Figure 1.--Hoensbroek Castle (Kasteel Hoensbroek / Gebrookhoes) is one of the largest and most historic castles in the Netherlands. It is located in Hoensbroek, a town in southern Limburg. The site as a fortified place dates to about 1225 beause of its strategic location on trade routes connecting Maastricht (on the Meuse), Aachen, and Cologne (on the Rhine). It was the most important stronghold between the Meuse and the Rhine Rivers. After liberation, the Carmelite Sisters used the castle to care for war orphans. Here we see American GIs participating in some advent with the orphans at the Castle. The press caption read, "American soldiers, paternally inclined, take Dutch children, dressedin their national costme for the occassion, walking through the grounds of Hohensbrock Castle, in Holand." The photograph is dated February 24, 1945, but that could be when the photograph appearedin American newspapers not necessarily when it was taken.

The liberation of the Netherlands began with crossing of the Meuse. The southern Netherlands included an unusal projection into northern Belgium -- southern Limburg including Masstrict. The province nasmes can be a little confusing. Many have north and south names like North Barbant or South Holland. In this case we are talkibng about the southern areas of Linburg Province, there was no North and South Linburg. The southern area of Limburg projected far to the south of the rest of the Netherlands. This projection was located east of the Meuse. As a result, southern Limburg separated northern Belgium from Germany, significantly reducing the length of the Belgian-German border. It was important in World War I as Germany respected Dutch neutrality, but not in World War II as Germany invaded, both Belgium and the Netherlands. This southerly projection was an artifact of the Dutch War of Independence. The Spanish Catholic armies that retook the southern Netherlands and reinstituted Catholicism, were unable to take Maastricht. In medieval times, the province was strategic with trade routes connecting Masstricht, Aachen, and Cologne. The American Army moving from eastern Belgium crossed the Dutch border near Maastricht. The American 30th Infantry Division liberated Maastrict (September 13-14, 1944). The Americans managed to to liberate large areas of southern Linmburg, all the way to Hoensbroek with its historic castle. The liberastion of Linburg only slowed when the Americans moving north reached the 'waistline' of Linburg. Just south of Limburg lies Aachen--the first German city to fall to the Allies (October 21). The Americans had to fight a costly a 19-day battle to take the city. After the rapid advance through France, the chastened Americans began to ask if the Germans were going to resist so fiercely city by city.

Created: 3:09 AM 2/10/2019
Last updated: 3:09 AM 2/10/2019