How one kidnap started World War II in the Netherlands- The Venlo incident
Venlo incident involved the kidnap of two British and a Dutch officer from the Netherlands to Germany. Their spy operation became a pretext for German occupation of Netherlands
A car drove swiftly across the Dutch-German border. Onlookers saw that the vehicle contained two shell shocked passengers and a wounded Dutchman.
This kidnap brought World War II to the Netherland’s doorstep, and changde its stand on neutrality. Hitler will use this kidnapped personals as his claim to start his invasion of Western Europe.
British spy activities and peace efforts:
When Hitler came to power in Germany, there was a rise in rival factions against his motives.
Britain was keen to know Hitler’s next moves as it will affect them directly. Britain set up its border control office in Hague with more than 12 employees.
Point to be noted that Dutch citizens don’t need a visa to travel to Britain. The Border control office bustled with a hub of spies and espionage. The Dutch government maintained neutrality in World War I.
