In 1955, the Broekman family became part of the great wave of post-war Dutch emigration. That year, young cook Bert Broekman was working aboard the emigrant ship SS Zuiderkruis. On the same voyage, his older brother Jan, sister-in-law Annie and young nephew Henk were leaving the Netherlands to begin a Read more
For many Australians with Dutch heritage, learning the language can be a meaningful way to connect with family roots and cultural traditions. Based in Canberra, Dutch language learners have the opportunity to join courses online at Access Art Academy, a mother-and-daughter team of Marion Verbruggen and Marianne Mettes. A Passion Read more
The Wynhausen family represents one of the many Dutch–Jewish stories of postwar migration to Australia. Paul Wynhausen and Marianne (Mary) Nathans were both born in the Netherlands and endured the years of Nazi occupation. They met in Switzerland, where many Dutch Jews had taken refuge during the Second World War. Read more
Introduction The Aceh War (1873–1904), fought in the northern Sumatran region of Atjeh (Aceh), was the longest and most costly conflict in Dutch colonial history in the East Indies. The Dutch launched repeated campaigns to subdue the fiercely independent Sultanate of Aceh, which controlled a strategic position at the entrance Read more
This document contains the catalogue items associated with Dr Nonja Peters from the State Library of Western Australia (SLWA). Below the pdf is a searchable list of titles, interviewees/subjects, and years to make it easier for search engines to find names and titles. A more readable full catalogue see the Read more
Symposium Allied Co-operation in Brisbane during WWII: Australia, USA, Netherlands, UK The symposium Allied Co-operation in Brisbane during WWII: Australia, USA, Netherlands, UK (University of Queensland, 30–31 August 2025) drew a full house of delegates, historians, community representatives, and descendants to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the Read more
Lia van Haren Lia van Haren has been a long-standing volunteer at the Dutch Australian Cultural Centre (DACC), beginning her service in 2009. Before this, she had little involvement with Dutch organisations in Australia, having assimilated quickly into the broader community after migrating with her family in 1950. Her family’s Read more
Ian Fairweather and the Netherlands Ian Fairweather (1891–1974), born in Bridge of Allan, Scotland, became one of Australia’s most distinctive modern painters. His path to Australia was long and unusual, and the Netherlands played an important part in it. Wartime and The Hague In 1914 Fairweather joined the British Army. Read more
Charleville, in western Queensland, is often remembered for its role as a major American base during the Second World War. Less well known is the town’s connection to the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) through the Dutch airline KNILM (Koninklijke Nederlandsch-Indische Luchtvaart Maatschappij). For a brief but critical period before and Read more
Christiaan Rudolph Victor Slotemaker de Bruine (born 7 May 1941, The Hague; died 27 August 2024, Canberra) was a Dutch-Australian landscape architect best known as the originator and designer of Canberra’s Floriade, now Australia’s largest spring festival. He conceived Floriade in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from the famous Keukenhof in Read more