Aviation and Shipping
The 18 Netherlands East Indies Squadron RAAF – WWII – Paining added.
The 18 Netherlands East Indies squadron RAAF was established on April 4 1942 They destroyed many Japanese operations on NEI, sunk 6 Japanese ships and numerous smaller boats.
Maritime History
Honouring the forgotten: Abraham Crijnssen and its role in Allied naval operations from Brisbane.
The HNLMS Abraham Crijnssen, a Dutch minesweeper famed for its remarkable escape from the Japanese-occupied Netherlands East Indies by disguising itself as a tropical island, reached Australia in March 1942. After a refit and the installation of new ASDIC equipment, the vessel was commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) as HMAS Abraham Read more…
Cultural Events and Activities
Brisbane@War: Australia, USA, Netherlands, and UK – Marking the 80th anniversary of WWII’s end with a symposium and tours
This year, 2025, marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, a momentous milestone in Australia’s history and the conclusion of the war in the Pacific. Brisbane played a pivotal role as a strategic hub for Allied operations, cementing its place in global wartime history. The Camp Read more…
Military and Political History
Dutch names at the National Australia Remembers Freedom Wall Brisbane
The National Australia Remembers Freedom Wall commemorates the “sacrifice of a generation” that have resulted in 50 years of peace in the Pacific since World War Two, and honours the servicemen and servicewomen who died in service or were killed in action, and also those who brought freedom to Australia, including workers Read more…
Military and Political History
The secret and dangerous operations of Australia’s and the Netherlands’ Pacific War flying boat crews
The Pacific War during World War II saw countless daring operations carried out by Allied forces, often in extreme secrecy. Among these, the contributions of Australia’s RAAF Catalina crews and their Dutch counterparts from the Marine Luchtvaartdienst (MLD) stand out as critical yet often overlooked components of the broader Allied Read more…
Military and Political History
Sydney had two Dutch hospitals in the 1940s
Pierre van der Eng Sydney had two Dutch hospitals during 1944-1946. Both were related to the presence in Australia of a growing number of people from colonial Indonesia during 1942-1945. Since March 1942, officials of the government the Netherlands East Indies left Indonesia for Australia before the Japanese occupation of Read more…
Literature
Erinnerungen family de Nijs
A family’s journey from persecution to peace In 1939, the Nazi regime upended the life of my grandfather, a tax accountant in Vienna, Austria. He owned a large apartment in the city, but being born in Czechoslovakia made him a target, despite my grandmother Caroline Kleiner’s Catholic faith and blonde Read more…
Military and Political History
Dutch soldiers commemorates on the Afghan Tarin Kowt Memorial, Corinda, Queensland
The Tarin Kowt Memorial, located in Corinda, Queensland, is a bronze replica of the original memorial wall from Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan. It honors the men and women from various nations who served in Uruzgan Province, listing the names of 114 coalition soldiers who lost their lives there, including 40 Australians. Read more…
Military and Political History
Australians at War in Netherlands East Indies – Film Archive
Selected individuals linked to the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) during World War II for which the Archives holds interviews. Click here for the interviews. The Archive is an Australian Government initiative, commissioned through the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. It is a unique, historical collection, a resource for everyone interested in Read more…