The municipal police in Vught were kept busy; during World War II, they were bombarded with complaints. This time, we join a rowboat patrol on the IJzeren Man, where German soldiers in "very short swimming trunks" harassed many girls...
Short swimming trunks The scant German swimwear was noticed by everyone.
On a warm summer day in August 1942, several heated confrontations with German soldiers took place. The gendarme and a Vught police officer were patrolling the IJzeren Man in their rowboat. Suddenly, two German soldiers, dressed in "very short swimming trunks," paddled towards the officers. A few girls reportedly caused quite a commotion, so an investigation was launched. Remarkably, almost every witness noticed the Germans' scant swimwear and explicitly mentioned it.
Collisions Several bystanders were interviewed, giving us a good idea of what happened that day. Four girls from Vught were lying in a canoe on the bank of the Iron Man. One witness stated that four or five soldiers approached the girls. They apparently didn't want to hear anything, because the girls tried to paddle away. To help them, the witness navigated his canoe between the girls' and the bank.
This rescue attempt failed, however, as his canoe struck the back of one of the girls. Another canoeist came to help but bumped into the witness's canoe, which in turn struck the leg of a German soldier. This soldier then overturned the man's canoe and also tried to drown the witness's dog.
Later that afternoon, the Germans returned. The same German who had previously overturned the canoe, and who was wearing green swimming trunks, stepped onto the canoe's deck and slid off. The girls burst out laughing and sang in unison, "In the green valley, in the still valley." They then sailed away from the shore and began singing the English national anthem. They also reportedly cursed the Germans, shouting, "Go away, Kraut!"
"That's not for us."
One of the girls indicates that this is certainly not the first time the Germans have caused trouble. "These people come to us, sit on the canoe or hang from it, talk all sorts of nonsense, and keep forcing themselves on us," she angrily tells the police.
The police officers are also fed up with the behavior of the German soldiers on the Iron Man. However, when they speak to the soldiers, they are met with the following responses: "We haven't done anything. That's not for us."
Translated by Google •
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