Abé Sahetapy’s novel Passie, een strijd met woorden (roughly translated: Passion, a battle with words) explores the historical ties connecting Australia, Indonesia and the Netherlands through the story of a Moluccan protagonist. Published in 2025, the novel is set in Read more
Among the many stories of Dutch–Australian cooperation during the Second World War, few are as moving as the story of an Australian flag presented to Dutch troops in exile. More than a ceremonial gift, the flag symbolised a shared experience Read more
On 12 September 1944, Australian airmen Steve Sykes and Lee Turner returned from a daring attack on German shipping near Den Helder with an unusual souvenir. Embedded in the nose of their Bristol Beaufighter was part of a ship’s mast. Read more
Among the many stories of Dutch–Australian cooperation during the Second World War, some are preserved not in official histories but in photographs and personal collections. A remarkable set of photographs and documents from Melbourne in 1944 records one such occasion: Read more
This chapter by anthropologist and oral historian Renate Stapelbroek, Met z’n tweeën in een vreemd land (“The two of us in a strange land”) – published in: in Vughtse Historische Reeks (VHR) (Vught 2013) 13, 122-137. – examines postwar migration Read more
Walter Hes started life in the Netherlands. His Roman Catholic rigid thinking was shaken up by the unfriendly break-up of his first marriage, emigration to controversial South Africa in the 70s having to leave 2 kids to grow up with Read more
Among the many Dutch migrants who arrived in Australia with little more than determination and ambition, Richard Kuipers represents a remarkable entrepreneurial success story. Originally from the Netherlands, he transformed a modest idea begun in a caravan in his Sydney Read more
For many Dutch migrants who came to Australia after World War II, migration was driven by economic opportunity, housing shortages or the search for a better future. For Cees Koeman, however, another powerful force played an important role — adventure. Read more
Among the many Dutch migrants who enriched Australia’s cultural life, Sjoerd van der Meulen brought a particularly international perspective. Music formed the central thread throughout his life, but the journey that eventually brought him to Australia followed a path across Read more
Cora Baldock was born on 16 December 1935 in Rotterdam as Corrie Vellekoop, the youngest of three children. Her father, Cornelis Vellekoop, was also born in Rotterdam and worked for the Norwegian Consulate there. His job meant that as a Read more