• List War Victims May 1940 - Military

Date of birth:

November 20th, 1919 (Terheijden/Noord-Brabant, The Netherlands)

Date of death:

May 10th, 1940 (Zevenbergen/Noord-Brabant, The Netherlands)

Buried on:

Dutch War Graves Roman Catholic Cemetery Wagenberg

Nationality:

Dutch

In the early morning of May 10, 1940, just as war broke out in the Netherlands, a group of 50 German aircraft approached Moerdijk. Moerdijk, a key German town with its bridge and harbor, was one of the first attack points. Fierce resistance from the Dutch quickly emerged. At 4:00 a.m., three 7.5 cm anti-aircraft guns in Moerdijk began firing on the incoming aircraft. Before the anti-aircraft guns could shoot down a single aircraft, it was hit by a German bomb and put out of action. Following this action, a group of approximately 700 German paratroopers landed in the area around the Moerdijk Bridge. Some were shot down by Dutch soldiers, and others drowned in the Hollands Diep. However, a large number of the Germans landed safely and quickly took control of Moerdijk and the surrounding area. From this area, the Germans were attacked by the Dutch army. First Lieutenant Brogtrop's 1st Company had been ordered to occupy the central sector of the right side of the bridgehead to overpower the German paratroopers. The company intended to position itself in the hamlet of Blauwe Sluis, a few kilometers from the Moerdijk Bridge (between Lage Zwaluwe and Zevenbergschenhoek). On their way to the hamlet, they were attacked by the Germans. The Dutch moved several light machine guns into position; one of the gunners was 20-year-old Johan de Kroon. Johan was hit in the head by a shot and died instantly. The Germans captured a large part of this area that same day. Johan was buried in his hometown of Wagenberg.

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