news Archives - Page 2 of 21 - Dutch Australia Cultural Centre

Bernhard Jan Ruesink: Dutch military aviation between the Netherlands East Indies, Australia and Indonesia

The military service records of Bernhard Jan Ruesink provide another remarkable insight into the highly international character of Dutch wartime military history during and after the Second World War. His career connected the Netherlands East Indies (NEI), the Netherlands, Switzerland, England, Australia and postwar Indonesia through Allied military aviation and Read more

By DACC, 2 monthsMay 7, 2026 ago

Aviation and Shipping

Willy Erkelens: Dutch military aviation between the Netherlands East Indies, Australia and America

The military service records of Willy Erkelens provide a fascinating insight into the international wartime and postwar networks that connected the Netherlands East Indies (NEI), Australia, the United States and Indonesia during and after the Second World War. His career reflects the experiences of many Dutch military personnel who escaped Read more

By DACC, 2 monthsMay 7, 2026 ago

Maritime History

Dutch merchant shipping from Australia: the lifeline to New Guinea

Introduction Following the fall of the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) in early 1942, a significant part of the Dutch maritime fleet regrouped in Australia. What emerged from this chaotic retreat was not simply a displaced fleet, but a crucial logistical force that would play a vital role in sustaining Allied Read more

By DACC, 2 monthsMay 4, 2026 ago

Maritime History

Dutch connections : 400 years of Australian-Dutch maritime links 1606-2006

This article, published in Dutch connections: 400 years of Australian–Dutch maritime links 1606–2006 and presented by Nonja Peters at the Australian National Maritime Museum, examines the gap between expectation and reality in post-war Dutch migration to Australia between 1947 and 1970. Drawing on historical records, media accounts, and migrant testimonies, Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsMay 2, 2026 ago

Military and Political History

Sardjono: from Boven-Digoel detainee to Indonesian political activist in wartime Australia

Introduction Sardjono (often also written as Sordjono) was one of a group of Indonesian political detainees whose wartime journey from Dutch colonial imprisonment to Australia placed him at the centre of a significant historical transition. His experience reflects the broader trajectory of many Indonesians who, during the Second World War, Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsApril 26, 2026 ago

Military and Political History

NIGIS: the Dutch wartime voice from Brisbane

Among the many functions of the Netherlands East Indies Government-in-exile based at Camp Columbia in Brisbane during World War II, one of the most strategically significant—and least remembered—was the work of NIGIS, the Netherlands Indies Government Information Service. Operating in close cooperation with Allied information and propaganda units, NIGIS served as the Dutch government’s Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsApril 25, 2026 ago

Maritime History

Dutch–Australian tensions over Indonesia during and after World War II

Introduction During the Second World War, Australia and the Netherlands were close allies, brought together by the shared struggle against Japan. Following the collapse of the Netherlands East Indies in 1942, Australia became the principal base for Dutch military, administrative and maritime operations in exile. Yet this cooperation was accompanied Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsApril 24, 2026 ago

Military and Political History

Between duty and desperation: The treason case within 18 (NEI) Squadron in 1942

The history of No. 18 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron RAAF is often told as one of Allied cooperation and operational success. Yet in its early period in Australia, the squadron experienced a profound internal crisis that culminated in one of the most controversial legal cases involving Dutch forces in exile Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsApril 22, 2026 ago

Migration history

Successful, but not effortless: Dutch migrants and the reality behind return migration

A 2006 episode of Andere Tijden titled Australië: integreren met hindernissen revisited postwar migration from the Netherlands to Australia. What makes this account particularly valuable is that it challenges the long-standing perception that Dutch migration was a largely smooth and successful process. Instead, it highlights a more complex reality—one in Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsApril 16, 2026 ago

Literature

WWII Pilot Guus Hagers, Lienke and the Forgotten Story

One of the most remarkable pilots of the Netherlands East Indies Air Force (ML-KNIL) in Australia during World War II was Gerson (Guus) Hagers, who served with No. 18 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron RAAF. In February 1942 he was part of the group tasked with receiving newly acquired B-25 bombers Read more

By DACC, 3 monthsApril 12, 2026 ago