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The fallen resistance people in Limburg
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Ysselsteyn u-01-02
Hein Nobis was born in Gangelt, North Rhine-Westphalia, near the Dutch border and his father was German. His parents moved to Merkelbeek and his father was naturalized as a Dutch citizen. For unknown reasons, Hein did not become Dutch and thus lost his nationality. He became a Roman Catholic priest in 1938 and started as an assistant priest (Kapelaan) in Vijlen and was assigned to Simpelveld after three years. In the meantime, the war and the German occupation had begun. Like most Dutch clergymen at the time, Hein was also anti-Nazi and expressed this in his sermons. A Dutch Nazi took offense at this and denounced him to the Germans after a sermon on the sanctification of Sunday rest. The Germans realized that Hein was not Dutch and was of German descent and classified him as an ethnic German. He was called up for military service and sent to the Eastern Front as a medic. He survived Stalingrad, but was killed in the Ukraine while setting up a field hospital. [1][3]
Also read the article: The sad death of Vicar Hein Nobis from Simpelveld [2].
The photo is taken from a text by Jean Mordant from Vijlen (teacher at the Catholic boys’ school in Simpelveld from 1955-1960), which he published in the book: ’40 - ’45, de jaren tussen Einmarsch en Bevrijding, (’40 - ’45, the years between invasion and liberation) which was published in 1994 by Heemkundekring Sankt Tolben in Vaals. You can read the original text at www.simpelveld.nl [1] and in
DE BONGARD, Journal of the local history association De Bongard Simpelveld-Bocholtz, Volume 11, No. 1, March 1999, p.21 [3]
Footnotes