May 1, 1945. British and American bombers throw food for the starving people of North and South Holland. 880 aircraft ensure top pressure in the airspace. The busiest day of the entire operation. But there is more help. Food and relief supplies have to go to occupied area from the Veemarkthallen in Den Bosch and also from Oss.
Brabant has been liberated for more than half a year at that time. Large food supplies have been installed via the port of Antwerp. The food is also for fighting troops and prisoners of war. The food is spread over depots in Oss and Den Bosch.
Both places in our province are the starting point for Operation Faust. Less is known about this promotion than about the spectacular food flights. Faust is performed by the Canadian army: over the ground, through the track and over the rivers.
Discussion
There is a lot of discussion about the food supplies. The Allies only want one thing: to beat Germany. They literally and figuratively ignore Holland on their advance. The Canadians who should have done the job, fear great losses and more dead among the Dutch population and are therefore reluctant. First beating Nazi Germany is more effective, they think. But that is against the sore leg of the Dutch government. There have been large food shortages for months.
The government is once again trying to change our minds, in vain, the Allied rulers. But for a long time the military goal occurs, then comes the humanitarian situation. The German occupier does not want to participate in anything for a long time. Until the end of April 1945. Then the situation changes.
Humanitarian aid is prepared for months. There is 30,000 tons of food. In the Veemarkthallen in Den Bosch there is not only food but also a large mountain of medical stocks. Soap, clothing, blankets and cooking utensils are also stored in Oss. Kazerneterrees in Grave and Tilburg are also packed.
The British leadership hires Brabant workers to lug and load. The help is desperately needed because it is about large parties. The men work hard to make the huge convoys possible.
The trucks are ready around noon. At half past four that afternoon the Allied Chief Command reports: ‘ALL Vehicles Loaded(All vehicles loaded).
The auxiliary voyages can ride the following morning.
Waiting for privacy settings …
Firefights
The ceasefire has been in force for a while, but both parties are still shooting at each other. To the north of Den Bosch still sounds German mortar fire, possibly from Hedel. The Dutch troops are shooting back. A British unit at Waalwijk also reports German machine gun fire from the north bank of the Maas.
Big news on the radio
That evening there is large and shocking news on the radio. Hitler is dead. Radio Hamburg reports. The first newspapers in the Netherlands take over the news. “The man who has not only deposited his people but the whole world into unparalleled misery is no longer,” writes the newspaper for Oost-Brabant, Tilburg edition on 2 May. All newspapers are full of it. The relief is great and the hope grows in a rapid end to all the misery. But German surrender is not yet possible.
Now that Hitler is dead, the power comes into the hands of Admiral Karl Dönitz. He reigns from the city of Flensburg. “To continue the fight against Bolshevism.” The Admiral demands absolute obedience from the German troops to keep fighting against the English and Americans.
In the evenings, the Allied troops along the front line in Brabant will receive a new command: ‘No Firing. ‘ “So stake to fir.” That is stated in the logs of the units along Hollands Diep, Maas and other rivers. The Princess Irene Brigade also receives the same order: Stakes the firing.
But there are exceptions: on German troops that cross the rivers and penetrate liberated area, it may be shot. Shooting is allowed out of self -defense. And so the silence on the Maasfront is still interrupted by rifles salvos for days, and especially nights.
The majority of Noord-Brabant was liberated in the fall of 1944. Except for the Land van Heusden and Altena. That only got the freedom back in May 1945. Every day you can read in this series about the events at the end of the Second World War in Europe.