Five Brothers and a War

A van Pelt Night Out

Other groups or bands would prefer the Dierentuin (“the Zoo”), which was a concert hall located on the zoo grounds. However, the zoo was closed due to the war in 1943, as the area had been taken over by the Germans, and in any event was on the edge of the Sperrgebeit so no citizens could visit. The concert hall was then also closed, and was instead used as a barracks and hospital for the Wehrmacht . That hall was only a very short distance from the K & W Gebouw , which was on the other side of the exclusion zone line. The K & W Gebouw was designed in the Moorish style, and this was the reason for the alternate name, the Moors Paleis (“Moor Palace”). It was very ornate, both inside and out, and when the music started, was very lively. Bands like the Kilima Hawaiians, the Kit Kat Saxophone Rascals, the Dutch Swing College and the like would perform there.

van Pelt

The Dierentuin concert hall, near downtown Den Haag. It was built in 1893 and demolished in 1968.

Five Brothers and a War

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