NEFIS and international intelligence cooperation from Australia during WWII The Japanese conquest of the Netherlands East Indies in early 1942 left the Dutch without their principal territory in Asia, much of their armed forces and most of their established intelligence network. Yet within months, Dutch military and intelligence personnel in Read more
monDutch post-war migration to Australia is generally regarded as one of the major success stories of Australia’s mass immigration program. Yet migration was not always permanent. A frequently quoted figure suggests that around 25 per cent of Dutch migrants eventually returned to the Netherlands. But how reliable is that figure? Read more
Ferdinand “Ferdi” Boers arrived in Australia from the Netherlands as an 18-year-old toolmaking apprentice in 1954. Although he brought translated apprenticeship papers with him, Ferdi initially had to accept work as a labourer at the Emmco whitegoods factory in Orange, New South Wales. The intervention of an Estonian supervisor eventually Read more
Johnny Young was one of Australia’s most influential singers, songwriters, television producers and popular entertainers. To generations of Australians, he is best remembered as the host of Young Talent Time, the long-running television program that helped launch the careers of Tina Arena, Dannii Minogue, Debra Byrne and many other young Read more
Introduction The Cornelis Uidam Collection brings together newspaper reports, official migration records, church publications, lectures, radio talks, photographs and family material documenting the life and work of the Reverend Cornelis ‘Cor’ Uidam (1924–2005). Uidam came to Sydney in 1960 to serve Dutch migrants, but his activities extended well beyond the Read more
The Zuiderkruis was one of three former American Victory ships acquired by the Dutch Government after the Second World War. Together with the Groote Beer and Waterman, she became part of the Kleine Drie—the “Little Three”—that transported thousands of emigrants from the Netherlands to Australia and other overseas destinations. Unlike Read more
The ships that carried a generation to a new homeland During the decades following the Second World War, tens of thousands of Dutch emigrants travelled by sea to begin new lives in Australia. Their journeys formed part of the much larger post-war migration movement that transformed Australian society and established Read more
Jan (John) Mees, a longstanding volunteer and representative of the Dutch-Australian community in New South Wales, passed away at Abel Tasman Village on 1 August 2026, aged 97. Born in Amersfoort in the Netherlands on 10 December 1928, Jan subsequently made his home in Australia. He lived for many years Read more
A group photograph taken aboard the Netherlands hospital ship Oranje in Sydney on 2 March 1943 records a little-known connection between one of the most celebrated Dutch ships of the Second World War and one of Australia’s greatest maritime tragedies. Within weeks of the photograph being taken, 28 Australian personnel Read more
The KPM steamship ’s Jacob was the first of three Dutch merchant vessels lost during Operation Lilliput. On 8 March 1943, while carrying troops and supplies from Milne Bay towards Oro Bay, she was attacked by Japanese bombers near Porlock Harbour. Three direct hits and numerous near misses caused serious Read more