Peter Joseph Arnold (Pierre) Schunck (24 March 1906 in

Heerlen Heerlen (; li, Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg. ...

– 2 February 1993 in

Kerkrade Kerkrade ( Ripuarian: ; li, Kirkraoj; german: Kerkrade or ''Kirchrath'') is a town and a municipality in the southeast of Limburg; the southernmost province of the Netherlands. It forms part of the Parkstad Limburg agglomeration. Kerkrade is the ...

), also known as Paul Simons, was a member of the prosperous

Schunck Schunck () is the name of former fashion house and department store ''Firma Schunck'' in Heerlen, the Netherlands. It is also the name for the collection of buildings the firm has been housed in, one of which is known as the Glaspaleis (''Glass ...

family who owned a department store at Heerlen in 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 ...

. He is remembered principally for his involvement in the Dutch resistance in the

Second World War 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 ...

when he hid a considerable number of Dutchmen from the Germans and also assisted the Allies during the Dutch liberation. Pierre initially studied to become a priest but soon joined the family business, initially running a laundry in Valkenburg near

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

. From the beginning of the

German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

, he decided to stand up against the Germans and became a member of the LO or , a resistance group whose mandate was to assist persons in hiding. Under the pseudonym of Paul Simons, he headed the Valkenburg chapter. He helped Jews and resistance fighters to hide from the Germans in his laundry as well as in the nearby Valkenburg limestone caves. Furthermore, he assisted both Dutchmen and Allies to move on by issuing them with ration books and coupons and providing them with safe addresses where they could hide. At the approach of the US-American troops in september of 1944, as a member of intelligence group ID18, he provided the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

first with reports on the German defences and later he organised food for the evacuated population of Valkenburg, who hided in the vast lime caves during the days of the liberation.Peter Schunck in Valkenburg, Resistance and Liberation
Retrieved April 28, 2020. After the war, he returned to the family business and ultimately took up weaving for which he was considered to be an expert. Pierre Schunck was awarded the dutch

Resistance Memorial Cross The Resistance Memorial Cross or Resistance Commemorative Cross ( nl, Verzetsherdenkingskruis) is a medal awarded in the Netherlands to members of the Dutch resistance during the Second World War. The medal was instituted by Royal Decree (No. 104 ...

or ''Verzetsherdenkingskruis'' for his bravery during the occupation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schunck, Pierre 1906 births 1993 deaths Dutch resistance members People from Heerlen