Siebren Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema (3 April 1917 – 26 September 2007) was a Dutch writer who became a resistance fighter and RAF pilot during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Near the end of the war he was
adjudant
Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commiss ...
(assistant) to
Queen Wilhelmina
Wilhelmina (; Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria; 31 August 1880 – 28 November 1962) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. She reigned for nearly 58 years, making her the longest-reigning monarch in Dutch history, as ...
. He was made Knight 4th class of the
Military William Order
The Military William Order, or often named Military Order of William ( Dutch: , abbreviation: MWO), is the oldest and highest honour of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is named after St. William of Gellone (755–814), the first Prince of Ora ...
. He is perhaps best known for his book (Soldier of Orange) which described his experiences in the war. His book was later made into a film. The book and the film about it eventually were made into the most successful Dutch
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
ever, premiering 30 October 2010.
Early life
Roelfzema was born in the former
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...
in
Surabaya
Surabaya is the capital city of East Java Provinces of Indonesia, province and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. Located on the northeastern corner of Java island, on the Madura Strai ...
, on
Java
Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...
, when it was under colonial rule. He was from a patrician family, which is listed in the . He was the second child of Siebren Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema and his wife Cornelia Vreede. His older sister, Ellen, had been born two years before.
His father managed rubber and coffee plantations.
In the 1930s the family returned to the Netherlands so the children could be provided with a good education.
They initially moved to
The Hague
The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
, and later moved on to
Wassenaar
Wassenaar (; population: in ) is a municipality and town located in the province of South Holland, on the western coast of the Netherlands.
An affluent suburb of The Hague, Wassenaar lies north of that city on the N44/A44 highway near the Nort ...
.
[ He played soccer and was a member of the Hague Football Association.
Roelfzema started writing in his teens.] From 16 years of age onward he was committed to becoming a writer. He attended Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...
and was a member of the Leidsch Student Corps ''Minerva society'' while living at Rapenburg 56 across the canal from the . During his hazing initiation, the president of his student corps, Ernst de Jonge, threw a soup tureen at a group of new students, striking Roelfzema in the head and cutting his scalp. De Jonge had been an Olympic rower at the 1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...
in Berlin, and was very popular among the students. His accidental wounding of Roelfzema was the basis for their forming a friendship.
After completing his first year of study, Roelfzema took time off to travel to the United States and crossed the country by freighthopping
Freighthopping or trainhopping is the act of boarding and riding a freightcar without permission. This activity itself is often considered to be illegal, although this varies by geography. It may be associated with other illegal activities such ...
and hitchhiking
Hitchhiking (also known as thumbing, autostop or hitching) is a means of transportation that is gained by asking individuals, usually strangers, for a ride in their car or other vehicle. The ride is usually, but not always, free.
Signaling ...
. In 1939, he wrote a book of this experience, titled ''Rendezvous in San Francisco'', which became a bestseller in the Netherlands.[Regional Archive, Leiden: Aantekeningen van Mr. P.J. Idenburg betreffende het Leids Universitair verzet (Notes by Mr. P.J. Idenburg regarding the Leiden University resistance) ](_blank)
/ref>
War in Europe
Following his trip abroad Roelfzema returned to Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...
to continue his studies. When war broke out in Europe in September, 1939, Roelfzema and his fellow students supposed Holland would remain neutral
Neutral or neutrality may refer to:
Mathematics and natural science Biology
* Neutral organisms, in ecology, those that obey the unified neutral theory of biodiversity
Chemistry and physics
* Neutralization (chemistry), a chemical reaction in ...
as it had during the First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. When the Soviet Union invaded
An invasion is a military offensive of combatants of one geopolitical entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory controlled by another similar entity, often involving acts of aggression.
Generally, invasions have objectives of co ...
Finland in November he traveled there to cover the conflict, working as a war correspondent for the , the and the . Afterwards he wrote a book about it, titled (The Smoldering Fire).
Following the conclusion of the war in Finland in March 1940, he returned home and resumed his life as a student at Leiden. He was there at the time of the German invasion of the Netherlands
The German invasion of the Netherlands (), otherwise known as the Battle of the Netherlands (), was a military campaign, part of Case Yellow (), the Nazi German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands) and Fran ...
on 10 May 1940. Roelfzema joined the Dutch army reserve, but the Netherlands was overrun by the German army
The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...
in five days, bringing the war to a close before he was deployed. Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Wilhelmina (; Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria; 31 August 1880 – 28 November 1962) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. She reigned for nearly 58 years, making her the longest-reigning monarch in Dutch history, as ...
fled to London to establish the government in exile
A government-in-exile (GiE) is a political group that claims to be the legitimate government of a sovereign state or semi-sovereign state, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile usu ...
there.[
Roelfzema continued his studies during the occupation and became involved in the ]Dutch underground
The Dutch resistance () to the German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II can be mainly characterized as non-violent. The primary organizers were the Communist Party, churches, and independent groups. Over 300,000 people were hi ...
. In October, the faculty at Leiden received a letter demanding to know if they were of Jewish heritage. On 23 November all the Jewish staff at the university were dismissed. The dean of the Law School, Professor Rudolph Cleveringa, gave a speech on 26 November 1940 condemning these dismissals. He and several other of the law professors were arrested. This instigated a 48-hour strike by the students. In response the Germans closed the university.
In February 1941, Roelfzema wrote his 'Leids manifesto', which criticized German demands of excluding the Jewish students from the student societies. It called upon the students of Leiden to resist the policies of the German occupiers. He printed it at his own expense, and, during the night of 14/15 February, Roelfzema and eleven of his compatriots posted it all over Leiden. Ten days later, the board of the university made a request of the students that they resist the German occupiers no further.[Regional Archive, Leiden: Aantekeningen van Mr. P.J. Idenburg betreffende het Leids Universitair verzet (Notes by Mr. P.J. Idenburg regarding the Leiden University resistance) ](_blank)
/ref> Roelfzema wrote a reply on 6 March, pledging in principle to commit no more opposition at the university. In April he was arrested by the secret police and held for a week at the notorious "Orange hotel", a political prison run by the Germans in Scheveningen
Scheveningen () is one of the eight districts of The Hague, Netherlands, as well as a subdistrict () of that city. Scheveningen is a modern seaside resort with a long, sandy beach, an esplanade, a pier, and a lighthouse. The beach is popular ...
.
In the midst of the unrest and disruption, the Germans re-opened Leiden University for ten days. As it happened, Roelfzema had been studying hard and took this opportunity to take exams. Taking his exams in formal tuxedo, as was the custom of his student society, Minerva, he passed and was awarded his doctorate in law on 10 June 1941. He was the first member of his class to attain the degree. Leiden University was closed again soon afterwards. Three weeks later, he was an , a Dutchman who escaped Nazi control by finding a way to reach England. Roelfzema, Peter Tazelaar, Bram van der Stok
Abraham Lamertus "Bram" van der Stok, (13 October 1915 – 8 February 1993), also known as Bob van der Stok, was a World War II fighter pilot and flying ace, and is the most decorated aviator in Dutch history.
In March 1944, he broke out of Sta ...
, Gerard Volkersz and Toon Buitendijk posed as crew members aboard the , a Swiss freighter bound for New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. The ship was intercepted in the North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
by the British cruiser , suspecting her to be a German supply ship. The ''Devonshire'' escorted her to Tórshavn
Tórshavn (; ; Danish language, Danish: ''Thorshavn''), usually locally referred to as simply Havn, is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of th ...
, in the Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...
, were the stowaways were brought ashore. Roelfzema persuaded the captain of the British cruiser to give them passage to Britain.
Activities in England
Once in London, Roelfzema became involved in a secret service group of escaped young Dutchmen called the Mews, after Chester Square Mews, the neighborhood in London where they lived.[ The group was being run under the direction of ]François van 't Sant
François van 't Sant (11 February 1883 – 3 June 1966) was a Dutch head-commissioner of police, leading intelligence figure and confidant of Queen Wilhelmina and other members of the Dutch Royal House of Orange-Nassau. In both World War I ...
, director of the Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service
The Military Intelligence and Security Service ( Dutch: ''Militaire Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst'') is the military intelligence service of the Netherlands, which operates under the Ministry of Defence. (online pdf here: https://www.docdro ...
(CID, ). The agents were trained under Colonel Euan Rabagliati
Cuthbert Euan Charles Rabagliati, , (1 January 1892 – 6 January 1978) was a British soldier, pilot, race car driver and intelligence officer. He served in the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) during the First World War and is credited as being the firs ...
of MI9
MI9, the British Directorate of Military Intelligence Section 9, was a secret department of the War Office between 1939 and 1945. During World War II it had two principal tasks: assisting in the escape of Allied prisoners of war (POWs) held b ...
.[ Their operation was called 'Contact Holland', whose goal was to establish links with the disparate ]Dutch resistance
The Dutch resistance () to the History of the Netherlands (1939–1945), German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II can be mainly characterized as non-violent. The primary organizers were the Communist Party of the Netherlands, C ...
groups, support them and coordinate their activities in the Netherlands. Most agents were brought into the Netherlands by parachute drop. This required the agent to be trained in parachuting and exposed them to the risks of doing so at night. Roelfzema, Peter Tazelaar and Chris Krediet came up with an alternative method of insertion. They proposed gaining access to the Netherlands by sea. They would use a Motor Gun Boat (MGB) to cross the English Channel
The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...
, covering the last stretch of water by taking a small boat and rowing into shore.
Due to internal politics Van 't Sant was required to step down from his position with intelligence and control of the CID was transferred to Colonel Mattheus de Bruyne of the Dutch Marine Corps
The Royal Netherlands Marine Corps () is the elite naval infantry corps of the Royal Netherlands Navy, one of the four Armed Forces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The marines trace their origins to the establishment of the on 10 December ...
. De Bruyne lacked experience in intelligence work and did not have a good grasp on the subtlety required. He failed to recognize the fact that his agents were often arrested and yet were continuing to broadcast messages, except now they were under the control of the Germans. The usual procedure for transmitting messages was to include small errors. If an agent was forced to work for the Germans, he would leave out the errors. The result should be that contact was aborted immediately. De Bruyne concluded that the agents simply forgot to use the security-checks and even sent messages to remind them. This would tip-off the German intelligence and the agent would be replaced with a German and sent off to a concentration camp. Other intelligence mistakes by De Bruyne included attaching detailed maps of the landing sites at Noordwijk, Scheveningen and Walcherento to the walls of his London office and leaving them up. Observing this, Louis d'Aulnis, an agent of the CID, elected not to announce where his landing place would be beforehand, a measure which ended up saving his life.
In their first mission, Peter Tazelaar was to deliver radio equipment and bring two men back from the occupied Netherlands to join the government-in-exile in Britain. Roelfzema had met Tazelaar when the two men had worked as stokers on the ''St. Cregue'' during their escape. Roelfzema had often spent time at the seaside resort of Scheveningen and knew that every Friday night a large party was held at the Kurhaus of Scheveningen
The Kurhaus of Scheveningen, The Hague in the Netherlands is a hotel which has been called the Grand Hotel Amrâth Kurhaus The Hague since October 2014. It is located in the main seaside resort area, near the beach.
History
The Kurhaus was bu ...
(Grand Hotel) which had been taken over by the Germans as a headquarters. Their plan was to approach Scheveningen late at night and take Tazelaar into shore by dinghy.
In the pre-dawn hours of 23 November 1941, Tazelaar, Roelfzema, Krediet and Lieutenant Francis 'Bob' Goodfellow rowed in on a small dinghy. When they neared the surf, Roelfzema and Tazelaar slipped off the boat and waded onto the beach. Tazelaar was then helped out of his wetsuit to reveal the black tuxedo he was wearing beneath it. Roelfzema then poured a generous amount of brandy over Tazelaar and left him, returning to the dinghy. Reeking of brandy, Tazelaar managed to pass himself off as a drunken party goer and staggered past the sentries stationed around the hotel. Two months later he returned to the beach with three others for a return to England. They were waiting on the beach for Roelfzema but the arrived on the scene first. Tazelaar and one other were able to escape. With no contact to England, he had to return overland, taking his chances traveling through Belgium, France, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal, before reaching England three months later.
Roelfzema led fifteen small-boat missions to the shores of the Netherlands. He was in charge of the insertion mission, while a Royal Navy lieutenant was in charge of the Motor Gun Boat carrying them. The small group would wait for the dark of a moonless night to attempt their missions, with Roelfzema going ashore with whoever was being dropped. 108 such returned to the Netherlands by parachute or boat to support the resistance. Only half survived the war.
On 22 February 1942, Roelfzema's 'transport service' performed an infiltration for his friend Ernst de Jonge. They rowed ashore at Katwijk
Katwijk () is a coastal municipality and town in the province of South Holland, which is situated in the mid-western part of the Netherlands.
The Oude Rijn (Utrecht and South Holland), Oude Rijn ("Old Rhine") river flows through the town and i ...
. Roelfzema had already become suspicious that something was amiss with their insertion operations. He feared they were being betrayed by Nazi sympathizers present amongst the officers of the exiled government. Some three months after De Jonge's drop, a courier on his way to England was picked up by the secret police. He was carrying detailed reports written by De Jonge that had been transferred onto three roles of microfilm. De Jonge heard about the arrest but refused to go into hiding. Three days later, on 22 May, De Jonge and two of his fellow agents were arrested at an apartment in Rotterdam. They were brought to Kamp Haaren. From there they were transferred to Assen
Assen () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands, and is the capital (politics), capital of the province of Drenthe. It received City rights in ...
. Roelfzema did not hear from him again; De Jonge and a group of 52 others were sent to the Rawicz
Rawicz (; ) is a town in west-central Poland with 21,398 inhabitants as of 2004. It is situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship (since 1999); previously it was in Leszno Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Rawicz County.
History
The ...
concentration camp in Poland. Of that group, 47 were sent over to Mauthausen
Mauthausen was a German Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen (roughly east of Linz), Upper Austria. It was the main camp of a group with nearly 100 further subcamps located throughout Austria and southern ...
, where they were executed. Ernst de Jonge remained with six others at Rawicz and died there in September 1944; he has no known grave.
With the capture of De Jonge, Roelfzema blamed de Bruyne. When de Bruyne instructed Roelfzema to provide information to another branch of the exiled Dutch government, Roelfzema refused for fear that it had been infiltrated by Nazi sympathizers.[ De Bruyne was angry with this insubordination and moved to have Roelfzema ]court-martial
A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...
ed.[ Queen Wilhelmina intervened and recommended him for the Netherlands' highest honor, the (Military Order of William).][ The court-martial proceedings were set aside and the was bestowed upon Roelfzema in the summer of 1942 by the Queen.][ Following this he met with Dutch Navy minister Johan Furstner and the court-martial was cancelled. Roelfzema had had enough of working with the secret service. He resigned from the Mews and volunteered to serve in the ]Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
.
The British military historian M. R. D. Foot
Michael Richard Daniell Foot, (14 December 1919 – 18 February 2012) was a British political and military historian, and former British Army intelligence officer with the Special Operations Executive during the Second World War. Foot was the a ...
has confirmed the degree of German penetration of SOE's Dutch networks, something SOE denied during the War. In his history of the Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...
, he wrote that the Allied intelligence effort in the Netherlands had been penetrated from the start of the war. Two Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 (MI numbers, Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of Human i ...
(SIS) agents, Captain Sigismund Payne Best and Major Richard Stevens, had been captured in November 1939 during the Venlo Incident. This culminated in the capture of some 50 British and Dutch agents by the and the in Operation North Pole.
Flying with the RAF
To fly for the RAF Roelfzema first had to qualify. Poor vision had disqualified him earlier from mandatory service in the Dutch reserves. The glasses he wore for visual correction should have disqualified him from pilot training as well. Ever resourceful, Roelfzema worked around this by smuggling in a lens and palming it during his vision test. He passed and was sent to Canada for flying school. He trained in single-seat fighter aircraft and was awarded the gold cufflinks on graduating his training course given to the best pilot cadet in the training group.[
On returning to England he found himself sidelined, unable to get posted to an operational squadron. An unlikely avenue was with the elite ]Pathfinder Force
The Pathfinders were target-marking squadrons in RAF Bomber Command during World War II. They located and marked targets with flares, at which a main bomber force could aim, increasing the accuracy of their bombing. The Pathfinders were norm ...
of Bomber Command
Bomber Command is an organisational military unit, generally subordinate to the air force of a country. The best known were in Britain and the United States. A Bomber Command is generally used for strategic bombing (although at times, e.g. during t ...
's most experienced and best pilots, whose job it was to guide the Bomber stream
The bomber stream was a saturation attack tactic developed by the Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command to overwhelm the nighttime German aerial defences of the Kammhuber Line during World War II.
The Kammhuber Line consisted of three layer ...
of the RAF night bombers through all weathers to their targets in Germany.[ While lamenting his situation with girlfriend Midge Cooper at a public house, 'Hamish' Mahaddie happened by. Mahaddie was a wing commander with the Pathfinders, who frequented the public houses after giving talks on Pathfinder techniques to see if he could recruit any pilots for his force. "Here's just the man we need!" said Cooper. Though hesitant to take on an inexperienced pilot, Mahaddie granted Roelfzema a spot at ]RAF Warboys
Royal Air Force Warboys or more simply RAF Warboys is a former Royal Air Force heavy bomber station, situated just outside the village of Warboys in Huntingdonshire (now Cambridgeshire), England.
History Second World War
During the early years ...
, where the group trained pilots on twin-engine aircraft and night flying in preparation to work in the PFF. To obtain a position in the squadron, Roelfzema needed to score an "above average" in the training course, which he did. Thus the near-sighted novice fighter pilot was posted to the elite PFF, flying the De Havilland Mosquito
The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engined, multirole combat aircraft, introduced during the World War II, Second World War. Unusual in that its airframe was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or " ...
.
Roelfzema flew with 139 Squadron. His aircraft was unarmed and relied on its speed to escape from German night fighters
A night fighter (later known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor post-Second World War) is a largely historical term for a fighter or interceptor aircraft adapted or designed for effective use at night, during periods of adverse ...
and luck to get through the flak. Normally Bomber Command crews were considered to complete a tour after 30 sorties. In the Pathfinder Force crews initially were required to complete 60 sorties but later this was reduced to 45. Roelfzema completed 72 operational sorties, including 25 missions over Berlin, the most heavily defended city in the Reich.[ For his service the RAF awarded him the Distinguished Flying Cross.][ While serving in the RAF, Roelfzema flew with pilots and aircrews from other nations that had become occupied by Nazi Germany, whom he saw as comrades in arms. Years later he came to realize that working with Danes, Poles and others gave him a broader sense of the world which he came to appreciate.]
Adjudant to the Queen
In early 1945, with France and parts of the Netherlands liberated, Roelfzema was appointed adjudant
Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commiss ...
(assistant) to Queen Wilhelmina.[ To his surprise and delight, Peter Tazelaar had been selected as well. The two accompanied her back to the Netherlands when she returned 13 March 1945, after a five-year exile in London. The Queen landed in ]Antwerp
Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
, Belgium, and traveled west by car to Maldegem
Maldegem (), earlier spelled Maldeghem, is a municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the villages of Maldegem, Adegem and Middelburg. and have always been separate hamlets of Maldegem. On 1 Jan ...
, where she turned north to enter the Netherlands at Eede
Eede is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is located close on the Belgian border about 3 km south of Aardenburg, in the municipality of Sluis.
Eede is the closest Dutch village to France as the crow flies, only 54 km to ...
. The Queen chose Eede as the point to enter her country because the village and surrounding area had been severely damaged by the war, resulting in many victims. The arrival of the Queen symbolized the end of years of oppression and loss of freedom and the beginning of a period of peace and prosperity. She stepped out of her armored carriage and walked firmly over the border, which was marked for the occasion. Years later, she recalled the border crossing in her memoirs as "One of the greatest events of my life". He flew the Queen home on the liberation of the Netherlands in May of that year. Shortly afterwards Roelfzema attended the two future Dutch monarchs, Princess Juliana
Juliana (; Juliana Louise Emma Marie Wilhelmina; 30 April 1909 – 20 March 2004) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1948 until her abdication in 1980.
Juliana was the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. She r ...
and her daughter Princess Beatrix
Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as List of monarchs of the Netherlands, Queen of the Netherlands from 30 April 1980 until her abdication in 2013.
Beatrix was born ...
, on the aeroplane which brought them back to the Netherlands on the Gilze en Rijen
Gilze en Rijen () is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southern Netherlands. The municipality contains four villages: Rijen, Gilze, Hulten and Molenschot. It is home to the Gilze-Rijen Air Base.
Rijen grew in the 19th centur ...
flight of 2 May 1945. He helped Beatrix take her first few steps on liberated Dutch soil.
At the Queen's inauguration in The Hague on 6 July 1945, Roelfzema was in attendance at the Queen's request. He was also on hand when the princesses returned at Teuge Airport 2 August 1945.
After the war
After the Second World War, Queen Wilhelmina offered him a permanent appointment as her adjudant but he declined this position. Shortly thereafter he emigrated to the United States, became a US citizen and married his long-time girlfriend Margaret "Midge" Cooper. He worked in Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
, initially as an actor and then as a writer.[ He moved on to work in the television industry as a writer for the first ''Today Show'' program and later helped to launch '']The Tonight Show
''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has been broadcast on NBC since 1954. The program has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2 ...
'' in New York City. He also wrote for a number of Dutch newspapers. In 1950 he was approached by Dutch admiral Conrad Helfrich, who asked him to help support the Moluccans. The Moluccas are a group of islands north and west of New Guinea. The islanders are predominantly Christian. Following the withdrawal of the Dutch from the Dutch East Indies, the Molluccans declined to be a part of the newly formed Republic of Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
, which was Muslim-dominated and under the rule of Sukarno
Sukarno (6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967.
Sukarno was the leader of the Indonesian struggle for independenc ...
, who had become increasingly authoritarian. They declared their independence as the Republic of South Maluku
South Maluku, also South Moluccas and officially the Republic of South Maluku, was an unrecognised secessionist state that claimed the islands of Ambon, Buru, and Seram, which currently make up most of the Indonesian province of Maluku.
The ...
.
Sukarno was in the process of forcibly taking control of the islands. Roelfzema was approached to contact the resistance on the Moluccas and document that Sukarno was using military force against them. This evidence was to be presented to the United Nations, where the case of the Molaccan people could be heard. He was provided with a small float plane in the Philippines, a Republic RC-3 Seabee
The Republic RC-3 Seabee is an Aluminium, all-metal Amphibious aircraft, amphibious sports aircraft designed by Percival H. Spencer, Percival Spencer and manufactured by the Republic Aviation, Republic Aircraft Corporation.
Design and developmen ...
and a former aviator from the US Navy to fly the aircraft to Ambon in the Mollucas. The aircraft turned out to be overloaded and could not get airborne. Roelfzema and the pilot spent the next three days removing the aircraft's wheels to lighten it. After three days the pilot gave up and left Roelfzema to deal with the mission and the aircraft. He had not flown since the war five years previously and had never flown a float plane. He reached the Mollucas and obtained the evidence requested to support the claim before the UN. His efforts created a lot of public interest, which Roelfzema made use of to bring attention to the plight of the people of the Moluccas.
In 1956 he was appointed director of Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...
, and moved to Munich.[ In the late 1950s Roelfzema had a number of meetings in New York City with fellow Dutch national Ben van Marken, where they discussed their mutual interest in auto-racing. In 1963 he and Van Marken became co-founders of 'Racing Team Holland', a Dutch motorsport team.
In November 1968 he married for the second time, to Karin Steensma, an ]interior decorator
Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a creative flair, an interior ...
. At this time he was contacted by a Dutch publishing company whose primary holding was a Dutch newspaper. They asked if he would convey his war experiences for a series of articles to run in their paper and they proposed to send a ghost writer to take down narration and compose the pieces. After twenty years in the business world, he longed to return to his first calling of writing. He wanted to write about what had happened to him and his friends during the war. As a writer, he had the ability to express himself about what they had gone through, where he knew the others could not. Steensma supported his decision. He agreed to write the articles himself, if they would give him an advance and publish them in book form at the end. They agreed and he set about his task. After a year of work his book was published in 1970 under the title (The Rattlesnake Cave). Roelfzema was not happy with the book, the title, the cover, the publisher or how the book was being promoted. After six months it had sold some 13,000 copies in Holland. Roelfzema purchased the rights to the book, reworked it to make the stories flow together better, changed the title and got Prince Bernhard to write a foreword. This second presentation was titled "" (Soldier of Orange), for his association with the royal family. It became an international bestseller.
In 1971 his son Erik invited him to visit him at his home on Maui
Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...
, at the time a remote location. Roelfzema found the landscape, climate, smells and friendliness of the islands reminded him of his childhood home in Java. He felt he was coming home, purchased land there and after introducing his wife Karin to the island, the couple moved there together. They lived on Maui for a number of years before moving to a more remote location on the big island of Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
.
Prominent Dutch film maker Paul Verhoeven
Paul Verhoeven (; born 18 July 1938) is a Dutch filmmaker, who has worked variously in the Netherlands, the United States, and in France. He is known for directing genre films with strong satirical elements, often featuring graphic violence and ...
took an interest in Roelfzema's and brought it to the screen. He cast Rutger Hauer
Rutger Oelsen Hauer (; 23 January 1944 – 19 July 2019) was a Dutch actor, with a career that spanned over 170 roles across nearly 50 years, beginning in 1969. In 1999, he was named by the Dutch public as the Best Dutch Actor of the Century.
H ...
in the part of Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema. Roelfzema was on the set as a consultant and the two became lifelong friends.[ With the release of the film in 1977, Roelfzema gained greater public attention and Hauer was made into an international film star. The film won the ]Los Angeles Film Critics Association
The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) is an American film critic organization founded in 1975.
Background
Its membership comprises film critics from Los Angeles–based print and electronic media. In December of each year, the organi ...
Award for Best Foreign Film in 1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
. One year later, in 1980, it received a Golden Globe
The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...
nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. In 2010 the story was brought to the stage as a musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
. The musical version of '' Soldier of Orange'' was presented in a unique rotating theater, which was special built in an old hangar at the former military airport at Valkenburg, which is located between Wassenaar and Katwijk near Leiden
Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...
. The musical was very well received.
Roelfzema joined Barnwell Industries as a director in 1977. He encouraged the company's chairman to look to Hawai'i as a possible location to headquarter the business. He was instrumental in bringing the Tennessee-based energy company to Hawai'i in the early 1980s. The company drilled the first commercial geothermal well in Puna on the Big Island in 1980. The company is a leader in development in Hawai'i and performs oil and natural gas exploration in Canada and North America. Alex Kinzler, Barnwell president, said Roelfzema was an active and valued member of their board. While living in Hawaii Roelfzema became a member of the Waimea Outdoor Circle, a group that fosters environmental preservation and the enhancement of nature through education and community involvement. Outdoor Circle is a statewide environmental non-profit that works with branches throughout the Hawaiian Islands to protect Hawai'i's unique natural beauty.
He was close to Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands
Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld (later Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands; 29 June 1911 – 1 December 2004) was Prince of the Netherlands from 6 September 1948 to 30 April 1980 as the husband of Queen Juliana. They had four daughters to ...
, who visited at his home on the Big Island of Hawaii. In 1980, Roelfzema played a ceremonial role as one of two kings of arms at the coronation
A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...
of Queen Beatrix. Roelfzema wrote a second autobiography, ''In Pursuit of Life'', in 2000. He died on 26 September 2007 at his home in Āhualoa near Honokaa, on the Island of Hawaii, at the age of 90.[ He was survived by his wife, Karin Steensma, his son ]Erik
The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization).
The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Nor ...
, step-daughter Karna Hazelhoff-Castellon, granddaughter Meadow Melelani Hazelhoff Roelfzema, and great-grandsons Jake and Siebren.
In his research for his biography of Dutch statesman François van 't Sant, Dutch author Sytze van der Zee discovered a letter from Van 't Sant to Queen Wilhelmina, where he informed her that a date had been set for a coup to overturn the acting Dutch government. The letter gave the date for the coup as 24 April 1947. It also outlined some of the ministers to be appointed to serve in a new government. Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema was listed as one of the men that could be relied upon. The coup never took place.
The Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema Prize in Literature
In 2009 a foundation was established in memorial to promote writing and the ideals of Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema. The foundation offers a bi-yearly literary prize in two categories: the Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema Young Talent Prize, awarded to the best master's thesis written in Dutch or English at a Dutch or Flemish university, and the Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema Biography Prize awarded to the best Dutch-language Biography. The Young Talent Prize aims to encourage young academic writers. The Biography Prize aims to promote interest in and the reading of biographical works among the Dutch. The thinking of Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema and the standards and values that characterized his life are used as a guide in evaluating submissions. Princess Irene accepted the position of guardian of the "Erik Hasselhoff Roelfzema Foundation Prize".
Awards
Hazelhoff Roelfzema was acclaimed in the Netherlands as one of the nation's greatest heroes of the war.[ He was the recipient of the highest Dutch military honour.][ His experiences during the war became known throughout the world through his writings on those events and the film. Late in his life he was given the Dutch American Heritage Award.][ He did not see himself as unusual and when honoured was ever mindful of the friends that he had lost. In an interview in July with ]De Telegraaf
''De Telegraaf'' (; ) is the largest Netherlands, Dutch daily morning newspaper. Haro Kraak,Gaat Paul Jansen de crisis bij De Telegraaf oplossen?, ''de Volkskrant'', 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2015. Paul Jansen has been the editor-in-chief since ...
, Hazelhoff Roelfzema said he had received too much recognition for his wartime exploits. "I became a war hero because I stuck out, because I wrote about my experiences".[
He went on to offer:
]
National honours
* : Knight 4th class of the Military Order of William
The Military William Order, or often named Military Order of William (Dutch language, Dutch: , abbreviation: MWO), is the oldest and highest Dutch honours system, honour of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is named after St. William of Gellone ...
4 June 1942
* : Airman's Cross
The Airman's Cross () is a military decoration of the Kingdom of the Netherlands created in 1941. The cross is awarded to members of the Dutch military who display initiative, courage, and perseverance against the enemy or during hostile actions d ...
22 September 1945
* : Cross of Merit 20 March 1944
* : War Commemorative Cross (Oorlogsherinneringskruis) with 2 clasps
* : Resistance Memorial Cross
The Resistance Memorial Cross or Resistance Commemorative Cross () is a medal awarded in the Netherlands to members of the Dutch resistance during the Second World War.
The medal was instituted by Royal Decree (No. 104) on 29 December 1980, after ...
* : Queen Beatrix's Inauguration Medal 1980
Foreign honours
* : Distinguished Flying Cross, 3 July 1945
* : 1939-1945 Star
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
* : Air Crew Europe Star
The Air Crew Europe Star is a military campaign medal, instituted by the United Kingdom in May 1945 for award to British and Commonwealth air crews who participated in operational flights over Europe from bases in the United Kingdom during the ...
* : France and Germany Star
The France and Germany Star is a military campaign medal, instituted by the United Kingdom in May 1945 for award to Commonwealth of Nations, British Commonwealth forces who served in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands or Germany and a ...
* : War Medal 1939-1945
List of works
* ''Rendezvous in San Francisco'' (Rendezvous in San Francisco ) (1939)
* ''Het smeulende vuur'' (The smoldering fire) (1941)
* ''Het hol van de ratelslang'' (The rattlesnake hollow) (1970)
* ''Soldaat van Oranje'' (Soldier of Orange – a revision of ''Het hol van de ratelslang'') (1971)
* ''De verre tamboer; Soldaat van Oranje zwaait af'' (The distant tambourine; the Soldier of Orange bids farewell) (1973)
* ''Op jacht naar het leven'' (Hunting for life) (2000)
* ''In Pursuit of Life'' (2003)
* ''Het leven van de Soldaat van Oranje – Autobiografie'' (The Soldier of Orange – Autobiography) (2006)
References
;Notes
;Citations
;Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Obituary
''Honolulu Advertiser
''The Honolulu Advertiser'' was a daily newspaper published in Honolulu, Hawaii. At the time publication ceased on June 6, 2010, it was the largest daily newspaper in Hawaii. It published daily with special Sunday and Internet editions.
''The ...
'', 28 September 2007
*
Obituary
''The Times
''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'', 1 October 2007
Obituary
''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', 15 November 2007
Literary Prize
''Erik Hazelhoff Prijs'', 5 September 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hazelhoff Roelfzema, Erik
1917 births
2007 deaths
20th-century Dutch male writers
20th-century Dutch military personnel
20th-century Dutch non-fiction writers
20th-century Dutch writers
Aide-de-camp to the monarch of the Netherlands
Dutch expatriates in the United States
Dutch male non-fiction writers
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Royal Netherlands Air Force pilots
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Engelandvaarders
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Knights Fourth Class of the Military Order of William
Non-British Royal Air Force personnel of World War II
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Recipients of the Airman's Cross
Recipients of the Cross of Merit (Netherlands)
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
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Royal Netherlands Army personnel of World War II
Royal Netherlands Air Force personnel of World War II
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