Two commemorative visits from Belgium
It was the 25th journey of family members from Meensel-Kiezegem, a small community in Flanders. After the shooting of a collaborator on 30 July 1944, there were two major raids on 1 and 11 August as ‘reprisal actions’ by the German occupiers. German and Flemish SS men arrested all the adult men in the community, four of whom were shot on the spot. A further 71 were deported to Neuengamme concentration camp. Only eight of them survived.
To mark the 80th year of the raid, a group of over 30 people, mainly relatives, went on a commemorative visit and held two ceremonies at the Neuengamme concentration camp memorial: In the morning at their own memorial ‘The Despair of Meensel-Kiezegem’ in the memorial grove and in the afternoon at the base plate of the former crematorium. The flag that was displayed during the ceremony dates back to 1945 and was the first to be raised in Meensel-Kiezegem after the liberation. The group led by Tom Devos was welcomed by Susann Lewerenz. The founding members of the Belgian Foundation, Oktaaf Duerinckx and René Cauwbergs, were also present for this special visit. This year's programme also included welcoming the group to Hamburg City Hall.
NCPGR Meensel-Kiezegem '44
Website of the Museum44
The second group from Belgium, which also travelled to commemorate the 80th anniversary of a raid, was for the most part visiting Neuengamme for the first time. In April, Timmie van Diepen published the book ‘The Raid’ about the history of his family. During a raid by the German Wehrmacht in Molenbeersel in Limburg on 22 August 1944, four residents were executed, including the author's great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather. Five other residents were deported, including three brothers of his great-grandfather Willem. The raid was in retaliation for the attack on a German soldier.
80 years after the events, over 40 people travelled to Hamburg, including the daughter and grandchildren of former deportees. The memorial visit took the group not only to the Neuengamme concentration camp memorial site, but also to other sites of former Neuengamme satellite camps, such as Wöbbelin and Bremen.
We are very grateful for this special commemorative visit.
