Specials

Specials	Introduction
A Sailor's war  Memoirs of Ordinary Telegraphist Thomas Grange of the armed trawler Notre Dame de France, in service with the Royal Netherlands Navy.	Although this site is originally intended for the history of the Royal Netherlands Navy during the Second World War, I am in fact interested in a variety of other subjects, mainly the unknown and smaller incidents during this war, with my focus on the war at sea. I am also very interested in the history of the Dutch merchant navy during the second world war, and the articles present are related (but not restricted) to either subject one way or the other. I welcome any addition that readers want to contribute, but you will have to let me review it first. In this respect, I would like to thank Tom Womack for letting me use two chapters of his unpublished manuscript for this website, and Alberto Rosselli and Mark C. Jones for putting their articles at my disposal. Mail me !
The Ondina-battle The epic fight of a tanker and her escort two Japanese raiders.
Road to Strength: Battleshipplan 1912 A description of this ambitious plan
Cargo for the Jungle Small but brave Dutch steamers tried to maintain a lifeline between New Guinea and Australia.
The Singapore-convoys An Order of Battle of the ships that tried to supply Singapore during 1941 and 1942.
The Doggerbank Story During 1942, a German minelayer made a daring sortie to South Africa
Who sank the Shinonome ? A summary of circumstances surrounding the loss of this destroyer.
Channel Clashes Small, Dutch motortorpedoboats fighting against German convoys.
The Terrible Twins An interesting newspaper article about the Dutch sloops Flores and Soemba
The Soemba Docket In 1944, the Dutch gunboat Soemba was in urgent need of a replacement gun for her 5.9" battery. The British Navy had a very original way of dealing with the bureaucracy.
Fire in the night: The loss of Bali and Timor In 1942, the Japanese moved to capture these islands. Excellent article by Tom Womack
Tjerk Hiddes: Memento of a torpedo explosion In January 1943, an torpedo explosion damaged the destroyer Tjerk Hiddes while in overhaul.
Escape from Soerabaja The daring escape from this minesweeper to Australia. Written by Mark C. Jones.
Australia's Pearl Harbor: The Japanese air raid on Darwin In February 1942, the Japanese air force launched a devastating attack on Darwin in Northwest Australia. An article by Tom Womack
The deployment of Force Z In December 1941, a task force with capital ships HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse set out to intercept the Japanese invasion convoys in the South China Sea. An article by Tom Womack.
HNMS Tjerk Hiddes - Timor Ferry In 1942, the destroyer Tjerk Hiddes made two runs to the Japanese-occupied island to evacuate Allied troops. A reprint of the article in US Naval Institute Proceedings in 1960.
Battlecruiser - Design studies for the Royal Netherlands Navy 1939-40 In 1939-1940, the Dutch Navy conceived a plan to build 3 battlecruisers. A reprint of the article on the ships' design history, originally \published in Warship International No.3 (1980) by Lt. Jurrien S. Noot, R.N.N.

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