Diedering, Henry (Interview outline and video), 2010

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Notes:

Henry Diedering was a teenager in the Netherlands when the Germans took over in 1940. He describes life in his home town under occupation, and of his efforts to avoid being impressed as a forced laborer by the Germans when he turned 18. He made his way to Rotterdam and got a job on a cargo ship on the Rhine River, and worked on it until the ship was damaged by Allied air attack. After that, he tried to make his way home, staying in damaged and abandoned houses, until he found a German village that had no able-bodied men in it, and where he worked for the villagers until the spring of 1945, when the Canadians took over the area. Seeing few opportunities at home, he enlisted in the Dutch Marine Corps and was sent to Indonesia, where the Dutch were attempting to reassert control, and was sent home after the Dutch agreed to leave.

Date Created:

2010-02-25T00:00:00Z

Data Provider:

Grand Valley State University. University Libraries

Collection:

Veterans History Project (U.S.)

Subject Topic:

Oral history, Veterans History Project (U.S.), United States--History, Military, Michigan--History, Military, Veterans, Video recordings, World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American, United States. Marine Corps, and Other veterans & civilians--Personal narratives, American

Language:

eng

Rights:

<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>

URL:

https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/document/28822