Henriette Nanette "Jetty" Paerl (27 May 1921 – 22 August 2013) was a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

singer and resistance member of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

origin. She is known for being one of the Netherlands' representatives in the

Eurovision Song Contest 1956 The Eurovision Song Contest 1956 was the first edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest, organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcasters the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR) and (RSI). The contest, origin ...

with the song "

De vogels van Holland The Netherlands held a national final to select the two entrants that Nederlandse Televisie Stichting (NTS), the Dutch broadcaster, would send to the inaugural Eurovision Song Contest in Lugano, Switzerland. The final was held on 24 April 1956. ...

", and for being the first singer ever to perform in the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

Biography

Early life

Paerl was born and raised in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. After the

German invasion of the Netherlands The German invasion of the Netherlands ( nl, Duitse aanval op Nederland), otherwise known as the Battle of the Netherlands ( nl, Slag om Nederland), was a military campaign part of Case Yellow (german: Fall Gelb), the Nazi German invasion of t ...

in May 1940, she fled to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

with her parents and swimmer

Willy den Ouden Willemijntje den Ouden (1 January 1918 – 6 December 1997) was a competitive swimmer from the Netherlands, who held the 100-meter freestyle world record for nearly 23 years, from 1933 to 1956. Biography Den Ouden was a daughter of Willemijntj ...

, where she worked as a

children's clothing Children's clothing or kids' clothing is clothing for children who have not yet grown to full height. Children's clothing is often more casual than adult clothing, fit for play and rest. In the early 21st century, however, childrenswear became ...

designer at a shop in

New Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the l ...

. She also contributed to the broadcasts of ''

Radio Oranje ''Radio Oranje'' (; Dutch: "Radio Orange") was a Dutch radio programme on the BBC European Service broadcast to the German-occupied Netherlands during World War II. It was transmitted from London and broadcast programmes of approximately 15 min ...

'', a radio programme created by the

Dutch government-in-exile The Dutch government-in-exile ( nl, Nederlandse regering in ballingschap), also known as the London Cabinet ( nl, Londens kabinet), was the government in exile of the Netherlands, supervised by Queen Wilhelmina, that fled to London after the Germ ...

, due to which she became known as ''Jetje van Radio Oranje'' ("Jetty of Radio Orange") in the Netherlands. In the programme, she performed songs – written by her father Jo Paerl and composed by

Louis Davids Louis Davids (born Simon David; 19 December 1883 – 1 July 1939) was a Dutch actor, singer, comedian and revue artist. He is widely considered one of the biggest names in Dutch performing arts. Biography Early years Davids was born in the ...

and Dirk Witte – in which the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

and members of the

National Socialist Movement National Socialist Movement may refer to: * Nazi Party, a political movement in Germany * National Socialist Movement (UK, 1962), a British neo-Nazi group * National Socialist Movement (United Kingdom), a British neo-Nazi group active during the lat ...

(NSB) were openly made fun of. Towards the end of the war, Paerl became a member of the Women's Auxiliary Corps (''Vrouwen Hulpkorps'') of the

Royal Netherlands Army The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...

. After the

liberation of the Netherlands Despite Dutch neutrality, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 as part of Fall Gelb (Case Yellow). On 15 May 1940, one day after the bombing of Rotterdam, the Dutch forces surrendered. The Dutch government and the royal family re ...

in May 1945, she returned to her home country via

Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...

and was stationed in

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 ''"N ...

. Shortly after, she learned that both her elder brothers were still alive. One had fled to

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, while the other had stayed in the Netherlands during the war.

After the war

In 1951, Paerl married Dutch illustrator Cees Bantzinger. In 1956, she finished in second place in the '' Nationaal Songfestival 1956'' with the song "

", written by Annie M.G. Schmidt and composed by Cor Lemaire. This gave her the right, with

Corry Brokken Cornelia Maria "Corry" Brokken (3 December 1932 – 31 May 2016) was a Dutch singer, television presenter and jurist. In 1957, she won the second edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Net als toen", representing the Netherlands. ...

, to represent the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in the

first edition The bibliographical definition of an edition includes all copies of a book printed from substantially the same setting of type, including all minor typographical variants. First edition According to the definition of ''edition'' above, a b ...

of the

. Being the first performer of the evening, Paerl wrote history as the first singer ever to perform in the Eurovision Song Contest. At the time the contest was only broadcast via

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

, and only the winning song was announced. In 1985, Paerl's husband revealed that he had been a member of the NSB for a short period of time in the beginning 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 opposin ...

, after journalist Adriaan Venema had confronted him with letters he had sent to the

Department of Public Information and the Arts Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

at the time. One week later, Bantzinger committed

suicide by drowning A suicide method is any means by which a person chooses to suicide, end their life. Suicide attempts do not always result in death, and a nonfatal suicide attempt can leave the person with serious physical injuries, long-term health problems, ...

. Paerl herself died on 22 August 2013 in

Amstelveen Amstelveen () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands with a population of 92.353 as of 2022. It is a suburban part of the Amsterdam metropolitan area. The municipality of Amstelveen consists of the historical villages o ...

, at the age of 92.

Discography

EPs

* ''Jetty Paerl'' – 1957 * ''Jetty Paerl 2'' – 1957

Albums

* ''Jetje van Radio Oranje'' – 1970 ( LP), 1995 ( CD)

Trivia

* Paerl appears in episode 18 of the British documentary series ''

The World at War ''The World at War'' is a 26-episode British documentary television series that chronicles the events of the Second World War. It was produced in 1973, at a cost of £900,000 (), the most expensive factual series ever produced. It was produ ...

'' (1973–74).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Paerl, Jetty 1921 births 2013 deaths Dutch women singers Musicians from Amsterdam Jewish Dutch musicians Dutch resistance members Eurovision Song Contest entrants for the Netherlands Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1956 Nationaal Songfestival contestants 20th-century Dutch women Royal Netherlands Army personnel of World War II