Municipalities in the north of North Holland have not been guilty of purchasing expropriated buildings from Jews during the Second World War. Radboud University in Nijmegen draws this conclusion after extensive research. The report was presented today in Alkmaar. Relief with mixed feelings from mayor Anja Schouten van Alkmaar: “We have not enriched ourselves, you might say, but how badly we dealt with the victimization of the Jewish community at the time.”
It concerns the so-called ‘Verkaufsbücher’, the administration that the Germans kept during the war about resold property that they had expropriated from Jews. These accounts were digitized in 2019 by the National Archives. Reason for the Pointer research program to delve into this and ask municipalities about their role at the time. Many municipalities had no answer to this, which led to the research by Radboud University.
In North Holland, the Radboud University the current municipalities of Alkmaar, Bergen, Castricum, Dijk en Waard, Heiloo, Den Helder, Hollands Kroon, Schagen, Texel and Zaanstad. The data is not yet known for Zaanstad only.
Harrowing story
Researcher Ingrid van der Vlis of Radboud University tells the poignant story of Simon and Clara Trijbetz-Wertheim from Alkmaar. “They had to sell their shop on Langestraat, which came into the hands of a shoe factory. The couple was murdered in Sobibor. Only the son returned after the war. Only after a lengthy, formal and legal procedure did the property come back into the hands of the family.”
In none of the cases in the north of North Holland and North Kennemerland is it known that municipalities have purchased buildings from the Germans or have attempted to do so. Mayor Schouten of Alkmaar. “I could say: ‘Oh fortunately, the municipality of Alkmaar has not enriched itself’, but it is terrible what has been done to those people and that the victimization of the Jews has not been recognized after so much suffering.”
War copper
There is one known case where Heiloo may have played a dubious role and could be seen as a war buyer. In 1941 the municipality bought a piece of farmland with a house on it from a Jewish owner. This was not officially expropriated, but the owner was obliged to sell. The temporarily appointed NSB mayor Arie Eriks van Bergen bought a house from a Jewish resident who had lost her rights in a personal capacity.
The fact that municipalities did not buy expropriated real estate does not mean that they did not play any role in this either. In many places they cooperated in the transport and storage of the contents of expropriated homes or there were companies that did this on behalf of the municipality. But it is often also unclear to what extent these municipalities could be held accountable at the time. They were all under German authority to a greater or lesser extent and independent work was no longer an option.
“After the war we dealt too technically with Jewish victimization. Are we still doing that with people in need?”
“This report is reason for reflection for us,” says Mayor Schouten of Alkmaar. Immediately after the war, no distinction was made between Jewish and non-Jewish war victims, the report states. In other large cities, it is known that Jewish families received additional assessments of municipal taxes, as a result of which Jewish properties still had to be sold in order to pay off debts. Schouten: “After the war, we dealt with the Jewish victimization in a technical, almost cold way. Do we still do that? How to deal with people in need?”
Reluctance
As far as is known, in almost all the municipalities studied, the houses came back into the possession of the rightful owners or their surviving relatives. This usually happened within one or two years and without judicial intervention. But sometimes it was also a lot more difficult.
For example, a building on Molenstraat in Schagen was only transferred in 1952 to two surviving relatives of the deceased Jewish owners. This was partly due to the unwillingness of the war buyer. The latter only agreed to a settlement proposal after a ruling by the Council for the Restoration of Rights.
Anja Schouten, mayor of Alkmaar: “We are going to reflect. How do we deal with people in need?” – NH News
It is not over for Alkmaar after the report. The municipality is investigating possibilities to make the stories even more tangible for the residents. Anja Schouten: “We want to continue with this and continue to support follow-up research. It is extremely painful how systematically and fundamentally the Nazis wanted to blur Jews from the earth; in name, property and well-being. This must never happen again.”
Jewish groups in the region are closely involved in Radboud University’s research. Fabio de León of the Alkmaar Synagogue endorses the report. He is relieved that the investigation has taken place and that the role of municipalities has turned out to be limited, for example in the purchase or sale of Jewish properties. “It remains a difficult issue. So many people have moved from their homes and have not returned or could not return. Their property has been sold for next to nothing.” De León wants to study the report further before going deeper into the investigation.
