The images and the entire text used on this and all other USMBOOKS web pages are the copyrighted property of USM Inc.  Those images and the text may be used by others ONLY AFTER completion of a formal international licensing agreement and payment of a licensing fee! It is therefore, illegal for anyone to take any of the material found on USMBOOKS.com and use it for their own purposes without our written permission, irrespective of any excuse they may feel they have for doing so.

The booklet Zur Geschichte der Niederlande contains the National-Socialist view of the Netherlands. It was written during the German occupation of Holland by S. van Steenoord and is very pro-Nazi, anti-Communist, anti-Jewish and anti-Masonic. The German language text stresses the common features and characteristic of the German and Dutch people - countries with a rich history, similar Germanic ancestry and culture, both countries heavily involved in the European trade for centuries, straight-forward hard workers, and like Germans in the 1930s, ready for national-socialism.

The last sentence in Zur Geschichte der Niederlande points out that soon, all citizens of Holland would want to become a part of the New Europe, with its National Socialist ideas and its great leader, Adolf Hitler.

The foundation of the Dutch Nazi Party (NSB or Nationaal Socialistische Beweging) by Anton Mussert is covered, as well as its ups and downs prior to the start of World War II in Holland. Due to the ever increasing behind-the-scenes political meddling and influence of England and France, the German invasion of Holland on 10 May 1940 was necessary, according to the author. A pro-German head of the Dutch state was put in place (Reichskommissar Artur Seyss-Inquart is not mentioned by name), the borders between Holland and Nazi Germany would disappear, and the German victory over resistance in Holland had freed up the way for the country to take a place in the world on the side of Germany.

There is no publication date but we suspect Zur Geschichte der Niederlande dates from 1941. Most of these pro Nazi booklets were destroyed in May 1945 when the German occupation of the Netherlands ended. It is rare and this 80+ year old example was carefully saved and is in excellent condition. The cover is bright, not faded, and the book has no unpleasant odor.

The front cover of the 4-3/4 x 6-5/8 inch, 36-page publication has the coat of arms of the Dutch cities Amsterdam, Nijmegen and ’s Hertogenbosch. On the back cover there is a picture of a commemorative coin issued to remember German and Dutch prisoners of May 1940. One side has a Wolfsangel (the symbol of the NSB) and the text on the reverse translates as “Netherlanders and Germans, brought together by destiny, unified in danger and joined for the future.”

The author says that having the same racial make-up, history, and the same Weltanschauung (National Socialist world view), there was no material difference between Nordic Dutch and German people. The author does point out the large Jewish element in Dutch society, and the many Mischlinge or mixed Dutch-Jewish citizens, as well as the large number of Indonesians, Malayans and negroes, the result of the rich colonial history of the Netherlands.