Droppings Field 1944-1945 & Memorial Dropping Haulster Bosken

The monument in the Haulster Bosken commemorates the large-scale Allied weapons drops over Friesland during World War II.

Since the establishment of the Dutch Internal Armed Forces in September 1944, weapons were dropped at ten locations in Friesland. In addition to the meadows near the Haulster Bosken, this also happened near Exmorra, Witmarsum, Wommels, Tzum, Katlijk, Mildam and on the border between Drenthe and Groningen. Each location had its own code. For example, the code for Aalsum was “The worm has red hair”. For Haskerhorne, the slogan was “If the shoe fits, wear it”. When resistance fighters heard this code on the BBC's Belgian broadcast, they could expect a drop during the night.

Most of the weapons were dropped in district three of the Internal Armed Forces, Haskerland. The first drop took place here in October 1944, followed by three more. Resistance fighters Dick Brouwer, Johannes Jonkman, Bouke van der Wal, Marten Harmsma and Gerben Oppewal were involved. Weapons fell from the sky for approximately 1,300 men, and the Allies dropped weapons for a total of 3,000 Frisians.

Route:
Start from the centre of Haskerhorne at Haulsterweg 1, follow this road for approximately 900 metres until you reach a slight bend to the right. In that bend, on the left, is the turn-off to Bosweg, marked by a sign saying “Welkom in de Haulster Bosken” (Welcome to the Haulster Woods) from Staatsbosbeheer (the Dutch Forestry Commission). After about 400 metres, you will see a sign on the right-hand side of the road saying “Droppingsveld 1944 - 1945”, which gives direct access to a sandy path. This is closed off with a bar and the location is not accessible by car. Follow the forest path until you reach a small T-junction, where you will see the former drop zone with a monument on the left-hand side.

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Source

• Text: Bert Deelman + Herma de Vries
• Photos: Mark de Heij (1, 2, 3), Herma de Vries (4, 5, 6, 7, 8)