RG 84: The Netherlands
State Department and Foreign Affairs Records
Records of the Foreign Service Posts of the Department of State (RG 84)
The Netherlands
On May 10, 1940, the Germans invaded the Netherlands. Within days the government headed by Queen Wilhelmina, fled to London and formed a government-in-exile. On May 14 the Dutch capitulated to the Germans. The Netherlands became a dependent province of the Third Reich, under Artur Seyss-Inquart who headed the Reichskommissariat Niederlanden, aided by H.A. Rauter, as head of the SS and security police. After the occupation began customs and financial barriers between the Netherlands and Germany were abolished, leaving the country wide open to German economic and financial penetration. As in several other occupied countries the Germans used financial manipulations of clearings as an economic weapon. The German authorities issued special regulations regarding the property of enemy aliens, anti-Nazis, and Jews. In addition, attempts were made by the Germans to lay hands on any assets in the Netherlands which could be easily realized abroad (holdings of gold, silver, platinum, diamonds, foreign currency, and foreign exchange). Germans penetrated the Dutch banking system by means of maintaining and expanding interests in many banks, participating in existing Dutch banks, and creating new banking houses.
The Germans penetrated the Dutch insurance industry, an industry that had almost 1,000 insurance companies operating in the country in 1939. On June 1, 1943, the Germans ordered the termination of all insurance policies contracted by Dutch Jews.
In addition to acquisitions by Germans of minority or majority interests in Dutch industry, the most notable changes in ownership of Dutch property were the confiscations of Jewish properties. On May 12, 1941, the occupation authorities began "Aryanizing" Jewish properties and by a decree of May 21, 1942, almost all Jews property was subject to expropriation. Earlier that year, forced labor camps for Jews were established and in July 1942, deportation began, continuing through September 1943. Another roundup and deportation took place early in 1944. Some 110,000 Dutch Jews were deported to Auschwitz, Sobibor, and to other camps. It is estimated that 105,000 Dutch Jews, or three-fourth of the estimated pre-Final Solution population, were exterminated, with only 5,000 of the deportees surviving. Additionally, during the war some 170,000 Dutch became forced-laborers for the Reich.
It was not until May 6, 1945, that the Netherlands was finally liberated. (Note 85)
The Hague Legation and Embassy
General Records 1936-1940, 1945-1952 (Entry 3011)
Boxes 1-64
1945
Box# File # File Title or Subject
34 711.3 Safehaven
711.3 Looted Property
35 840.1 Jews
840.3 Looted Art
36 851 Assets in the United States
851 Safehaven project
851 Treasury, U.S.
1946
Box # File # File Title or Subject
39 711.3 Restitution
711.3 Looted Art
711.3 Looted Securities
711.3 Safehaven
711.3 Safehaven Declarations
41 851 Treasury, U.S.
851 Unblocking of Assets
851 Deutsche Revisions und Treuhand
851 German External Assets
851 Marcel Wolf
1947
Box # File # File Title or Subject
44 711.3 German External Assets
711.3 Stinnes
46 851 German External Assets
851 Deutsche Revisions und Treuhand
1948
Box # File # File Title or Subject
49 711.3 Enemy Property
711.3 Looted Securities
711.3 Safehaven
711.3 Stinnes, Hugo
711.3 Swiss Looted Gold
50 840.3 Fine Arts location:
350/65/17/05
1949
Box # File # File Title or Subject
52 321.3 Enemy Property location:
350/65/17/05
Confidential File 1945-1952 (Entry 3012)
Boxes 2-30
1945
Box # File # File Title or Subject
3 711.3/851 Safehaven
711.3 Safehaven
5 840.3 Looted Art
1946
Box # File # File Title or Subject
6 711.3 Safehaven
8 851 Marcel Wolf
851 Deutsche Revisions und Treuhand
851 Safehaven
1947
Box # File # File Title or Subject
9 711.3 Safehaven
11 851 Deutsche Revisions und Treuhand location:
350/65/18/02
1948
Box # File # File Title or Subject
13-16 711.3 Safehaven
1949
Box # File # File Title or Subject
21 321.3 Economic Warfare
London-American Mission to the Dutch Government in Exile 1940-1944
General Records 1943-1944 (Entry 3016)
Boxes 1-5
Box # File # File Title or Subject
1 711 Atrocities
3 711 Situation in the Netherlands
4 711.3 Alien Property Custodian
711.3 Enemy Property
5 851 Federal Reserve
851 Treasury, U.S.
Classified General Records 1940-1944 (Entry 3017)
Boxes 1-4
Amsterdam Consulate General
General Records 1936-1941, 1945-1949
(Entry 3018)
Boxes 1-92
1940
Box # File # File Title or Subject
55 711.3 Enemy Property, Trading With
the Enemy
1945
Box # File # File Title or Subject
70 350 Deutsche Revisions und Treuhand location:
350/65/21/06
71 840.1 Dutch-Jewish Community-Present
Position of loc: 350/65/21/06
1946
Box # File # File Title or Subject
75 350 Deutsche Revisions und Treuhand location:
350/65/21/07
77 840.1 Dutch-Jewish Community-Present
Position of
840.3 Paintings and Objects of Art Recovered
77-78 851 Blocked Accounts location:
350/65/21/07
1947
Box # File # File Title or Subject
81 840.3 Art Treasures, Return of
82-83 851 Blocked Accounts location:
350/65/22/01
Records of the Amsterdam Consulate General
Classified General Records 1943-1952 (Entry 3019)
Boxes 1-6
Records of the Rotterdam Consulate General
General Records 1946-1954 (Entry 3020)
Boxes 1-2
Classified General Records 1945-1947, 1949-1952 (Entry 3021)
Boxes 1-2