Occupied by Nazi Germany from 1940 to 1945, the Netherlands was at the forefront of World War II. As such, these Amsterdam museums chronicle the ways the city and the country faced the war, its atrocities, and its end.
Dutch Museum of Resistance
Plantation Kerklaan 61
Ubicación: Plantation Area
This repeat winner of the ‘Best Historical Museum in the Netherlands’ offers visitors an in-depth insight into how the Dutch resisted the oppression caused by the German occupation during WWII through strikes, protests, falsification and concealment of the persecuted . Housed in a former Jewish social club from the 19th century, the collection illuminates visitors about life in Amsterdam and the Netherlands before, during and after the war with impressive recreations of street scenes and building interiors.
Anne Frank House
Prinsengracht 267
Location: Prinsengracht (Prince’s Canal)
See where Anne Frank wrote her world-famous diary, which tells the story of a young Jewish woman in hiding with her family during the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam in WWII. Seeing the secret annex and many other rooms in this restored canal house is a moving experience and well worth enduring the ever-present crowds. Skip the lines by visiting early or late in the day, or by purchasing special access tickets at night in advance.
Hollandsche Schouwburg (Teatro Dutch)
Planting Middenlaan 24
Location: Plantagebuurt
This building in the Plantage / Jewish Quarter area of Amsterdam has a sadly mixed history. Opened in 1892 as a theater to provide entertainment and camaraderie to the Jewish community, in 1942 it became a WWII Jewish deportation center. In this formerly festive place, Jewish men, women and children gathered to await transfer to a transit camp in Holland and later to Nazi death camps. The monument features a courtyard with an eternal flame and a permanent exhibition.
Jewish Historical Museum
New Amstelstraat 1
Ubicación: Plantation Area
While it is not a WWII history museum per se, the Jewish History Museum certainly has a lot to teach visitors about this historical period. The museum deals with Jewish history from 1600 to the present, with a special emphasis on the Dutch Jewish community, which numbered 75,000 at its peak. Permanent exhibits review the catastrophic events of World War II and the Holocaust, offer a window into everyday life in this period, and trace the recovery of the Jewish population in Amsterdam, which is now around 15,000.
Edited by Kristen de Joseph.
