Herinneringsroute Atlantikwall Den Haag
The Pier
Before the war, a visit to Scheveningen’s original ‘Queen Wilhelmina Pier’ was a popular outing.
This continued for a while, but in May 1942 the civilian population was excluded from the beach and promenade. Resort life ceased and the pier began to deteriorate. On 26 March 1943, it burned down. There has always been speculation about the cause of the blaze. Did the Germans set fire to the pier deliberately for fear that it might be of use to the Allies? Was it spontaneous combustion or maybe a jape by a few service personnel that got out of hand?
Photographed
