here - The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in London

The key historic locations in Great Britain for the Netherlands during the Second World War
1. Oranjehaven
15. De Hems
29. Wolverhampton
2. Former Dutch Embassy
16. Former Dutch Bangor Hotel
30. Lincoln
3. Hereford House
17. Imperial Hotel
31. Tempsford
4. Grosvenor House Hotel
18. Dutch Maritime Court
32. London
5. Netherlands Publishing Company
19. Memorial for Women in Special Operations Executive
6. Club Netherlands House
20. Dutch Church
7. Claridge’s Hotel
21. South Mimms
8. Former St. Mary’s Church
22. Mill Hill
9. Brown’s Hotel
23. Maidenhead
10. Stratton House
24. Dulwich
11. Arlington House
25. Biggin Hill
12. Former Royal Residence
26. Falmouth
13. Former Royal Secretariat
27. Holyhead
14. Former Oddenino’s & Bobby’s Bar
28. Fleetwood
70 years of liberation: a special connection between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom
Thousands of Dutch people fled the Netherlands during the Second World War, many of whom sought refuge in
the United Kingdom.
Queen Wilhelmina and part of the Dutch cabinet escaped the German occupation of the Netherlands at the
beginning of the war. In London, they set up a government-in-exile.
Approximately 1,600 Dutch men and 48 Dutch women fled the occupied Netherlands and settled in England to
join the Allied Forces. They are now known as Engelandvaarders (‘England sailors’). They mostly stayed in
London, but some of them lived in other places. There were fishermen, for instance, who could not return to
the Netherlands with their latest catch after the war had officially begun: many of them settled in Fleetwood
and Holyhead.
This map marks the most important places in Great Britain for the Anglo-Dutch relationship during the Second
World War. Commemorations take place annually in many of these places. The Dutch Embassy aims to be
present at as many of these events as possible.
Portrait of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, owned by the Dutch Embassy in London.
Four war artists worked for the Dutch government-in-exile. This portrait by artist Cor Visser was printed in the
resistance movement’s newspaper ‘Vrij Nederland’ (‘Free Netherlands’) on 10 May 1941. It was then
scattered all over the Netherlands by British planes.
The key historic locations in Great Britain for the Netherlands during the Second World War
1. Oranjehaven
Oranjehaven is a club that was founded in London by Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands to thank the
‘Engelandvaarders’ for their loyalty. These were men and women who escaped the occupied Netherlands during the
Second World War and actively fought Germany, Italy and Japan from the United Kingdom. Approximately 1,700
Engelandvaarders made it to the United Kingdom alive, but many others were caught by the Germans or during their
escape. The club opened in 1942, right beneath the apartment of Engelandvaarders Erik Hazelhoff and Peter Tazelaar.
Address: 23 Hyde Park Place, London W2 2LP
2. Former Dutch Embassy
Dutch envoy Sir Edgar M.F.J. Michiels van Verduynen was posted here during the Second World War. He was later
promoted to Ambassador and was part of the Gerbrandy Cabinet, the London-based Dutch government-in-exile.
Address: 21a Portmans Square, London W1H 6LW
3. Hereford House
Until 2010, the Dutch C&A Group was housed in Hereford House. During the Second World War, many Dutch people used
the building’s basement for shelter, and Prime Minister Gerbrandy had his own room in the shelter. The Dutch Ministry
for the Marine Corps and Prince Bernhard’s offices were based on the upper floors.
Address: 523 Oxford St, London W1C 2QJ
4. Grosvenor House Hotel
The Dutch Ministers who fled to England from the Netherlands during the Second World War temporarily stayed in
Grosvenor House Hotel. Among them was Sir Dirk J. de Geer. This image shows the hotel in the 1920s.
Address: 86-90 Park Lane, London W1K 7TN
5. Netherlands Publishing Company
The Netherlands Publishing Company was based in this building. This photo shows members of the Company with the
London-based editorial staff of ‘Vrij Nederland’ (‘Free Netherlands’), a newspaper founded by members of the Dutch
resistance movement.
Address: 7 Old Park Lane, London W1K 1QR
6. Club Netherlands House
The Club Netherlands House was opened by British Ambassador to the Dutch government-in-exile, Sir Neville Bland, on
25 August 1943, in the presence of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. It had been quite troublesome for the
Ambassador to found the club, as there were already several locations in London where the Dutch community could
meet. This particular club, however, turned out to be a great success: 3,481 members joined within two years, among
whom 1,181 were Brits.
Address: 16 Charles Street, London W1J
7. Claridge’s Hotel
Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Bernhard sought refuge in the basement of the Claridge’s Hotel whenever London was
bombed. They were not alone: the Kings of Norway, Greece and Yugoslavia had a residence in Claridge’s. The story goes
that when people would ask for the King on the phone, the phone operator would ask: “Which one?”.
Address: Brook Street, London W1K 4HR
8. Former St. Mary’s Church
After the Dutch Church was bombed, the St. Mary’s Church was used by the Dutch community for church services. When
the Dutch Church in Austin Friars was restored, St. Mary’s Church was demolished.
Address: Bourdon Street, London W1K
9. Brown’s Hotel
Prime Minister Gerbrandy lived in Brown’s Hotel throughout his stay in London. Queen Wilhelmina had stayed in Brown’s
Hotel when she was fourteen years old to visit Queen Victoria with her mother, which may have inspired Gerbrandy to
choose the hotel.
Address: 33 Albemarle Street, London W1S 4BP
10. Stratton House
Initially, the whole Dutch cabinet-in-exile and Radio Oranje - the Dutch national radio station during the War - were
seated in Stratton House. The arrival of an increasing number of escaped civil servants forced both to move to different
locations. The Ministries for Shipping, Foreign Affairs and Information remained in the upper three floors of Stratton
House.
Address: 5 Stratton Street, London W1J 8LB
11. Arlington House
Prime Minister Gerbrandy and his staff worked here throughout the war, together with the Ministries for Education and
Social Affairs. Van Lidth de Jeude, High Commissioner for Refugee Care, was based in Arlington House. He was
promoted to Minister of War in 1942. Arlington House had been the residence of Lord Beaverbrook, owner of the Daily
Express, before the war. The Dutch School (with 300 pupils) and the Dutch Library were also located in Arlington House.
Address: 17-20 Arlington Street, London SW1A 1RL
12. Former Royal Residence
After her arrival in London, Queen Wilhelmina rented this residence in London for £100 a year. When she moved to a
new residence on Chester Square, the building came to house the Dutch Domestic Intelligence Office. Dutch people who
newly arrived in London had to be questioned here before they could call themselves ‘free’.
Address: 82 Eaton Square, London SW1W 9AP
13. Former Royal Secretariat
The Queen’s new residence could not escape the war violence. The house had already been bombed in April 1941,
before the Queen and her royal household moved in. The Queen stayed in the residence during the Blitz, and would only
go to the refuge shelter in the back garden during heavy bombing.
Prince Bernhard’s office was on the ground floor of the building. He met Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema, a Dutch RAF pilot,
here, where they discussed the Dutch espionage service. This service (‘Contact Holland’) was from then on led by Erik
Hazelhoff Roelfzema and Peter Tazelaar from the residence’s garden house.
Address: 77 Chester Square, London SW1W 9DY
14. Former Oddenino’s & Bobby’s Bar
Oddenino’s Bar and Bobby’s Bar were particularly popular with Dutch pilots and soldiers of the Princess Irene Brigade.
Address: Piccadilly Circus, London
15. De Hems
Since its restoration in 1890, this pub has been nick-named after its then-owner Hem, a retired Dutch seaman, but its
official name is The Macclesfield. Hem served a dozen oysters, wholegrain bread, butter and beer for twenty pence. The
pub quickly became very popular with Dutch immigrants in London during the Second World War.
Address: 12 Macclesfield Street, London W1D 5BW
16. Former Bangor Hotel
The former Bangor Hotel was owned by Dutchman W.J. Damman. The Dutch community in London would often gather in
the hotel. When the Simon Bolivar - a Dutch ship - sank on 17 November 1939 after it had been hit by two German
mines, some of the survivors stayed in the hotel to await their return to the Netherlands.
Address: Clarondon Hotel, 56 Bedford Place, London WC1B
17. Imperial Hotel
The Imperial Hotel is another place in London where the Dutch community would often gather. The Dutch Seamen’s
House was seated here, although the hotel’s manager was initially hesitant. The Dutch minister in London, Jo van Dorp,
had to persuade him to open the hotel doors for the Dutch.
Address: 61-66 Russell Square, London WC1B 5BB
18. Dutch Maritime Court
The Dutch Maritime Court moved into the Middelsee Guildhall in 1941. It was the first foreign court on British territory. It
had the power to judge Dutch seamen accused of an offence on a Dutch ship on British soil. In contrast to the British
system, where the accused was supposed to prove his or her innocence, the Dutch system ordered a prosecutor to show
the accused’s guilt. The British were used to the accused standing in the dock, but the Dutch allowed them to sit on
normal chairs without surveillance.
Address: The Supreme Court, Parliament Square, London SW1P 3BD
19. Memorial for Women in Special Operations Executive
These two monuments were built on Albert Embankment in London and on a former RAF base in Tempsford to
commemorate the female agents from the Special Operations Executive. Two Dutch women, Jos Gemmeke and Antonia
Maria Francisca Hamilton (Josephine Wouters), were trained by the British during the Second World War and deployed in
the Netherlands.
Address: Albert Embankment, London, SE1
20. Dutch Church
The original Dutch Church was built in the 16th century on the foundations of a 14th century Catholic church. This
original church was completely destroyed in the night of 15 October 1940, when it was bombed by the Germans. It later
became apparent that the bomb had been made by the British, who had left it in Dunkirk during their hasty departure. A
new church was built fourteen years after the incident, and has been in use since 1956.
Address: 7 Austin Friars, London EC2N 2HA
21. South Mimms: The Grange
The Queen and Prince Bernhard had moved into Stubbings House in Maidenhead when bombardments during the Blitz
became too dangerous in 1940. Stubbings House was quite old, however, and the Queen was suffering from the polluted
air coming from factories in nearby Slough. Prince Bernhard then found The Grange in South Mimms. The Queen’s
Secretary, François van ’t Sant, had been against the move to The Grange: he thought the location of the house was too
close to places the Germans had often bombed. Van ’t Sant was, unfortunately, right, and on 20 February 1944 The
Grange was hit by two German bombs, nearly killing the Queen. One of the bombs failed to explode, saving part of the
house and the Queen’s life. Shortly after the bombings, the Queen moved to a house close to Reading - this house was
further from London and had a basement to shelter from bombs.
Address: South Mimms, Hertfordshire, EN6
22. Mill Hill
Mill Hill Cemetery in the Borough of Paddington has an honorary field with Dutch war graves. 254 Dutch men and
women have been buried here, most of whom were military staff. A bronze statue of a dying man can be found on the
honorary field, which was designed by Dutch sculptor Cor van Kralingen.
Address: Foremans Flat, Westminster Cemetary, Milespit Hill, London, NW7 2RR
23. Maidenhead: Stubbings House
When the bombardments during the Blitz became too dangerous, the Queen moved to Stubbings House in Maidenhead.
She moved in on 30 October 1940 and stayed until the beginning of 1944. During her stay in Stubbings House, Queen
Wilhelmina would spend her days painting or cycle to the nearby village of Hurley. In the garden of the Ye Olde Bell pub,
she could quietly drink a cup of tea. The Queen’s bicycle was secretly bought by her secretary François van ’t Sant at a
local bicycle dealer. The Queen insisted it could not be a new bicycle, as she had a perfectly fine one at home in the
Netherlands. Van ’t Sant, however, bought her a new one anyway, and specifically asked the bicycle dealer to replace
several elements of the bike with older ones - making the bicycle even more expensive than it already was. He lied to the
Queen about the real price of the bicycle, to which she said: “See, much cheaper than a new one”.
Address: Henley Road, Maidenhead, SL6 6QL
24. Dulwich: Huize St. Anna
Captain Jan Marchinus Somer was brought to London in 1943 by Prince Bernhard to set up the Dutch Intelligence
Service. Somer had been part of the resistance movement during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies, and
since then had been a teacher at the Royal Military Academy in Breda. The English helped Somer set up the Service in
Huize St. Anna, named after Anna van Buren, a school for secret agents.
The English Commander Child trained his men in anonymity. As these secret agents were not allowed to spend time with
other Dutchmen, they mostly spent their free time in local pubs. A plaque can be found on the front door of Huize St.
Anna, which today is called Tappen House, to commemorate the 34 men who committed ‘the ultimate sacrifice’.
Presumably they were executed by the Germans.
Address: Dulwich, London, SE21
25. Biggin Hill: St George’s Royal Air Force Chapel of Remembrance
RAF 322 (Dutch) Squadron was the first operational Dutch Squadron. It usually flew with Spitfires to protect London and
its surroundings, to destroy or knock off course the many V1s in the area. V1s were very fast and difficult to intercept.
RAF 322 contributed to the protection of the inhabitants of London and southeast England. A monument in St George’s
Royal Air Force Chapel of Remembrance reads the names of the seven RAF 322 Squadron victims, and one RAF 41
Squadron victim. The 322 Squadron still exists, but today it flies from Leeuwarden Air Base with an F16.
Address: Main Road, Biggin Hill, Westerham, Greater London, TN16 3EJ
26. Falmouth
When the war broke out in May 1940, most of the Dutch fishing vessels were ordered to sail to England. The Royal
Marine took over 17 out of these 38 vessels and transformed them into minesweepers. The fishermen who had arrived in
Falmouth earlier were put to work on these vessels based on their experience and skills.
27. Holyhead
Over 3,000 Dutch fishermen stayed in Anglesey Holyhead during the Second World War. This had a big impact on the
local community, and many of the men eventually married local women. A monument was built in Holyhead to
commemorate the stay of the Dutch fishermen.
28. Fleetwood
Many Dutch fishermen who could not return to the Netherlands settled in Fleetwood, from where they would continue
their business. A Dutch Ship- and Trade Commission was founded here during the war.
29. Wolverhampton: Princess Irene Brigade
The Royal Dutch Brigade ‘Prinses Irene’ (‘Princess Irene’) was formed in Wolverhampton by Engelandvaarders and
volunteers on 11 January 1941. Its traditions were continued by the 17th ‘ Pantserinfanteriebataljon Garderegiment
Fuseliers Prinses Irene’ (‘Armoured Infantry Battalion Guard Regiment Fusileers Princess Irene’). This group gathers on
Jeffcock Road Cemetery in Wolverhampton every year to commemorate the Dutch who died here during the war.
30. Lincoln: International Bomber Command Centre
Lincolnshire was an important base for the RAF Bomber Command. This Command executed Operation Manna in 1945 to
help the starving population of the Netherlands. During this humanitarian operation, 3,100 flights with a total of 7,000
tonnes of food were dropped above the Netherlands over the course of ten days. A flower mosaic was unveiled on 21
April 2015 to commemorate the RAF Bomber Command’s actions seventy years earlier. Eighteen veterans of the Bomber
Command were present at this event.
31. Tempsford
Two monuments were built on Albert Embankment in London and on a former RAF basis in Tempsford to commemorate
the female agents from the Special Operations Executive. Two Dutch women, Jos Gemmeke and Antonia Maria Francisca
Hamilton (Josephine Wouters), were trained by the British during the Second World War and deployed in the Netherlands.