Willem Pieter Landzaat
Encyclopedia
Willem Pieter Landzaat (Leiden, 7 April 1886 - Rhenen
, 13 May 1940) was a Dutch
militairy who died during the Battle of the Grebbeberg
.
In May 1940 Major
Landzaat was commander of the 1st Batallion, 8th Regiment
Infantry
(I-8 R.I.). On 13 May, his command post, located in a pavilion where a restaurant was located, south of "Ouwehands Dierenpark", was surrounded and attacked. Landzaat said he would defend the Grebbeberg to the last man and last bullet. Earlier, on May 12, he had given the command stand firm behind the rubble to his troops.
He organized the defense of his own command post and operated the machine gun
. When the last ammunition
was gone, he thanked his troops for their commitment with the words You have fought like heroes, thank you and gave them permission to leave the post. He himself stayed behind until the last moment to preserve. After the battle, his remains were recovered from the ruined and burnt pavilion and buried in the Military War Cemetery Grebbeberg
.
On 9 May 1946, Landzaat was posthumously awarded the Military William Order, the highest Dutch military honor.
Rhenen
Rhenen is a municipality and a city in the central Netherlands.The municipality also includes the villages of Achterberg, Remmerden, Elst and Laareind. The town lies at a geographically interesting location, namely on the southernmost part of the chain of hills known as the Utrecht Hill Ridge ,...
, 13 May 1940) was a Dutch
Netherland
Netherland is a critically acclaimed novel by Joseph O'Neill. It concerns the life of a Dutchman living in New York in the wake of the September 11 attacks who takes up cricket and starts playing at the Staten Island Cricket Club.-Plot summary:...
militairy who died during the Battle of the Grebbeberg
Battle of the Grebbeberg
The Battle of the Grebbeberg was a major engagement during the Battle of the Netherlands, which was a part of the World War II Operation Fall Gelb in 1940.-Background:In the 1930s, the Dutch government pursued a policy of strict neutrality...
.
In May 1940 Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
Landzaat was commander of the 1st Batallion, 8th Regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
Infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
(I-8 R.I.). On 13 May, his command post, located in a pavilion where a restaurant was located, south of "Ouwehands Dierenpark", was surrounded and attacked. Landzaat said he would defend the Grebbeberg to the last man and last bullet. Earlier, on May 12, he had given the command stand firm behind the rubble to his troops.
He organized the defense of his own command post and operated the machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
. When the last ammunition
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
was gone, he thanked his troops for their commitment with the words You have fought like heroes, thank you and gave them permission to leave the post. He himself stayed behind until the last moment to preserve. After the battle, his remains were recovered from the ruined and burnt pavilion and buried in the Military War Cemetery Grebbeberg
Military War Cemetery Grebbeberg
Military War Cemetery Grebbeberg is a graveyard where 799 military personnel and 1 civilian were buried, who died during the invasion of the Netherlands by the Germans in May 1940. The cemetery is located on the Grebbeberg near Rhenen...
.
On 9 May 1946, Landzaat was posthumously awarded the Military William Order, the highest Dutch military honor.
Sources
- War over Holland: Part II: The Grebbeline
- Dutch War Grave Commission Het epos van het paviljoentje E.H. Brongers: Grebbelinie 1940, 11th edition, Uitgeverij Aspekt, 2004. ISBN 9059110838. p. 203-207. Herman Amersfoort & Piet Kamphuis: Mei 1940, De strijd op Nederlands grondgebied, 2d edition, Sdu, 2005. ISBN 901208959-X. p. 296.