceptively simple question. Over the past several years I have had the privilege of working with historians, archaeologists, archivists and volunteers Read more

By DACC, ago

Dutch, Australian and Indonesian Agents: The NEI Section of Australia’s Secret War

During the Second World War, Dutch, Australian and Indonesian personnel worked together in a little-known series of clandestine operations against Japanese forces occupying the Netherlands East Indies. Their activities were organised through the Netherlands East Indies Section of the Inter-Allied Services Department (IASD), a secret Australian-based organisation responsible for intelligence Read more

By DACC, ago

Optiver – A Dutch financial technology company with its Asia-Pacific base in Sydney

The story of Dutch enterprise in Australia is often associated with shipping, manufacturing, agriculture, engineering and post-war migration. Optiver represents a much more recent chapter: the arrival of a Dutch company operating at the intersection of finance, mathematics and advanced computer technology. Founded in Amsterdam in 1986, Optiver has developed Read more

By DACC, ago

From De Zilk to Monbulk: The Van Berkel Family and the Flowering of a Dutch-Australian Industry

Among the many Dutch families who helped shape post-war Australia, few have left such a lasting legacy as the Van Berkel family. Today, their name is synonymous with tulips, flower bulbs and horticulture in Victoria’s Dandenong Ranges. Yet behind this successful family business lies a remarkable migration story—one that begins Read more

By DACC, ago