Location
225 to 256 of 386 results
-
St. Martin's Church Hallum
St. Martin's Church Hallum
-
Van der Valk Hotel Hurdegaryp
Van der Valk Hotel Hurdegaryp
-
Stavoren (Starum)
Stavoren (Starum)
-
De Klinze Country House and Estate
De Klinze Country House and Estate
-
The liberation of Friesland
The liberation of Friesland
By 18 April, the whole province of Friesland had been liberated, except for the Wadden Islands. Compared to other provinces, there was little fighting in Friesland. Overall, the few thousand German troops who had been unable to escape from Friesland were defeated by the Canadians relatively quickly.
The commander of the Royal Canadian Dragoons, Lieutenant Colonel Landell, praised the actions of the resistance by stating that "Friesland liberated herself". While that may be a bit of an exaggeration, the actions of the Frisian resistance undoubtedly accelerated the liberation. And reduced the number of casualties on the Allied side.
At least 31 resistance fighters lost their lives in confrontations with German troops and their Dutch accomplices. At least eleven Canadians and one Frenchman were killed on the Allied side. Dozens of civilian victims were also killed in the fighting and shelling. The number of casualties on the German side is not known, but it is believed that the number ran into hundreds. With 320 destroyed and 4000 damaged homes and 80 destroyed bridges, Friesland was materially the least damaged province of the Netherlands.
Many German soldiers fled towards the western part of the country. The retreating German troops gathered mostly in Harlingen, Makkum and Lemmer. From there, they tried to get away by boat across the IJsselmeer or via the Afsluitdijk to North Holland. The Wadden Islands also became a refuge for collaborators and German soldiers. Here, liberation was longer in coming.
On the island of Terschelling, the last German troops were disarmed by a British artillery regiment on 29 May. Two days later, the British crossed from Terschelling to Vlieland, and the liberation of that island was also a fact. Ameland was liberated on 3 June.
Personnel from the infamous Scholtenhuis, the SD headquarters in Groningen, had entrenched themselves on Schiermonnikoog. After their departure on 31 May, there was a celebration on the island, in spite of the six hundred members of the occupying troops who still were there. Only on 11 June did the last German soldiers leave Schiermonnikoog, and then the whole province of Friesland was free.
Most Canadian units that had liberated Friesland continued the battle in Groningen and North Germany after 18 April. Their war ended on 8 May 1945, when the surrender of all German armed forces became effective.
-
-
Old Town Hall in Dokkum
Old Town Hall in Dokkum
-
Huize Moddergat
Huize Moddergat
-
Schreiershoek recreation and vacation park
Schreiershoek recreation and vacation park
-
TOP Oostmahorn
TOP Oostmahorn
-
B&B Oan't Wetter
B&B Oan't Wetter
-
it Dreamlân ecolodge
it Dreamlân ecolodge
Direct boekbaar
-
Minicamping De Zilveren Maan
Minicamping De Zilveren Maan
-
Stania State Country House and Estate
Stania State Country House and Estate
-
De Babbelaar Café in Burgum
De Babbelaar Café in Burgum
-
St. Boniface's Church Damwâld
St. Boniface's Church Damwâld
-
Kroesepaed Hiking Trail
Kroesepaed Hiking Trail
-
National Park 'Lauwersmeer'
National Park 'Lauwersmeer'
-
Fries Landbouwmuseum (Frisian Agricultural Museum)
Fries Landbouwmuseum (Frisian Agricultural Museum)
-
Eastermar Bathing and Play Area
Eastermar Bathing and Play Area
-
Walburga Church in Drogeham
Walburga Church in Drogeham
-
De Bolstienpleats
De Bolstienpleats
-
Bartlehiem (Bartlehiem)
Bartlehiem (Bartlehiem)
-
Sytzama House
Sytzama House
What is now a grand café has a history closely connected with local government, the Second World War, and Baron Willem van Sytzama, the building's first owner, after whom it is named.
In Van Sytzama's time, there were very few buildings nearby. Instead, a large landscaped garden with extensive ponds stretched out behind the house. Baron Willem van Sytzama believed he was happily married to Cecilia van Heemskerk, but she left him for another man. Although the baron took legal action in an attempt to prevent the separation, he was unsuccessful. She never returned, and he never remarried. In later years, however, the building served as Kollum's town hall, where hundreds of marriages were celebrated.
During the Second World War, Mayor Gerben Feitsma was sworn into office in this building. The ceremony took place with prominent displays of flags and the Nazi salute. For that reason, Feitsma is often described as an NSB (Dutch National Socialist Movement) mayor. At the same time, there is evidence that he occasionally helped prevent residents of Kollum from being sent to Germany for forced labour by employing them on his farm. Because of his wartime record, his name is not always included in historical accounts.
His brother, Jan Feitsma, became notorious for a different reason. As Prosecutor General, he ordered signs reading "Jews Forbidden" to be displayed throughout the occupied Netherlands. The policy caused considerable controversy in Kollum during the war. The local tennis club preferred to close its courts rather than display such a sign. In early 1945, Jan Feitsma was shot dead by members of the Dutch Resistance. His funeral in Kollum was attended by numerous members of the SS.
-
-
B&B De Hoffstee
B&B De Hoffstee
-
Farm next to the church
Farm next to the church
-
Church of Brantgum
Church of Brantgum
-
De Dikke Draai
De Dikke Draai
-
Galeslot
Galeslot
-
Brasserie Om de dobben
Brasserie Om de dobben
-
it Dreamlân holiday home
it Dreamlân holiday home
-
TOP Harkema
TOP Harkema
-
Makkum War Memorial
Makkum War Memorial
By 16 April, the major part of Friesland had been liberated. But some important targets of the Canadians had not yet been achieved. They wanted to win the Frisian ports and the Head of the Afsluitdijk from the Germans as quickly as possible. But they would be hard fought. Both the ports and the Afsluitdijk were used by German soldiers to escape to North Holland.
As elsewhere in Friesland, the Canadians were helped by resistance fighters from the Dutch Domestic Armed Forces (N.B.S.) They suffered several casualties near Makkum. On 16 April, Schelte Bruinsma and Simon Sipma were killed in an attack on a farm in which the Germans had entrenched themselves. The next day, another group tried to occupy a bridge under Makkum. However, the Germans caught sight of them and in the ensuing gunfight, Rinnert Anema, Roelof van der Meer and Hendrik Postma were killed. Makkum was liberated on 18 April, as one of the last villages in Friesland.
The monument at the Buren in Makkum was unveiled in 1952 in commemoration of the members of the Dutch Domestic Armed Forces who were killed around the village during the struggle for liberation.
-
