Casper ten Boom
Encyclopedia
Casper ten Boom was a Dutch
Christian
who helped many Jews
and resisters escape the Nazis during the Holocaust of World War II
. He is the father of Betsie and Corrie ten Boom
, who also aided the Jews and were sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp
; only Corrie survived. Ten Boom died March 10, 1944, ten days after the arrest of the family, while in the Scheveningen Prison
.
in 1859, the son of Willem ten Boom, who had a watchshop, and his wife. When Casper was eighteen years old, he started a jewelry store in Amsterdam
. He had grown up in a family that belonged to the Dutch Reformed Church
and had strong faith. While living in Amsterdam, he started a work among the poor people called Tot Heil des Volks (For the Salvation of the People). Later he returned to Haarlem to live.
He and his wife Cor had three daughters ( Elisabeth "Betsie"
(1885-1944), Arnolda Johanna "Nollie" (1890-October 22, 1953) and Cornelia Arnolda Johanna "Corrie"
(1892-1983), and a son, Willem (November 21, 1886-December 13, 1946). Another child, Hendrick Jan (September 12, 1888-March 6, 1889), died in infancy. His wife died in 1921 from a stroke.
Willem and Nollie both married and moved away. Casper lived with his two unmarried daughters Betsie and Corrie in their home and watchmaking workshop. The Ten Boom family were members of the Protestant Dutch Reformed Church
.
The Dutch Reformed Church "protested Nazi persecution of Jews as an injustice to fellow human beings and an affront to divine authority." The Ten Boom family strongly believed that people were equal before God.
During the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, the father and daughters became active in sheltering Jewish people at their home, who were trying to escape the Nazis. In May 1942 a woman came to the house and asked for help. She said she was a Jew, that her husband had been arrested several months before, and her son had gone into hiding. As Occupation authorities had visited her, she was afraid to return home. She had heard that the family had helped other Jews, and asked if she could stay with them, to which Casper agreed. He believed that all people were equal before God. He told her, "In this household, God's people are always welcome." When the Nazis began requiring all Jews to wear the Star of David
, he voluntarily wore one also.
His son Willem, a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church, also worked in an non-denominational nursing home. During the occupation, he sheltered many Jews there to save them from the Nazis.
When Ten Boom was interrogated in prison, the Gestapo
told him they would release him because of his age so that he could "die in his own bed". He replied: "If I go home today, tomorrow I will open my door to anyone who knocks for help". When asked if he knew he could die for helping Jews, he replied, "It would be an honor to give my life for God's chosen people." On March 10, Casper died at the Hague Municipal Hospital at the age of 84 after ten days in Scheveningen prison.
His daughter Betsie died at Ravensbruck in December 1944. His son Willem (60) contracted spinal tuberculosis
(TB) while imprisoned for his resistance work. Although he was released, he died of TB shortly after the war. Ten Boom's nephew Christiaan, then 24, was sent to the Bergen Belsen concentration camp for his work in the underground, and died there during the war.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
who helped many Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and resisters escape the Nazis during the Holocaust of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He is the father of Betsie and Corrie ten Boom
Corrie ten Boom
Cornelia "Corrie" ten Boom was a Dutch Christian, who with her father and other family members helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II. Her family was arrested due to an informant in 1944, and her father died 10 days later at Scheveningen prison where they were first held...
, who also aided the Jews and were sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp
Ravensbrück concentration camp
Ravensbrück was a notorious women's concentration camp during World War II, located in northern Germany, 90 km north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück ....
; only Corrie survived. Ten Boom died March 10, 1944, ten days after the arrest of the family, while in the Scheveningen Prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
.
Background
Casper was born in HaarlemHaarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
in 1859, the son of Willem ten Boom, who had a watchshop, and his wife. When Casper was eighteen years old, he started a jewelry store in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. He had grown up in a family that belonged to the Dutch Reformed Church
Dutch Reformed Church
The Dutch Reformed Church was a Reformed Christian denomination in the Netherlands. It existed from the 1570s to 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the...
and had strong faith. While living in Amsterdam, he started a work among the poor people called Tot Heil des Volks (For the Salvation of the People). Later he returned to Haarlem to live.
Marriage and family
In Sunday School he met Cor Luitingh, whom he married in 1884. Like his father, he lived and worked in the same building, with the shop on the ground floor and living quarters on the two floors above.He and his wife Cor had three daughters ( Elisabeth "Betsie"
Betsie ten Boom
Elisabeth ten Boom was one of the leading characters in The Hiding Place, a book written by her sister Corrie ten Boom about the family's experiences during World War II. Nicknamed Betsie, she suffered with pernicious anemia from her birth...
(1885-1944), Arnolda Johanna "Nollie" (1890-October 22, 1953) and Cornelia Arnolda Johanna "Corrie"
Corrie ten Boom
Cornelia "Corrie" ten Boom was a Dutch Christian, who with her father and other family members helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II. Her family was arrested due to an informant in 1944, and her father died 10 days later at Scheveningen prison where they were first held...
(1892-1983), and a son, Willem (November 21, 1886-December 13, 1946). Another child, Hendrick Jan (September 12, 1888-March 6, 1889), died in infancy. His wife died in 1921 from a stroke.
Willem and Nollie both married and moved away. Casper lived with his two unmarried daughters Betsie and Corrie in their home and watchmaking workshop. The Ten Boom family were members of the Protestant Dutch Reformed Church
Dutch Reformed Church
The Dutch Reformed Church was a Reformed Christian denomination in the Netherlands. It existed from the 1570s to 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the...
.
Activities during the Occupation
The Ten Boom family were devout and generous Christians. According to The Hiding Place, in 1918 the family took in the first of many foster children that they would shelter over the years. Corrie ran special church services for disabled children for 20 years.The Dutch Reformed Church "protested Nazi persecution of Jews as an injustice to fellow human beings and an affront to divine authority." The Ten Boom family strongly believed that people were equal before God.
During the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, the father and daughters became active in sheltering Jewish people at their home, who were trying to escape the Nazis. In May 1942 a woman came to the house and asked for help. She said she was a Jew, that her husband had been arrested several months before, and her son had gone into hiding. As Occupation authorities had visited her, she was afraid to return home. She had heard that the family had helped other Jews, and asked if she could stay with them, to which Casper agreed. He believed that all people were equal before God. He told her, "In this household, God's people are always welcome." When the Nazis began requiring all Jews to wear the Star of David
Yellow badge
The yellow badge , also referred to as a Jewish badge, was a cloth patch that Jews were ordered to sew on their outer garments in order to mark them as Jews in public. It is intended to be a badge of shame associated with antisemitism...
, he voluntarily wore one also.
His son Willem, a minister in the Dutch Reformed Church, also worked in an non-denominational nursing home. During the occupation, he sheltered many Jews there to save them from the Nazis.
Arrest and death
On February 28, 1944, the Gestapo raided his house and arrested Casper and his daughters, as well his son Willem and third daughter, and a nephew, who were visiting. The Gestapo arrested other supporters who visited the house during the day, taking a total of about 30 people to Scheveningen prison.When Ten Boom was interrogated in prison, the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
told him they would release him because of his age so that he could "die in his own bed". He replied: "If I go home today, tomorrow I will open my door to anyone who knocks for help". When asked if he knew he could die for helping Jews, he replied, "It would be an honor to give my life for God's chosen people." On March 10, Casper died at the Hague Municipal Hospital at the age of 84 after ten days in Scheveningen prison.
His daughter Betsie died at Ravensbruck in December 1944. His son Willem (60) contracted spinal tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
(TB) while imprisoned for his resistance work. Although he was released, he died of TB shortly after the war. Ten Boom's nephew Christiaan, then 24, was sent to the Bergen Belsen concentration camp for his work in the underground, and died there during the war.
Legacy and honors
- The Ten Boom Museum in Haarlem, operated in their former house, honors all the family.
- 2008, he was honored by Yad VashemYad VashemYad Vashem is Israel's official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953 through the Yad Vashem Law passed by the Knesset, Israel's parliament....
as Righteous Among the NationsRighteous Among the NationsRighteous among the Nations of the world's nations"), also translated as Righteous Gentiles is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis....
.
Sources
- Corrie ten Boom museum
- Corrie ten Boom Museum Virtual Tour
- Corrie ten Boom with John and Elizabeth SherrillJohn and Elizabeth SherrillJohn L. Sherrill and Elizabeth Sherrill are Christian writers. They have co-authored a number of best-selling books, including:*God's Smuggler with Brother Andrew...
, The Hiding Place, Guideposts Associates, 1971. ISBN 0-340-17930-9, ISBN 0-340-20845-7