News item | 8/31/2023 | 14:41
The States of Service of more than 120,000 former military personnel born at the beginning of the last century are available online at the National Archives. Some 4,800 archive boxes with paper files were moved from Rijswijk to The Hague for this monster job. The Information Management Department of Defense has been busy with this recently. The 600 meters of personnel archive has now been put online.
Enlarge image
The files of the soldiers born between 1900 and 1920 are special. The careers of the military in the army and navy took place during the mobilization, the May days in 1940 and during the German occupation (Engelandvaarders). But they were also active during the battle in the Java Sea, the occupation of the Dutch East Indies in 1942 and the liberation in 1945.
It concerns soldiers who were involved in army units that tried to restore order (police actions) in what was then the Dutch East Indies from 1946 onwards. The repercussions of these events can be found in the personnel files of the military personnel.
In addition to the States of Service, these files sometimes also contain other war-related document types. This concerns, for example, documents about participation or leadership in combat operations or the awarding of medals of honor. Sometimes the files also contain a personal letter.
Function of the archive with States of Service
Keeping this archive has an important function. There are regular requests for information about these files. Think, for example, of children and grandchildren who are looking for information about their father, mother, grandfather or grandmother (the career at the Ministry of Defence).
The States of Service can also further colorize the stories from oral tradition about the Second World War. Foundations for war graves, historical researchers and genealogists also make grateful use of these data.
Search the archive itself
Everyone can now continue the research into these States of Service in the National Archives. This can be done via the internet links below. From home you can search the inventory by surname, initials and date of birth. You can only actually view the file on site at the National Archives.
Inventory of soldiers of the Royal Netherlands Army, years of birth 1911-1920.