HNLMS ''Johan Maurits van Nassau'' ( nl, Hr.Ms. Johan Maurits van Nassau), named after

John Maurice of Nassau John Maurice of Nassau (Dutch: ''Johan Maurits van Nassau-Siegen''; German: ''Johann Moritz von Nassau-Siegen''; Portuguese: ''João Maurício de Nassau-Siegen''; 17 June 1604 – 20 December 1679), called "the Brazilian" for his fruitful period a ...

, was a Dutch

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-ste ...

that served in the early part of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, when it was sunk. She was the sole ship of her class, which was developed from the earlier .

Service history

When the war broke out, ''Johan Maurits van Nassau'' was in the West Indies due to be relieved by the new gunnery training ship , allowing ''Johan Maurits van Nassau'' to return to the Netherlands. On 10 May 1940, the day the Germans launched their ''blitzkrieg'', she was stationed as a search and guard vessel at

Vlissingen Vlissingen (; zea, label= Zeelandic, Vlissienge), historically known in English as Flushing, is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the former island of Walcheren. With its strategic location between the Scheldt river ...

, where she immediately was targeted by German aircraft, of which she shot down one. She remained in the area for a couple of days and was then ordered to bombard the Dutch aerodrome at

Waalhaven Waalhaven Airport in 1932, with the Graf Zeppelin in the background. The Waalhaven is a harbour in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It used to be home to an airport, Vliegveld Waalhaven (Waalhaven Airport). It was the second civilian airport in the ...

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

, which had been occupied by German paratroopers. She arrived in

Hook of Holland Hook of Holland ( nl, Hoek van Holland, ) is a town in the southwestern corner of Holland, hence the name; ''hoek'' means "corner" and was the word in use before the word ''kaap'' – "cape", from Portuguese ''cabo'' – became Dutch. The English t ...

, but after the loss of the destroyer ''Van Galen'' during her attempt to do the same, the operation—of which ''Flores'' was also part—was cancelled. As part of the

Battle of the Afsluitdijk The Battle of the Afsluitdijk of 12–14 May 1940 was an unsuccessful attempt by German ''Wehrmacht'' forces to seize the Afsluitdijk during the invasion of the Netherlands. German invasion plans called for a simultaneous attack on Vesting Hol ...

, ''Johan Maurits van Nassau'' was ordered by Den Helder on 12 May 1940 to silence a German battery near the

Afsluitdijk The ''Afsluitdijk'' (; fry, Ofslútdyk; nds-nl, Ofsluutdiek; en, "Closure Dyke") is a major dam and causeway in the Netherlands. It was constructed between 1927 and 1932 and runs from Den Oever in North Holland province to the village of ...

, and on 14 May, she bombarded the German battery (consisting of guns of the 1. ''Kavalleriedivision'') at a range of about and silenced them. Her advanced fire control system enabled great accuracy. Despite fierce retaliation by German aircraft, she remained undamaged, to the great surprise of all. The war in the Netherlands was, however, coming to an end, and the independent role of the Dutch Navy was over. There was a general evacuation of personnel and ships, and ''Johan Maurits van Nassau'' left Den Helder on 14 May with the minelayers HNLMS ''Jan van Brakel'', and , and the torpedo boats ''G 13'' and ''G 15''. In the afternoon, about west of

Callantsoog Callantsoog ( West Frisian: ''Kallantsouge'') is a village in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Schagen, and lies about 18 km south of Den Helder. Callantsoog was a separate municipality until 1990, wh ...

, they were attacked by German aircraft. ''Johan Maurits van Nassau''—the largest vessel in the convoy—was the main target. ''Johan Maurits van Nassau'' received two or three hits, one of which caused a fire near an ammunition stack. The crew were ordered to abandon ship: 17 crewmen were killed. Later, most surviving crewmembers were transported back to Den Helder by the rescue ship ''Dorus Rijkers'', but some continued to England aboard the remaining ships. The wreck lies in of water in position .

External links

U-boat.net
Ships built in Vlissingen World War II sloops of the Netherlands World War II shipwrecks in the North Sea 1932 ships Maritime incidents in May 1940 Ships sunk by German aircraft Gunboats sunk by aircraft Ships built by Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde {{netherlands-mil-ship-stub