Lou Casch, born Lodewyk Nanlohy, was an Ambonese guitarist whose career connects the former Netherlands East Indies with the emergence of Australian rock and roll. Best known for his work with Johnny O’Keefe and the Dee Jays, he brought a background in jazz to one of Australia’s pioneering rock bands. Read more
Information checked on 9 October 2026. For Dutch migrants in Australia, becoming an Australian citizen can raise a difficult question: will they retain their Dutch nationality? Australia permits dual citizenship, but Dutch law generally provides for automatic loss of Dutch nationality when an adult voluntarily acquires another nationality. There are, Read more
The remarkable story behind Opposite the Lion’s Den During the German occupation of the Netherlands in the Second World War, Daniel Johannes Huygens and his wife Lydia made an extraordinary decision. They opened their home to Jewish friends threatened with arrest and deportation, transforming the upper floor of their house Read more
From De Uiver to the Netherlands East Indies transport squadrons Archerfield Airport occupies a distinctive place in Dutch–Australian aviation history. Its association with the Netherlands began with the celebrated visit of the KLM airliner De Uiver in 1934 and expanded through the pre-war services of the Royal Netherlands Indies Airways Read more
Rebuilding a Dutch fighter force Following the Japanese conquest of the Netherlands East Indies in early 1942, Dutch military aviation had to be rebuilt from personnel and aircraft scattered across Australia and the United States. The immediate priority was the formation of No. 18 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron RAAF, which Read more
Plans for a second Dutch bomber squadron No. 119 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron RAAF was formed in Canberra in September 1943 as a proposed second Dutch–Australian B-25 Mitchell bomber squadron. It was intended to reinforce No. 18 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron RAAF and expand Dutch participation in Allied air operations Read more
The Dutch tanker Ondina played an exceptional role in the Allied war effort from Australia during the Second World War. She survived an unequal battle with two heavily armed Japanese commerce raiders, returned under her own power to Fremantle and subsequently served as a floating fuel depot for Allied submarines Read more
The Japanese conquest of the Netherlands East Indies in early 1942 brought a sudden and initially uncoordinated movement of Dutch and Indonesian military personnel, government officials, merchant seamen, civilian aircrew and refugees to Australia. Most members of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army—the KNIL—were captured when Java surrendered. Nevertheless, a Read more
A large diorama at the Gold Coast War Museum in Mudgeeraba depicts one of the most famous battles fought in the Netherlands during the Second World War: the struggle for the bridge at Arnhem in September 1944. The model shows a Dutch town devastated by fighting, with the bridge, damaged Read more
The evacuation of the Netherlands East Indies flying schools was one of the largest movements of Dutch military aviation personnel during the collapse of the colony in early 1942. Hundreds of student pilots, instructors, observers, wireless operators, air gunners and technical personnel escaped to Australia. Although their stay was brief, Read more