War belongs in the museum. That is the motto of the Dutch National War and Resistance Museum, which is one of
the two theme museums in Liberty Park. In the National War and Resistance Museum, the history of the Second
World War is presented. Here, you will see how it came to be that, in a period of five years, more than fifty
million people lost their lives. But also how the oppressed population managed to cope with restrictions and
shortages in a resourceful way. Attention is given to the resistance in those days, but also to the persecution.
And finally, of course, to the liberation, with special attention to the Battle at Overloon.
The Camps Building
In the Camps Building, you will see the gloomy consequences of persecution and the concentration camps. Here you may also watch a short film by Bill Minco, who was a member of De Geuzen (“The Beggars”), one of the first resistance groups. He was one of the first resistance fighters to be arrested during the war. After being imprisoned in the Netherlands, he was put on transport to the concentration camps. Nonetheless, he survived the war, and during the rest of his life he called for tolerance.
What happened here?
In September 1944, Montgomery devised the Market Garden attack plan. The combination of airborne landings at Arnhem and clearing a narrow corridor through the southern Netherlands was supposed to facilitate the further advance to Berlin. The plan was only half successful. The allied troops wanted to widen and reinforce their corridor. However, the German opponent tried to cut the Allies off. They came to blows on 30 September near Overloon. German Panther tanks and American Sherman tanks fired upon each other continuously. About a week later, British troops joined the battle as well. Eventually, it took almost three weeks before Overloon, and Venray further south, were liberated. The Battle at Overloon is known as the heaviest tank battle ever on Dutch soil. In the museum you will still find several vehicles from that battle, such as a German Panther tank, and British and American tanks and guns.
