Well, I was, like Michiel, at a younger age already interested in history, the middle ages, old castles, the egyptians. When I got older, say about the age of 15, I started on WW2 history. As I live near the coast, a city named Hellevoetsluis, there were many remains of the Atlanticwall, which I and a good friend of mine, now deceased unfortunately, started exploring, and in many cased opening out, after a lot of digging off-course. In the mean while, also picking up militaria at fleamarkets, mostly US and english, but also german items. While searching on the coast, the dunes to be precise, I stumbled on a strange circular steel disc. The both of us started digging, and lo and behold, there was a Flak 37mm gun, lying upside down, beneathe the dune it was formerly placed upon, by the germans. As we were both on our mopeds (Kreidler) we could never take it home. More than 35 years later, it was discovered again, by I guy who I met on our national Motorcycle forum, he was very surprised, but also said that he noticed some guy's found it before. It is now at a museum, where it was restored to its former glory. And on display.
After this whole episode, collecting got on a low level. Studying, work and a relationship prevented it. Started living in our own house and such things.
And then, my grandmother passed away, her brother, as we already knew, was a member of the Dutch fascist party, NSB. My grandmother however, was married to a Kriegsmarine soldier, Walter. After the war, Walter went back to germany, and sort of disappeared from view.
Grandmother, remarried to Gerrit, a former soldier in the Dutch army. Gerrit accepted my mother as his child, and also gave her a sister, Nellie.
My mother did not have a very nice childhood, was not allowed to play with the other kids in the village, being the child of a German soldier. In fact, a youth which also had its reflections on me and my sister... She was severely damaged, mentally, because of the opinions, fals, of the villagers.
But those were the day's back then...
But now more on the collecting bit. When my grandmother passed away, we started emptying her hous, and found many item, related to ww2, but also from ww1,regarding Walters father, a WW1 veteran, I have a picture of him, visiting his son, with his Iron cross ribbon on his coat, and holding a small baby in his hands, my mother. Many more pictures too, also from my grandmothers brother, is his WA uniform, and many more.
When my parent wanted to get married, this wasn't possible, because, she had 2 fathers, after the war, Gerrit also acknowledged my mother as his child, just like Walter had. Walter got in touch again, and agreed to let his acknowledgement pass, because he wanted his daughter to get married to my father. Sorry about the long post, but this is were my interest, and in fact my collecting started to transform from WW2, into WW1.
I started out finding out which regiment Walter, the father of the Walter the Kriegsmarine soldier, was in, he enlisted in 1914, Mobilmachung, August 2nd, if I'm not mistaken.
And found out that he was in RIR213. Then, figuring out where that regiment was,during WW1, I started doing more and more visits to Ypres, where he was active, in fact not very far from a Bavarian regiment, where Adolf H was part of.
I still visit Ypres, but not so frequent as before, but this whole story did also advance my more and more collecting of military artefacts from WW1, German, but also English and French, medals, helmets, period book, reference books and such.
Sorry for the very long post my friends, but that's the story.
Regards, Coert.
