Vector: Two monasteries are liberated
Before moving on to the village of Standdaarbuiten, the American Timberwolves liberated the town of Oudenbosch without much resistance. The Sisters of the Saint Anna Convent and the Monks of the Saint Louis Monastery, along with the rest of the town, were overjoyed.
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The Timberwolves, on the other hand, were exhausted and still had a long way to go...
The liberation of Oudenbosch took place on 30 October 1944, with the Timberwolves, the first Allied forces to enter the village, arriving at around 15:30. Sister Caspara Franken, who lived in the Sint Anna convent, was an eyewitness. She writes:
'The news went through the convent like wildfire. The large front door was opened wide and in an instant the vestibule was full of Sisters. People everywhere were hanging out of windows or flying into the street.
What came in were only Americans. You could tell that immediately by the wide…
The Timberwolves, on the other hand, were exhausted and still had a long way to go...
The liberation of Oudenbosch took place on 30 October 1944, with the Timberwolves, the first Allied forces to enter the village, arriving at around 15:30. Sister Caspara Franken, who lived in the Sint Anna convent, was an eyewitness. She writes:
'The news went through the convent like wildfire. The large front door was opened wide and in an instant the vestibule was full of Sisters. People everywhere were hanging out of windows or flying into the street.
What came in were only Americans. You could tell that immediately by the wide green helmets with the nets over them. They were mostly Yankees or Yanks, as they called themselves and also some Canadians and people from California. You could hear absolutely no marching. They walked inaudibly on their rubber shoes on either side past the houses, one after the other, loaded rifle in hand. How dirty and dead tired those poor fellows looked. But when they saw the happy faces of the people and flags and orange ribbons and bows appearing everywhere, they smiled and waved kindly back. When they were ordered to stop, some of them simply dropped down on the sidewalk and, with their backs leaning against the wall, lit a cigarette. The people, and we too, gave them apples and pears, but most preferred smoking to eating. They themselves handed out cigarettes, chewing gum and sticky toffees to the girls, who were all over the place, just drifting around the Americans.
A moment later, on the side street, we heard the thundering sound of tanks over the cobblestones. We waited in suspense for a moment more and... there appeared the first American tanks, from which smiling soldiers' heads and waving arms emerged here and there. On the back of each tank was an antenna. It was a nice sight as you looked down the street. The fathers and brothers were also all outside in front of the main entrance, but the sisters were now commanded back inside: “Americans seen, so door again.” Didn't matter, after all, we were now nicely liberated without a struggle. All of Oudenbosch was still standing, except for a few houses. There had been quite a change in mood. It seemed as if peace was just waiting to be baked and served up. But it wouldn't happen that soon anyway. We would still have a lot of misery to hear and see.
After the liberation, Oudenbosch received thousands of evacuees who could no longer stay in their own homes.