Bram van der Stok is the most decorated (ever) Dutch pilot. This means he was the most decorated pilot in the history of the House of Orange, the Dutch Royal House. Pilots and officers were 'soldiers of Orange' and proud for the cause. But, ironically, van der Stok's amazing story has absolutely nothing to do with his flying skills, despite being a gifted pilot. He made not just one, but two escapes from the Nazi ruling, and has since published his extraordinary series of events in an entirely non-fiction documentary-style book. It describes his escape from the Netherlands, stimulated by the Dutch capitulation to the Nazis: the German Luftwaffe (Looft- voff- a) flew a series of offensive missions just on the Dutch border, until the Netherlands could take no more: they declared war on Germany, and put up a respectable yet somewhat naïve fight. It lasted only six days. 

 

The Germans quickly claimed the country as their own, and as a proud follower of the Dutch cause, van der Stok was having none of it. He joined resistance groups, and for this reason was one of the most wanted men in the entirety of the German 'Reich' (literally 'realm' in English). As most others did, van der Stok engaged in the action of 'diving under'. This is when the wanted 'convict' literally goes completely off the radar, by staying at friends' houses. It should be noted that these brave people who facilitated the criminals then, if found, were charged just as harshly as the wanted man themselves. This means that very few people were willing to do such things. This means it was not only hard to find these people, but also incredibly dangerous, seeing as 99% of people would report you to German authorities if they found out you were wanted.  

 

Anyway, after a few weeks, he moved to the north-east coast of the Netherlands. His master-plan was simple: he met up with fellow Dutch comrades, and pieced together what was more or less a boat. When the time was right, on the new moon, at around 3:30 in the morning, when there was enough light to see by, but not enough to be seen in, he pitched the boat and set sail. Sadly, this endeavour was unsuccessful, as the sea was far too treacherous that night, and on a second attempt, he came minutely close to a German patrol. This option was just too risky. Instead, he decided to lie low before meeting up with a like-minded Dutch man, who was sometimes treacherous. (This will be explained later on). A few days later, the man, who was also a worker on a boat headed to England offered to take him on the boat. This being said, he would have to be discreet, as it was nearly certain they would be intercepted by German soldiers. It was agreed a rope would be thrown from the boat at 2:30 AM and Bram van der Stok would climb up it.  

 

So, the time came. No rope was thrown. Although it was not malicious of the man, (who Bram van der Stok did not wish to specifically name) it was for his own benefit: should he be found helping van der Stok, then the Germans would charge him with harbouring a criminal. Van der Stok, being the resourceful man he was, simply fashioned a rope out of a loose chain, and shimmied up without a problem, boarding the boat with nearly half a day to spare before departure. He was forced to spend all hours of every day in a small unused tunnel for ventilation. As expected, the boat was intercepted by German forces. Up until then, van der Stok would have to have remained in absolute isolation, because of the high risk of being caught. The only person he could have interacted with a fellow Engelandvaarder (a Dutch person escaping to England), Peter Tazelaar. Tazelaar brought van der Stok food and water. But now the only German intercept ship had passed, Bram van der Stok could show himself. Of course, as expected, the ship was intercepted by the English, and the Dutch escapees were taken 'prisoner'. This was just the official term, but seeing as the Dutch royalty-in-exile was in England, and Bram, Peter, and another Dutch man were taken in with open arms. Before long, they were in England, via Gibraltar. 

 

So, in England, van der Stok almost immediately joined the Netherlands division, but soon was put into a main RAF squadron. Whilst my notable as very keen on flying, he had an even bigger passion on bringing the Dutch out of the rule of the Germans. So, he met with the Prince, Bernhard, who had a similar passion for the cause. Ironically, Bernhard was of German descent, though he had tried to rid himself of the heritage, instead establishing himself as a completely Dutch man. Despite this seemingly hard stance, Prince Bernhard was an amazingly popular leader. He was not a man who distinguished himself above others, but on the contrary worked with them to create a better future. Prince Bernhard provided countless amounts of advice to my notable, and he had a large role in van der Stok's success. 

 

It was a mission over France. Designed to look like the entire Air Force, van der Stok's entire squadron glided over the English Channel. It was a dogfight: the Germans did not expect the deceivingly small amount of planes, and sent up far too many, risking far too much. Van der Stok received a bullet to the left wing, and his plane was going down. Thankfully, being trained in the vigorous way all RAF pilots were, he made a successful ejection from the aircraft, and landed in a pasture. But this being 1940s France, (the occupied stage), it was just van der Stok's luck that day that he would land in the same field  as a team of Nazi soldiers. He was arrested. 

 

Put on a train to Dulag Luft III, a temporary, yet still inescapable POW (prisoner of war) camp, van der Stok managed to conceal his escape kit, issued to all pilots, in his shirt. Remarkably, it was never taken off him. It is worth to note that POW camps such as Dulag Luft are shortenings: In all "Luft" camps, it obviously stands for Luftwaffe, meaning it is a German Air Force run facility. This also meant that the prisoners there were mainly pilots. Dulag stands for Durchgangslager der (Luftwaffe),  and Stalag, the main camp. Stalag means Stammlager, which itself is a shortening for Kriegsgefangenen (prisoner of war)-mannschaftstammlager, which means war-prisoner, more or less, however Kriegsgefangenen means exactly the same. So, after a remarkably short stay (two weeks) at Dulag Luft, he hopped on another train to Stalag Luft III. The location of the camp is hard to understand, as back then the camp was within Germany, but this part of Germany was the conquered land of Poland. So, in modern day times, the camp, and its replica that has been built, is in Poland, near the town of Sagan. Upon arrival at the camp, van der Stok took a naïve look at the fences. As expected, no gaps, no cuts. It was inescapable. But this is when the masterplan comes in. 

 

Its name was The Big X organisation. Its aim: the mass escape of nearly 250 prisoners. And who was at the head of this massive scheme? Big X himself. Also known as Roger Bushell, he was an experienced military and air force man, and it was only natural he founded and was put at the head of the plan. There were countless departments. Van der Stok himself elevated quickly through the ranks, and found himself in the false paper department. Along with this, there was the medical department, the food department, the clothing department, and the bribery department. These were just some of the jobs POWs found themselves in. But you could, if not on the roster, also volunteer to be a lookout, digger, or disposer. The first two are self-explanatory, but the last one was the hardest and most complicated one by far. It was all good and well to dig a tunnel, but what you might not have considered what it takes to maintain the tunnels. Electric lights and ventilation was put in, but the sand dug up was always a problem for the POWs. This being said, they always found a way to dispose of it. For example, in 1944, when the Germans were pushed fro supplies and food, the Kriegies, as they were called, were ordered to bring the parcels they were individually given from the Red Cross. So, they all assembled with their boxes. They were empty. Roger Bushell pointed out a spot of 'English humour'. After all, they had not actually asked for the food. So, on the next day, they did the same. The inspecting officer said it was all very funny, but they were not to do it again. He never checked the boxes.  

 

When he walked away, 300 POWs opened the bottoms of the box, and a tonne of sand was scuffled into the ground by 600 feet. One month of digging sand disposed of. Not only does this show the genius of all the men in Stalag, it just shows, how resourceful people become when under pressure: when needing ventilation, for example, a genius design was to use milk cans. These, as a simple code, became known as KLIM cans, and somehow, the engineers managed to fashion air ventilation pipes from these. Van der Stok soon settled in to the daily routine in Stalag Luft III, if you could call it that, (it was anything but redundant), and found himself in the inner circle of Big X. Roger Bushell gave him a job in the false paper department, and whilst it may seem, again, just so simple to write up these papers, they had to be stroke perfect, the stamp also needed to be forged, and many pieces of equipment were needed from the guards. Hence, this then closely linked the false paper department into the briberies department, and van der Stok found an unofficial spot in the latter. He needed things like officer passes, (to get through the security at the train station), but that was all too easy: pickpockets could easily take the officer's gun, and then bribe them into borrowing the pass for one day. These could then be copied and new ones made. Of course, the officers could say no, but none would dare, since strict discipline was enforced in the German ranks, and if equipment was lost, it was likely the offending officer would find themselves on the Eastern Front. Van der Stok also made 'friends' with guards, giving them chocolates and coffee, a luxury no German at the time could afford, and it is amazing how efficient this strategy was: no officer ever said no to van der Stok's requests. What harm could the borrowing of an unloaded rifle for an hour be? The answer: POWs would quickly mould a fake one, and then this could be used to pass as a German. And who would even consider that it was odd that one POW was examining the uniform closely? Who would have thought this was actually a tailor from the fake clothes department?  

 

Another thing worth noting is that the POWs in the camp were not so resourceful they were completely self-sufficient, but it is obvious how invaluable the supplies from the Red Cross were: they were bargaining chips, extra food above the loose rations, and ventilating systems. They were used as messaging systems, for example, a man sitting with a towel around his shoulders meant there were Germans coming, and they also probably kept the prisoners alive. Without it, it was unlikely the Krieges would have even had the willpower to escape. Not nearly enough credit is given to the Red Cross and other donors. 

 

It was the 24th of March, 1944. The time was 11:30 PM. Dozens of POWs huddled in the tunnel 'Harry', in the 'waiting room'. The senior-most of them went first, and they were transported on a 'train' system.  At the end, they would climb out and escape. Tragically, only 76 made it out, but 50 were murdered by the SS (Secret Service), and Gestapo. The rest, apart from three, were returned to Stalag. Bram van der Stok was one of those three. 

 

For me, this is an amazing happy twist on what might be called a failure. The POWs set their mind to something, and, arguably, they achieved it. I think it is likely that the reason they had such a massive desire to achieve the escape was definitely encouraged by an earlier escape. The 'Wooden Horse' Escape, as it was later named, 100% inspired 'The Great Escape'. People that read this might take an objective view and just think 'Oh, yeah, he escaped... Pff.' It takes so much willpower, and so much dedication to do such things as this, and even more courage to pull it off. I can bet you that 99 out of 100 people today would pull out just before. To push through is so admirable, even though it is probably the most minor part. If I was to think what it would feel like for me, I imagine the feeling just before a 100 metre race, except 1000 times worse: and believe me, the feeling before the hundred metres sucks (especially when you do three on the trot. But I digress...) Just imagine standing in a hole in the ground knowing you had a high chance of dying within the next week. It takes guts. And brains: it would be a calculated risk: you had to know where to go after your escape, like the train station, or maybe the dock. But seeing you are in the actual middle of Europe, that might be a smidge hard. Then, after going to Sagan train station, he would have to get past all the road blocks, and German guards. This had been planned ahead of course, and van der Stok had a false paper under the name Hendrik Beeldman. A photograph of the pass is in his memoirs, The Great Escape From Stalag Luft III, and it is simply unbelievable that a group of young men behind bars could make such a believable pass. It includes things like DOB (date of birth), and dwelling. This would be hard, as it would have to be an actual location, but not a location that could be tracked to incriminate him. (Of course, the Nazis only took a cursory glance, and it wouldn't be a disaster if there was a minor error). So, he caught a train into the Netherlands, and from there he rode a bike towards Belgium. Then, via Brussels, he made his most important step yet: he crossed the French border. He was now in the area of freedom fighters, and would be much more at home in this climate then any before. With the maquis, (ma-kee), the French resistance, he hitched a ride with a maquis tour and started the hike up the French alps. With a few minor things on the way, he made the entry to Spain, a finally neutral country. This, however, wasn't without him helping to deliver a baby, and their tour guide being shot in the arm. Of course, the group didn't travel in just a duo, as that would be childishly dangerous, and they all carried weapons. But the main thing was: he was in Spain. 

 

Spain may well have been officially neutral at the time, but they did partake in controversial actions, that in my eyes, should not have been viewed as neutral country: just because they were not fighting on the fronts, supplying the Nazis with weapons and ammunition is definitely NOT neutral. So, of course, when a group of Allied soldiers strolled in claiming they had just escaped from Stalag Luft III, they were arrested. But, exercising his right in the Geneva Convention, van der Stok demanded that all be taken to their respective embassies, and he was returned to England, again, via Gibraltar. He then re-joined the RAF, being put into Squadron 322 (again). It was now that he was informed his two brothers had been killed by the Gestapo for their role in the Dutch Underground (freedom fighters). His father had also been partially blinded through an interrogation, and then on a second attempt from the Gestapo, he had lost his sight completely. He had never betrayed his son. Van der Stok then visited his father in The Netherlands, (at the time it was no longer occupied of course), to see his sickly father. His dad died the day after Bram van der Stok left back for England.  

 

Van der Stok flew nearly daily after that, flying over the English Channel to launch attack after attack, seeing as the Germans were so close to surrendering, and picked up another estimated 4 victories. The author expresses that this is not accurate, as the filming technology on the aircraft doesn't completely capture what happened, so many were dubbed 'uncertain, or 50% to him and 50% to another person. He ended up as a squadron commander of Squadron 322. In 1945, he was released of his services, but was decorated kindly by Queen Wilhemena of The Netherlands, and received the Bronze Cross on multiple occasions. This was basically the Victoria Cross for Dutchmen, and it was the highest honour one could hope for.  

 

He married Lucie Walter, whereupon they moved to Honolulu, where, in America, van der Stok continued his service to the public by becoming a coast guard both on and off mainland America, as well as pursuing his doctoring career. He pursued his services up until close to his death, in the 1990s. The most respected ever Dutch man died on the 8th of February, 1993. 

 

As you can see, this was my favourite ever real-life historical story. It was just so entrancing for the first time to read The Great Escape From Stalag Luft III, and I read in awe, constantly thinking, did this actually happen!?, and then watching the movie for the first time. I can remember at the start of Notables, I didn't even think: when the programme was announced, it was right there in front of me. In fact, another reason I find this man so interesting is because not only was he a sometimes understatedly good pilot, but also had a Masters in medicine, and still managed to fit in a professional hockey career into the mix of things, and even, in later life, starred on a TV show! I am interested in sports, and I know how hard it is to actually be a doctor, and I've always been interested in flying, so it was just SO perfect for a project. I already had sufficient background knowledge (reading his memoirs over five times will do that), but the most amazing thing was the escape. Who on earth apart from the POWs could build- wait for it- a RAILWAY SYSTEM? Maybe, if you haven't ever heard the true tale of Stalag Luft, the prisoners were transported through the tunnel on a cart sort of thing. This was to preserve time. 

 

I hope you have been given an insight on my fascination with this event, and in my Notable himself. Bram van der Stok was a man of little words, but a man of great action. And thus, his escape, THE Great Escape, shall be remembered forever. As shall be the Midnight Escapist of Orange.