Engraved in Belgian bluestone lie the names of 500 concentration camps. This is the Dachaumonument. It stands as a solemn tribute to the Dutch victims of Dachau. It also remembers other concentration camps. The Dachaumonument is in the Amsterdamse Bos. It is an initiative of the Dutch Dachau Committee.
The Dachaumonument was designed by artist Niek Kemps. It is a walkway made of Belgian bluestone. It measures 60 meters long and 2.35 meters wide. A yew hedge borders it. The walkway’s surface is uneven. This symbolizes the prisoners’ difficult walk. They had to walk with bad footwear. The names of 500 concentration camps are etched into the blue stone.
Prince Bernhard and Princess Juliana opened the Dachaumonument on December 1, 1996. A yearly commemoration has been held since 1997.
The path is not totally equal. The small steps symbolize the prisoners’ hardships. Walking along this path you encounter the names of concentration camps.
Children from the Merkelbach school adopted the Dachaumonument. During the memorial service they give a flower to each person. Over time, people stick these flowers into the yew hedge. The flowers enliven its dark green color.
The Dachaumonument gives visitors space to meditate. As you walk over the blue sidewalk you read the names. These names remind us of terrible places. You walk with your head bowed from name to name. The long path evokes the Lagerstrasse. The yew hedge reminds of the barbed wire. It gives the feeling of being cut off from the world.
The National Dachau Monument commemorates those who died in Dachau. It remembers other camps. In 1933, Dachau was the first concentration camp. It was used for political opponents. Dachau became the model for other camps.
Theodor Eicke made the measures against prisoners harsher. Terrible punishments were introduced. Dachau became known as the School of Violence.
The Dachaumonument reminds us that over 2,000 Dutch people were imprisoned in Dachau. 477 Dutch people died there. Among them were Pater Titus Brandsma. Also H.B. Wiardi Beckman. And George Maduro.
There was no memorial in the Netherlands for those who died in Dachau. So the Dutch Dachau Committee decided to build a monument. The Dachau Monument Foundation maintains it. They work with the Amsterdamse Bos forest ranger.
Sonja Holtz says the Dutch Dachau Committee maintains ties. These ties are with the international Dachau Committee. Pieter Dietz de Loos is now chair of the International Dachau Committee.
Every five years the NDC organizes a trip to Dachau. Together with the CID, the NDC ensures the Gedenkstätte remains. It keeps the idea of Never again Dachau alive. The Friends of Old Dachau Foundation maintains social contacts. They organize the yearly reunion.
Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard unveiled the Dachaumonument. They walked the sixty-meter-long path.
The Dachaumonument is in the Amsterdamse Bos. It is opposite the rowing course tribune. There is a video about the inauguration. It is available at the visitor center. The Dachaumonument stands as a place of reflection. It is a reminder of the atrocities of war. It urges us to remember and learn from the past.