Pieter Florisz in 2004

The Dutch minesweeper Pieter Florisz, one of eight minesweepers of the Jan van Amstel-class minesweepers of pre-WW II vintage, had an eventful, and as it turns out, a long career. Completed in September 1937, the ship was scuttled on May 14, 1940, after the Dutch military forces had capitulated and escape to safe haven had become impossible. Raised by the Germans and recommissioned in 1940, the ship served in the Kriegsmarine under the name M. 551 as a torpedo recovery vessel.

In May 1945, the ship was returned to the Royal Netherlands Navy, overhauled and subsequently sent to the Netherlands East Indies together with three of her sisterships. After arriving back in Holland, the Florisz first became a training ship in Amsterdam, and it was then converted to a boom defence vessel, serving in yet another capacity, and with success. In 1962, her career in the R.N.N. was finally over; the combatant transferred to the "Zeekadetkorps", a civil organization dedicated to familiarizing youngsters with the sea. The ship was decommissioned in 1976, and sold to Stolk's Handelsonderneming B.V. in Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht. The hulk lied there for years until finally scrapped in 2006.

Mr. Mink Westerduin took these photos of the hulk in early 2004. I would like to thank him and Mr. Jos Komen for allowing me to use these photos. The photos below are protected by copyright, and the photographer's permission is required for further use.
Pieter Florisz arriving in IJmuiden under tow in 1962 (Collection Zeekadetkorps IJmuiden, via Wil Woertman)
Commissioning of Pieter Florisz for the Zeekadetkorps IJmuiden (Collection Zeekadetkorps IJmuiden, via Wil Woertman)
Starboard bow view (Collection Mink Westerduin)
Port bow view (Collection Mink Westerduin)
Distant starboard view (Collection Mink Westerduin)
Starboard bow view (Collection Mink Westerduin)
Distant port view (Collection Mink Westerduin)
Close up of the bow (Collection Mink Westerduin)

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