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Simon Gronowski’s Great Escape from the 20th Nazi Convoy
10 January 2024
Meet Simon Gronowski, a 92-year-old jazz pianist and lawyer from Brussels, and, above all, a Holocaust survivor who escaped from a deportation train to Auschwitz.
Holocaust Past Meets Modern Amsterdam in Steve McQueen Documentary ‘Occupied City’
6 December 2023
12 Years a Slave director Steve McQueen takes us on an amazing, meditative journey through Amsterdam in Occupied City. His documentary shows how the Second World War has shaped the contemporary face of the Dutch capital.
Why the Belgian Resistance Deserves More Attention
6 May 2020
The importance of the resistance during World War II doesn’t form part of the Belgian collective memory. The political and moral legacy of those who resisted the German occupier has been largely forgotten. That’s remarkable, as the resistance represents an impressive achievement. It deserves a m
Etty Hillesum: a Life Interrupted, a Spirit Unperturbed
6 May 2020
In 1981, nearly forty years after she was killed in Auschwitz, Dutch Jewish Etty Hillesum found fame overnight after her diary entries were published in Het verstoorde leven (An Interrupted Life). Her diary notes, which she jotted down in occupied Amsterdam, are a testament to strong personal develo
The History of the Second World War Must Not Become a Safe Past
30 April 2020
The unresolved past of the Second World War still casts its shadow over Belgium and the Netherlands. In 2020, remembrance has replaced history as the dominant way of working through our feelings about the war. This duty towards remembrance lulls us into a false sense of security, according to histor
The World Was Drinking and Whoring
20 April 2020
Can we view 1945 as the zero point of the world we live in today, 75 years later? Certainly, much for which a framework was created at the time – from the welfare state to economic growth, from the moral manifestation of universal human rights to international alliances – is under threat today.
Remembering the V2 Attack on Cinema Rex
17 December 2019
Thousands of people walk down Antwerp’s De Keyserlei every day. But almost no one stops to look at the plaque set in the pavement outside the modern UGC Cinema. Unveiled in 2009, it is the only reminder of the deadliest rocket attack of World War Two. On 16 December 1944, an unmanned V2 rocket wa
The Amsterdam Zoo Was a Hiding Place to Escape From the Nazis
10 December 2019
At the Amsterdam Light Festival, which illuminates the city with the most wonderful works of art, one light installation refers to a dark page in Dutch history. Hiding in the Wolf’s Lair brings back alive the fact that during the Second World War, the Amsterdam Artis Zoo served as a hiding place f
The Battle of Arnhem: An Unfortunate Bridge Too Far
17 September 2019
The Battle of Arnhem, which was fought from 17 to 25 September 1944, famously ended in failure for the Allied forces. On the contrary, for the German troops, the clash meant a final major military victory.
Liberation of Belgium: More than ‘Cigarettes for Dad’ and ‘Chocolates for Mummy’
5 September 2019
The commemorative ceremonies marking the liberation of Belgium, 75 years ago by now, spark memories of a joyful age in which friendly tanks triumphantly rolled down the streets. The unbridled enthusiasm Belgians witnessed back then is magnified today, and re-enacted here and there. However, those re
