Dutch machinist, fairy-man and freedom fighter.
Maarten de Graaf was born in Rozenburg, South Holland, as the son of a farmer. He went to the Dutch navy, where he learned to work with steam machines.
On 11 February 1904 he married in Rozenburg Jannetje Adriana van Noort (21 December 1882, Rozenburg – 17 October 1956, Warnsveld). Together with his wife he settled in Simonshaven in 1915. At first he became a machinist of a pumping station on the low countries. Later, he and his wife operated a small pedestrian ferry between Biersum and Piershil. Mrs de Graaf still operated it until 1954.
During WW2, he helped “Engelandvaarders” with their crossing from occupied Netherlands to England. A fast but little vessel transported refugees, mostly Jews and resistance fighters or spies via the Spui river to the Haringviet, where the refugees would be picked up by an English sea-ship or submarine. As the actions had to be coordinated by illegal radio operators working from the Netherlands, the German counter intelligence was eager to decode their messages (Englandspiel).
On 21 March 1942 De Graaff and his passengers were betrayed. On the ship list were: Johannes “Jan” Frans Goedhart, Max and Bernard Meijers from Amsterdam, Frederick Spitz, Willem Blomme, Cornelis Grashoff, Josef Ludvik Fischer (1894-1973), Mikta Baum and Carl Martin Zellermayer.
Jan Goedhart and the Jews Max and Bernard Meijers, Mikta Baum and Carl Zellermayer were executed on the Waalsdorpervlakte on 15 and 19 (Zellermayer) August 1942.
The others were sent to concentration camps, including the ship owner Isaac Bravenboer (15 May 1877, Vierpolders – 13 April 1943, Buchenwald). Gerard Palms, Wilhelmus Blomme and Cornelis Grashoff survived the camps, but not the old shipper De Graaff. Through Camp Vught he was taken to “Nacht und Nebel” concentration camp Natzweiler, where he died on 4 April 1944.
The philosopher Josef Ludvik Fischer (6 November 1894, Prague – 17 February 1973, Olomouc) could hide in a box and could later testify against Henk Luyendijk, who had betrayed them. Henk Luyendijk was initially sentenced to death on 22 March 1946 in Rotterdam, but obtained ten years and only resided in prison for 6 years for his good behaviour.
In 1971 De Graaff received posthumously the Dutch Resistance Cross. When a street name was named after him, there appeared an article about him in the local newspaper, otherwise he would be one of the many forgotten hero’s of WW2.