Liberation Day (Netherlands)

Liberation Day (Dutch: Bevrijdingsdag) is a public holiday in the Netherlands to mark the end of the German occupation of the country during the Second World War.^[1][2] It follows the Remembrance of the Dead (Dodenherdenking) on 4 May.^[3][4]

Liberation Day
Liberation Day parade in 1960 in Utrecht
Official name	Bevrijdingsdag
Observed by	Netherlands
Type	National Day
Celebrations	Music festivals
Date	5 May
Frequency	annual
Related to	Liberation of the Netherlands from German occupation during World War II

Music festival on Liberation Day 2008 in Zwolle

The Netherlands were liberated by Canadian forces, British infantry divisions, the British I Corps, the 1st Polish Armoured Division, American, Belgian, Dutch and Czechoslovak troops. Parts of the country, in particular the south-east, were liberated by the British Second Army which included American and Polish airborne forces (see Operation Market Garden) and French airbornes (see Operation Amherst). On 5 May 1945, at Hotel de Wereld in Wageningen, I Canadian Corps commander Lieutenant-General Charles Foulkes and Oberbefehlshaber Niederlande commander-in-chief Generaloberst Johannes Blaskowitz reached an agreement on the capitulation of all German forces in the Netherlands. The capitulation document was signed the next day in the auditorium of Wageningen University, located next door.

After liberation in 1945, Liberation Day was celebrated every five years. In 1990 the day was declared a national holiday when liberation would be remembered and celebrated every year. Festivals are held in most places in the Netherlands with parades of veterans and musical festivals throughout the whole country.

See also

• Battle of the Netherlands
• Liberation of the Netherlands
• Liberation Day
• Liberation of Arnhem
• Victory in Europe Day
• Marine memorial

References

1. "Public to return to Remembrance Day, Liberation Day events this year". NL Times. 23 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
2. Kozak, Jackie (7 May 2021). "Town recognizes Netherlands Liberation Day". Bradford Today. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
3. Bomhard, Susanne (2009). At home in Holland : a practical guide for living in the Netherlands (11th ed.). Delft: Eburon. p. 274. ISBN 978-90-5972-286-6. OCLC 307462650.
4. Mathijssen, Brenda; Venhorst, Claudia (2019). Funerary practices in the Netherlands. Emerald Publishing Limited. p. 191. ISBN 978-1-78769-873-4. OCLC 1121204485.

External links

• (in Dutch) Nationaal Comité 4 en 5 mei
• WWII: Liberation of the Netherlands - The Canadian Encyclopedia

 

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