Remembrance of the Dead

In Dutch the day is called Dodenherdenking and is held annually on May 4.

It commemorates all civilians and members of the armed forces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands who have died in wars or peacekeeping missions since the outbreak of World War II. Until 1961, the commemoration only related to the Dutch victims of World War II. Since 1961, the victims of other military conflicts (such as the Indonesian National Revolution in Indonesia) and peacekeeping missions (such as in Lebanon or Bosnia) are remembered on May 4 as well.

Traditionally, the main ceremonies are observed in Amsterdam at the National Monument on Dam Square. The main celebrations in Amsterdam are broadcast by the public broadcasting company NOS, but there are ceremonies in other cities and places as well. Especially notable are those at the Waalsdorpervlakte near The Hague, where many Dutch resistance fighters were executed during the war, and at the war cemetery in Grebbeberg. In many towns, before or after the two minutes of silence, people gather around the war memorial, listen to speeches, and lay down flowers to remember the dead.

The next day, on May 5, Dutch people celebrate the liberation of the nation from the German occupation of 1940 to 1945.