The Dam Square Shootout — Forgotten History

Jubilant crowds gather in the city square cheering and shouting as they eagerly wait for their liberators to arrive. It is a pleasant day but most are just excited for the war and killing to finally be over. However the ecstatic celebration is brought to a halt when out of nowhere a shot rings out. Everyone falls silent, then several bursts from a machine gun can be heard as several people fall to the ground.

Revelry

Dam Square is the central point of the Netherlands capital city Amsterdam, it is a hub for shopping and entertainment and serves as a place for the public to gather and celebrate. On May 7, 1945 when Germany surrendered the square was put to good use as thousands of citizens came together to celebrate the end of the war and their coming liberation. There were still armed German forces in the city but nothing could stop the eager crowd.

British tanks arriving in Dam Square. Courtesy of Amsterdam Red Light District Tours.

At around 1 P.M. several British tanks arrived in Dam Square and were met by an overwhelming mass of people. The crowd packed themselves around the vehicles while some even attempted to jump in them as it appeared their salvation had come. Unfortunately for the citizens of Amsterdam these tanks were just a part of the 49th West Riding Infantry Divisions reconnaissance unit, nicknamed the Polar Bears because they were mainly comprised of Canadian soldiers, and were just scouting ahead for the main force. From the opposite end of the city came several German armoured vehicles and despite the armistice between the two factions the situation was still tense. The German unit quietly drove past the British tanks and then left the scene without mishap. After this encounter the British/Canadian force decided to leave as well since they were unable to contact their main headquarters and believed it would be best to return when the rest of the unit was available.

A photo of some of the Binnenlandse Strijdkrachten at Dam Square. Courtesy of the Netherlands Photomuseum.

Shootout

No other major excitement would occur until roughly 3 P.M. when shots were fired behind the Dutch Palace close to the square. The Binnenlandse Strijdkrachten (Dutch Domestic Armed Forces) began shooting from the square at the German Kriegsmarine (Naval) forces that had barricaded themselves in the Groote (Grand) Club across the square. The club was not far from the palace and the German soldiers quickly returned fire. As the two sides exchanged blows the crowds that had previously gathered in the square became panicked and attempted to flee and take cover, unfortunately they were caught in a crossfire and it was difficult to do either.

Civilians attempting to take cover wherever they can. Courtesy of Amsterdam Red Light District Tours.

As the confused crowd tried to disperse a second round of fire commenced, wounding several civilians. Nurses and Red Cross workers sprang into action to help those who were injured, all while bullets continually whizzed by. Eventually the two sides began employing heavier weaponry with the Germans using their machine guns and the Dutch employing explosives. The shootout would ultimately last for an hour and a half, injuring over a hundred people during this time. It was only brought to an end when Major Overhoff of the Dutch forces and a German soldier by the name of Hauptmann Bergmann worked out a cease fire between the two sides. Another version claims that the shooting stopped when the Binnenlandse Strijdkrachten threatened to use bazooka launched grenades against the Germas. The Dutch did sustain a few casualties but it is unknown if or how many casualties the Germans took.

The Kriegsmarine forces would remain in the Groote Club until May the 9th when they were rounded up by Canadian forces and shipped back to Germany. There was never an official investigation of the shooting and no one was ever prosecuted despite there being between 19 to 22 people killed and 100 to 120 wounded. Now, many years later, an organization by the name Stichting Memorial has been investigating the shooting and has identified 32 victims that were killed and are attempting to confirm more. There has also never been an official motive discovered for the shooting, though there are several different theories.

Citizens taking cove behind lampposts. Courtesy of Amsterdam Red Light District Tours.

What Really Happened?

There are a few varying stories that try to explain exactly what happened on that fateful day in Dam Square. The first and most common one is that the Binnenlandse Strijdkrachten were bringing German soldiers to the palace and disarming them before sending them back to their home country. When one of the Germans refused to give up his weapons a scuffle ensued and shots were fired. The Kriegsmarine forces in the Groote Club either wanted to help their comrade or believed that the Dutch forces were shooting at them and decided to return fire. This is a likely theory as the Dutch were disarming German soldiers at the palace and it is not uncommon for some to be unwilling to give up their arms. However the issue is that where the Groote Club is located and where the disarmings were taking place it would have been difficult to see what was going on as there is not a good direct line of sight between the two. Of course with the situation already being tense any gunshots could have been perceived by the barricaded Germans as an act of aggression towards them.

In the center is the palace at Dam Square, directly to the left (kind of hidden by the building in front of it) is the Groote Club. Courtesy of Truus van Aalten.

The second story explains that there were several women rounded up by Dutch authorities and taken to the square to be punished for supposedly sleeping with German soldiers. These women had their heads shaved and covered with lead vermilion in order to publicly humiliate them. Upon hearing the cries of the women the German soldiers decided to try and put a stop to it by shooting at the Dutch soldiers. At first their intent was not to harm anyone and shot over top of people's heads, but when the Dutch returned fire the scene turned ugly. This is a plausible story with the only issue being that there is no photographic evidence of the women being publicly humiliated. With the amount of photographers there that day it is unlikely that none would have taken a picture of such an occurrence.

The somewhat domed building to the right is the Groote Club. Directly across from it to the right (Out of frame) is the palace. Courtesy of the Amsterdam Red Light District Tours.

A third story says that the Binnenlandse Strijdkrachten took two German soldiers prisoner in front of the Groote Club. Displeased with their fellow soldiers being arrested those inside the club decided to shoot at the Dutch that were arresting the two. This story seems plausible as there is photographic evidence of soldiers being arrested and it is easy to see why the other Germans would have been angered by this. However many eyewitnesses say that the shooting started after the arrests, not during. Also many accounts say that the Dutch began the shooting.

Citizens fleeing and taking cover. Courtesy of Place a Stone.

The final story claims that the German soldiers were intoxicated and that, along with the pressure of losing the war, caused them to act out of turn. It is not an impossible theory but looking at photographs and eyewitness accounts of the time it appears that the soldiers inside the club were relatively stable. It seems like they were really just waiting to finally surrender and return home, not trying to stir up trouble. Even if the intoxication story is true it is doubtful that they were aiming to harm civilians and were really just trying to keep Dutch soldiers away, and when they instead returned fire the situation boiled over.

Unfortunately it is difficult to investigate this event in our modern day. With eyewitnesses passing on and the architecture of the city changing, the real story will likely never be known. However on March 7, 2016 a monument with the names of the victims was erected in Dam Square to commemorate the event.

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Personal Thoughts

This is a pretty forgotten part of history that rarely gets talked about but I find that those who do know about it seem to take it very seriously. A lot of people think that when the war ended it was all over but there was a lot that needed sorting out and places still had to be liberated from German holdouts. As for which story I believe to be the most likely, I would have to say the German refusing to give up his weapons is the most likely. It is known that they were disarming German soldiers and even though it was kind of out of the way of the Groote Club I can still see it being easy for the German soldiers to either misinterpret what was happening or trying to help one of their own. I don’t think either side really intended to hurt civilians I think they were just caught in the crossfire and both sides were too embroiled in the battle to stop.