Johan de Wit Gymnasium

Dutch soldiers at the H.B.S. (Higher Civilian School) at the Oranjepark during the mobilization. The school was taken over by the Dutch army. In the first photo, supplies and weapons are being unloaded. Dordrecht’s youth are witnessing the spectacle. During the events of May 1940, heavy fighting would take place in the surroundings of the H.B.S. and Oranjepark when troops from the German Gruppe de Boer and the Dutch Light Division met there. Today, the H.B.S. is still a school: The Johan de Witt-Gymnasium. It is a monumental building with a rich history. It has survived the events of May 1940 and the later bombing of the Merwesteijn Park.