Anton Roodhuyzen recalls his childhood in the Netherlands East Indies, his family’s internment during the Japanese occupation, their post-war evacuation to the Netherlands and his eventual migration to Australia. My full name is Antonie Roodhuyzen. I am of European Dutch descent and was born on 1 December 1936 in the Read more
Published by DAAAG April 8, 2016 Adriaan and Jo on their silver Wedding Anniversary In June 1991, when Adriaan and Johanna Rutte had been married 50 years, a family of no less than seventy members, spanning four generations, celebrated with them. The number was hardly surprising to those who had seen Read more
A Dutch naval engineer from the Netherlands East Indies to wartime Australia When the story of the Royal Netherlands Navy during the Second World War is told, the focus is usually on submarines, destroyers and the men who commanded them in combat. Less visible, but equally essential, were the naval Read more
Wilhelmina De Brey These pieces are in memory of those I failed to help survive. I had hoped to save their lives. Through the betrayal of another person, to the secret police, the Kempeitai, our house was invaded. I had received a visit from a woman three weeks before the raid, and Read more
The story of the Drok family is one of courage, endurance and remarkable resilience in the face of war. During the Japanese occupation of the Netherlands East Indies, Dirk Drok, his wife Kitty, and their young son Arnold experienced the hardships of internment, separation and survival. Yet their lives after Read more
John (Jan) Rikkers John (Jan) Rikkers was born on 5 February 1925 in den Haag, the youngest child of Jan Rikkers and Marie van der Wansem (official papers in later years state his date of birth as 1921, but according to John he had deliberately put his age up so Read more
In 2007, members of Adelaide’s Dutch community published a booklet that made an important contribution to preserving one of the lesser-known chapters of Australian wartime history. Titled The Dutch Contribution to the Defence of Australia during the War in the Pacific, 1941–1945, it was compiled by Ben van Essen and Read more
Since November 2007, a bronze plaque on Adelaide’s Pathway of Honour has recognised the Dutch servicemen and women who helped defend Australia during the Second World War. The plaque, donated by the Dutch community in South Australia, is located on King William Road in Adelaide. Its inscription reads: “Dedicated to Read more
When we think about the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) Government-in-Exile during the Second World War, our attention naturally turns to Camp Columbia, the Dutch administration at Wacolin Brisbane and the military activities at Archerfield. These have become well-known chapters in the history of the Dutch presence in Australia. Yet one Read more
Memories of my father, Captain Adrianus Cornelis Marinus (Hoffie) Hofman Adrianus Cornelis Marinus Hofman was born in Velsen, a small town in the Province of North Holland, on the 26th of September 1898. His childhood sweetheart, Frouwe Christina Boomgaard was born in Breskens in the Province of Zeeland, on 2 Read more