Operation Cleanser – the liberation of Voorthuizen

Last weekend, I attended Camp Operation Cleanser in the Dutch city of Voorthuizen, a three days event on the occasion of the liberation by the Canadians in 1945.

I have a personal connection to this place because my great-grandfather, whom I published my book about, was taken prisoner of war here. A heavy battle took place on 17. April 1945, and he was hiding in a ditch, when two Canadians walked by but didn’t see him. Instead of shooting, my great-grandfather threw away his rifle, came out of the ditch with hands up and surrendered to them. He was aware of how senseless this war was and didn’t want to lose his live in these final days.

I gave five presentations during the event to a Dutch audience and presented his story with a focus on the front experiences in the Netherlands. I told how my great-grandfather had to steal a bike but deliberately came back with empty hands, and emphasised how quickly a war can destroy century-long positive relations between two neighbour countries, illustrating how much time it takes to reconciliate again.

Twice, people came to me afterwards with tears in their eyes, telling me how touching my great-grandfather’s story was for them to hear.

The event came along with numerous Dutch, Canadian and American flags, more than 100 reenactors, original military vehicles and historical equipment. Walking on the site, it would not be unusual to come across a Dutch resistance fighter or a Canadian soldier with a rifle. Dealing with the past in this way would rather be unthinkable in Germany. All the organisers and volunteers were incredibly friendly, supportive and told me they would do their best to make me feel welcome. 

In the whole city there were references to the war, for example memorial plaques or an arch stating “Thank you, liberators”. During my stay, it repeatedly happened to me that I randomly saw an object and immediately had a quote from my book in my mind.

Particularly interesting for me were the mock battles in which they also reenacted surrender – exactly in the city where it happened 80 years ago. I talked to the reenactors afterwards and learned more about their motivation to do this; amongst other plausible aspects, they aim to make history more vivid than it would be in a museum. 

However, you also see children with plastic weapons among the visitors, running around, playing war and shouting: “Kill the Germans.” Also since the battle reenactment is announced with “Enjoy the spectacle”, I fear that that some people with little knowledge about this topic might consider war as rather adventurous. Of course, war is terrible and you won’t see the blood, the pure fear, the presence of death, the suffering, hunger, tiredness and hopelessness of the soldiers in the reenactments. Visitors should always keep that in mind.

Thanks to William Gielen for the opportunity to speak at the event to share a German perspective. I am very grateful for that.

Bildnachweise: Frank Buers, Celina Keute