City walk | Maastricht liberated 80 years

You start the walk at the Dinghuis, Kleine Staat 1.

During the war, the Dinghuis served as a command post for the head of the local air protection service. There was little chance of an air raid, partly because the building was narrow. In addition, the many telephone cables, remnants of the former telephone exchange, made it a strategic location for this function. The thick walls provided additional protection, keeping the building shrapnel-free.

During wartime, the Dinghuis hosted several exhibitions by the National Socialist cultural organisation 'De Spade'. After the war, it housed, among others, the Cadi Club, a canteen for Dutch soldiers.

Continue walking through Kleine Staat and turn left into Maastrichter Brugstraat.

Maastricht is also home to many Stumbling Stones that remind us of all the victims. In this walk, you will come across many of them. You can look up and read the stories here.

On Maastrichter Brugstraat No 31 lived Alfred and Hannchen Löwenstein and their daughters. After Kristallnacht, the couple decided to move to Maastricht. They were rounded up in 1943 and died three days after their arrival in Sobibor. They were an extraordinary family. All daughters of the Löwenstein family were allowed an education, exceptional for the time. Their six daughters survived the war.

Continue down the street. At the end, just before the Servaas bridge, turn right to the statue of the 'Mestreechter Geis'.

During the German invasion on 10 May 1940, the Maastricht bridges across the Meuse were blown up in an attempt to keep the enemy out of the city. At 6am, the Saint Sint Servaasbrug bridge was destroyed, followed by the Wilhelmina Bridge and the Railway Bridge at 6.15am.

Continue your route via Plankstraat to Onze-Lieve-Vrouweplein.

Along the way, you'll pass Havenstraat, where a bomb fell on the vicarage in the summer of 1942. Fortunately, the parish priest was in church at the time and remained unharmed.

The bombs were from a stray English plane that, while being pursued by a German fighter, shed its load - probably to make a faster escape. The other bombs came down in the surrounding streets. A total of 11 people were killed in the process.

Walk on to Basilica of Our Lady.

During the war, the basilica suffered some damage, and the large swinging bell was looted by the Germans. People could take shelter in the crypt. Light a candle in the chapel for the war dead or commemorate them in silence.

On the corner of Koestraat and Cortenstraat, a little hidden away, you will find a beautiful facade sculpture by Maastricht sculptor Charles Vos: a hideaway Madonna. Mary is represented here as the patroness of those in hiding during the war. The relief bears the name 'Our Lady of the Good Dive'. Mary is depicted on clouds, with the child on her right arm, watching the four hiders under her cloak. The Maastricht star, a bomber and a dove of peace also adorn the sculpture.

Continue walking down Koestraat.

At Koestraat number 12, Gerard Soesman lived. Gerard did resistance work for the Communist Party of the Netherlands and, a week before the liberation, was murdered in Auschwitz at the age of 22. His Struikelsteentje can be found here.

Walk on to de Bisschopsmolen, famous for its delicious bread and flans. Take a look around the mill here and sample a piece of flan 'to go' to enjoy on the go!

Walk through the Stenenbrug and turn left. Take Pieterstraat and Nieuwenhofstraat to reach de Zwingelput, where you go up the city wall.

On Grote Looiersstraat is a building with a long history, with a special period just after the liberation of Maastricht.

For many hundreds of Maastricht people, suspected of being country traitors, the liberation was no celebration. They were not arrested gently and ended up in Camp de Grote Looier, often unjustly accused. There was room for about 700 prisoners, but more than 1,000 were locked up. Women slept on wooden cots, while men lay on straw. There were large barrels for defecation. There was a washroom with 12 taps. Prisoners were often severely mistreated. It was a dark history, but not unique to Maastricht.

Continue via Achter de Molens and Kapoenstraat. At Kapoenstraat 8 is the Struikelsteentje for Isaac Sternveld. Isaac was taken to Camp Vught on 8 April, aged 81, and from there to Sobibor, where he was gassed.

Cross the Vrijthof and walk along Helmstraat and Grote Gracht to the Markt. On the way, pass the Struikelsteentje on Grote Gracht 4 for Abraham Moszkowicz. In 1942, Abraham and his family were arrested and put on transport to Westerbork, and then to Auschwitz. His wife and two children are murdered immediately on arrival. Abraham and his son Max are selected for forced labour. Just under a month before liberation, Abraham dies. Max survives and returns to Maastricht after 1945, aged 18. Max becomes a successful and well-known lawyer. He never spoke about the war to his children.

On the day of the raid, a German officer appeared at the city hall. He demanded the names of ten prominent Maastricht citizens from mayor W. Kessenich. That same day, they were taken hostage, a ploy by the occupier to keep the Maastricht population calm. If there were actions, the hostage-takers would be shot. The list included five Maastricht people from Wyck and five from the rest of the city. They were held for two and a half days.

A special memorial are the flags displayed on either side of the staircase in the town hall since the liberation of Maastricht. They are the flags of the French and Belgian towns liberated by the Old Hickory Division.