Introduction Following the Japanese conquest of the Netherlands East Indies in early 1942, Australia became the principal base from which Dutch military, intelligence and government organisations attempted to maintain contact with the occupied territories and prepare for an eventual Allied Read more
In the quiet grounds of Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery in the Netherlands lie more than 1,750 Allied servicemen, most of whom died during the Battle of Arnhem in September 1944. Among them are four members of the Royal Australian Air 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 Read more
Following the Japanese invasion of the Netherlands East Indies in early 1942, surviving Dutch and Indonesian air-force personnel, naval aviators, civilian aircrews and aircraft escaped to Australia. From Australian bases they reorganised, trained and returned to active service as part Read more
Shipwrecks, aircraft, Dutch East India Company history and Camp Columbia form part of an expanding program of Dutch–Australian heritage cooperation A new report from the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands highlights the breadth of Dutch-related heritage projects currently being Read more
Sophia Kruyswijk-van Thiel was both a member of the Vrouwenkorps Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger (VK-KNIL) and one of its most important historians. Her wartime generation had been among the first Dutch women formally admitted to military service, but its contribution was Read more
In December 1946, the Curaçao newspaper Amigoe di Curaçao published the recollections of a young woman who had volunteered for the Dutch Women’s Corps, the Vrouwenkorps KNIL (VK-KNIL). Her article, “Ik ging naar Java als Vrijwilligster” (“I Went to Java Read more
Joan Butler grew up in a Dutch migrant family on a farm in Western Australia. During the Second World War, she worked as a Land Girl before joining the Women’s Corps of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army. At Camp Read more
The Second World War transformed Ineke Thysse’s life. She arrived in Australia from the Netherlands East Indies intending to study architecture, but the Japanese occupation separated her from her family and prevented her return. She subsequently became one of the Read more
The Vrouwenkorps Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger (VK-KNIL)—the Women’s Corps of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army—was established in Melbourne on 5 March 1944. Its members trained and worked in Australia before many were deployed to Netherlands New Guinea, Java, Sumatra and Read more