The Escape of Gerrit Hoopman
Gerrit Hoopman escapes during raid thanks to the cap and cape of an evacuee from Scheveningen
Mrs Visser-Taal (left) and her daughter Nellie
The German occupiers knew that the churches in Aalten were very crowded on Sundays, including young men and people-in-hiding who were evading the labour service (Arbeitseinsatz) or had failed to return from leave.
On Sunday 30 January 1944, a raid unexpectedly took place on two churches. The Reformed Westerkerk in Aalten was surrounded by SS men. Inside, several people-in-hiding tried in vain to hide or escape past the organ.
The churchgoers had to show their identity cards, and young men aged between 19 and 23 were detained. Nineteen-year-old Gerrit Hoopman was given an overskirt, shoulder shawl, and a cap with a traditional metal headpiece (hoofdijzer) by Mrs Visser-Taal, an evacuee from Scheveningen.
He left the church arm-in-arm with the women and escaped in this manner wearing traditional costume. In the Westerkerk, 42 men were arrested, and in the Oosterkerk, six men. They were taken to Arnhem for interrogation and then to Camp Amersfoort or the ‘Oranjehotel’ prison in Scheveningen. After that, they were forced to work in Germany or ended up in penal camps. A number of them did not survive.
The Scheveningen cap in question (collection Nationaal Onderduikmuseum)
The cap was included in the national exhibition ‘The Second World War in 100 Objects’ at the Kunsthal in 2014.
