Five Brothers and a War

1943 Summary

Jul 26

Priest Titus Brandsma dies by lethal injection in Dachau.

Aug

Socialist politician W. Drees (later to become prime minister) forms national committee.

Aug 02 Aug 07

Germans arrest first member of a crack team (KP Meppel).

The “Landelijke Organisatie voor hulp aan onderduikers” (LO) takes in as member resistance groups operating south of the rivers. Mr. J.A.W. Burgers, who escaped occupied Holland, becomes a member of the Gerbrandy cabinet in London.

Aug 11

Aug 23 Aug 25 Aug 31

First massive night-time air raid on Berlin. Soviets again retake Charkow.

Germans order 72 hour work week.

Two Dutch agents, Dourlein and Ubbink, arrested in England-spiel betrayal, escape from tightly-controlled Haaren jail. In pre-emptive move, German radioman cleverly warns London for pair now “working” for SD. In a broadcast, Queen Wilhelmina announces military rule for Holland. Resistance group CS-6 kills Utrecht's NSB police chief Kerlen. Allies land on mainland Italy. Rauter announces plans of anti-fraud food distribution measure Tweede Distributiestamkaart.

Sep 02 Sep 03

Sep 07

Sep 08 Sep 12 Sep 27

Italy surrenders.

German airborne unit frees Mussolini.

Resistance paper Het Parool reveals existence of gas chambers in concentration camps. Final large round-up of Amsterdam Jews, 10,000 caught and deported, among them members of Jewish council. First Silbertanne execution-type murders (Boldewijn, Dykstra and Roelfsema) at Meppel in retaliation of resistance liquidations of dangerous infiltrators and collaborators.

history Sep 29

Oct 01 Oct 05 Oct 10 Oct 13 Oct 18 Oct 19 Oct 25

Allies take Naples, Italy.

Reichskommissar Seyß-Inquart outlines policy regarding Jews still at large.

Americans bomb Enschede in error, 151 killed. Italy changes sides and declares war on Germany.

Well-known Dutch author A.M. de Jong falls victim to Silbertanne murder. Germans raid provincial L.O. meeting at Hoorn, arrest entire leadership. Dutch top departmental bureaucrats gather for a final meeting during the German occupation. Top bureaucrat Louwes at Voedselvoorziening warns Germans of low levels of food supplies to the population; urges drastic reductions to Wehrmacht demands for food.

Oct 27

Five Brothers and a War

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