Royal Netherlands Motorized Infantry Brigade - History

History

Although augmented by conscription among overseas citizens from Canada, the United States, the Middle East, Netherlands Antilles, Argentina, Suriname and South Africa; the Dutch force grew very slowly as troops were detached for other duties i.e. the Commandos, the Navy etc. Some 500 Surinamese volunteered for service in the brigade, but were rejected by the Dutch government, on the grounds that their racial background might cause offense to volunteers and conscripts from South Africa. On 11 February 1941 by approval of Queen Wilhelmina the Dutch Legion gained a new name, the Prinses Irene Brigade (P.I.B.).

On August 6 1944 the first troops of the P.I.B landed at Graye-sur-Mer Normandy, in northern France. Later the main force landed and the P.I.B. served under the 1st Canadian Army until it moved forward with the British Second Army. Heavy fighting took place around the Chateau St Come ("Hellfire Corner") and the brigade liberated Pont Audemer in the progress.

In mid September the P.I.B. became involved in fighting with German forces at the town of Beeringen and crossed into Dutch territory on 20 September 1944 at Borkel en Schaft. Around this time the brigade was also involved in combating the Dutch Waffen-SS volunteer formation the Landstorm Nederland. From the 26 September the P.I.B guarded the bridge at Grave, which was then the longest bridge in Europe.

After Operation Market Garden, the operation to capture bridges across the Rhine at Arnhem, the P.I.B moved south. On the 24 October the P.I.B. was ordered to go to Tilburg to attack the town from the south while the 51st (Highland) Infantry Division attacked from the east. The P.I.B. was unable to get to Tilburg and was stranded at Broekhoven, where fighting took place and four soldiers were killed.

The Prinses Irene Brigade spent the winter of 1944/45 in the region of Walcheren and North Beveland (Zeeland), losing several soldiers. From Zeeland the P.I.B. went back to Noord-Brabant.

On 31 March 1945 the commander of the P.I.B., Colonel de Ruyter van Steveninck, said goodbye to the three platoons of Marines; the latter subsequently formed II Independent Company and were sent to the USA to join the Royal Netherlands Marines Brigade, who had originally assigned these troops to the P.I.B. so the brigade would have enough troops participating in the liberation of Europe, as requested by the British government. The gap left by the Dutch Marines was filled with replacements from the volunteers from the liberated parts of the Netherlands, who had been trained at Bergen Op Zoom under the command of Frank Looringh van Beeck, a South African officer.

On 2 March 1945 the P.I.B. was put under the command of the Netherlands District, under Major General A Galloway, based at the HQ in the town of Tilburg.