Rotterdam WWII surrender document bought by Brabant museum

The Overloon war museum in Brabant and the Eyewitness Museum in the Limburg town Beek jointly bought a World War II document showing Germany's second ultimatum to Rotterdam and the city's surrender, Omroep Brabant reports.

“This is the only physical proof showing that the Dutch army surrended to Germans in May 1940. It's exciting”, states Erik van den Dungen, the director of the Overloon in Brabant, said to the broadcaster.

The unique capitulation document was found on a German auction site by investigative journalist Gerard Groeneveld. He wrote about it in his book Rotterdam Frontsta, published in April 14^th 2016. Groeneveld agreed to sell the document, now that his book is published. It is unknown how much money was involved in the purchase.

In the document, dated 14 may 1940, German colonel Schimdt asks commander responsible for Rotterdam's defense Scharroo to yield. An ultimatum is negotiated even if the surrender was eventually signed after the city was bombed.

The document will be displayed first in Limburg and then, from October at Overloon.

#ob Belangrijk historisch document waarmee NL zich overgaf in 1940 is in #overloon. Het #oorlogsmuseum kocht het pic.twitter.com/YXUsiP7Awp

— Tonnie Vossen (@tonnievossen) April 22, 2016