Eugène Colson (

Charleroi Charleroi (, , ; ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It is the largest city in both Hainaut and Wallonia. The city is situated in the valley of the Sambre, in the south-west of Belgium, not ...

, 7.02.1913 -

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, 2000), known by the alias "Harry", was a noted member of the

Belgian Resistance The Belgian Resistance (, ) collectively refers to the resistance movements opposed to the German occupation of Belgium during World War II, German occupation of Belgium during World War II. Within Belgium, resistance was fragmented between many ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. An employee of the

port of Antwerp The port of Antwerp is the port of the city of Antwerp, Belgium. It is located in Flanders, mainly in the province of Antwerp, but also partially in East Flanders. It is a seaport in the heart of Europe accessible to capesize ships. It is Eu ...

during the

German occupation German-occupied Europe, or Nazi-occupied Europe, refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly militarily occupied and civil-occupied, including puppet states, by the (armed forces) and the government of Nazi Germany at ...

, Colson formed a resistance cell affiliated to the Nationale Koninklijke Beweging (NKB) group. During the liberation of Belgium, Colson played an important role in preventing the German destruction of the important port of Antwerp. As a result, the Canadian troops which entered the city in September 1944 were able to capture the facility intact. Historian Frank Stappaert wrote Colson's memoirs down in: ''Kolonel Harry: Een getuigenis over de bevrijding van Antwerpen'' olonel Harry: A testimony about the liberation of Antwerp Antwerp - Berchem: EPO, 1997.

External links

Whitaker, Shelagh (1994) "Eugene Colson and the Liberation of the Port of Antwerp," Canadian Military History: Vol. 3: Iss. 2, Article 9.Inventaris archief Eugène ‘Harry’ COLSON
Belgian resistance members People from Charleroi 1913 births 2000 deaths {{Belgium-bio-stub