Audio spot Meijel - Private David McKellar
In Meijel alsongside Liberation Cycling Route Nederweert - Weert, you can listen to the story of Private David McKellar. Private David McKellar is one of the many allied soldiers who died unknown and inglorious for our freedom. Thanks to thorough research, we can trace the route of the 2nd Battalion the Gordon Highlanders he was part of. The route leads from England through France and Belgium to the Netherlands where he found his final resting place.
Liberation route audio spot Ospeldijk - A cross in the Peel
In Ospeldijk, you can listen to the story of how a bomber crashed on 7 February 1945. On the abandoned Peel once stood a large cross of honour. It marked the spot where a bomber crashed on 7 February 1945. It had been hit by German night fighters equipped with a new radar system. Allied bombers that were hit tried to land in already liberated areas such as the Peel. So did the Halifax NA-197 and the Halifax NA-260 with a French crew on board. Two of them are buried at the site where the aircraft crashed.
Audio spot Nederweert - Risking his life
In Nederweert, you can listen to the story about Corporal Henri Eric Harden and the battle for Vlootbeek."It is bitterly cold when the commandos of the 45th Royal Marines advance on foot, crawling and creeping towards Maasbracht and Brachterbeek in the early morning of 23 January 1945. They come under heavy machine-gun fire from the paramilitaries of the Hübner Fallschirmjäger. These have dug in behind the Vlootbeek.
Soon several commandos are wounded and they lie in the open field in the snow. Corporal Henri Eric Harden is attached to the medical staff as a corporal. He goes to the wounded at the risk of his life..."
Exhibition Air War 1939-1945
In September 2010, the Foundation Air War 1939-1945 opened the permanent exhibition. The numerous items that remain from aircraft crashes in and around Nederweert are the silent witnesses of the local air war. It was very intense here because the region was within the Kammhuber line. The line ran from Denmark over eastern Netherlands and Belgium to Switzerland and was intended to protect Germany from Allied air attacks through an extensive radar and alarm system. In connection with this, the line was also equipped with numerous searchlights and locations where night fighters were ready to engage in battle in case of an alert. During the occupation years, dozens of Allied bombers and German fighters crashed in this area. Remnants of this wartime violence are still being found, preserved and kept.
Resistance Monument
The members of the resistance are listed on the new monument. They form a concrete reminder of the WWII in Weert. They also do justice and are a tribute to the activities and broken church villages in the period from May 10, 1940 to September 22, 1944 and the efforts of those who resisted the occupier in Weert.
Liberation Route audio spot Weert - An important visitor
In Weert, you can listen to the story of Hoog Bezoek, where the British soldiers take a well-earned breather. March 1945, Weert is where the English soldiers take a well-earned breather after 'Operation Blackcock'. The men play a fierce competition on the football pitches and play sports in the gymnasium of the Episcopal College. They know relaxation is short-lived. For Field Marshal Montgomery is coming to inspect and decorate the troops....
Audio spot Meijel – Cold, wet dread and distress
In Meijel you can listen to the story of allied soldiers firing shells at the German positions.
In the battle for a bridgehead on the corner of the drainage canal and the Noordervaart, Allied shells were fired at the German positions on November 16 and 17, 1944. Weakened despite rain, cold and sleeplessness, German resistance is fierce. To make matters worse, German troops then accidentally shell each other due to miscommunication.