7 Episodes · Premiered March 25, 2026 · Ended May 6, 2026
Narrator Daan Schuurmans takes the viewer back to the war years. A time when our freedom was taken away and ordinary people faced exceptional dilemmas.
It is the 1930s. A global crisis is spreading, and growing discontent gives rise to new radical movements such as fascism. This ideology is gaining ground not only in Germany but also in the Netherlands, and society becomes divided as a result. Boxing friends Ben Bril and Sam Olij find themselves diametrically opposed during these years.
The German Reich under the leadership of Adolf Hitler is growing at a terrifying rate. One by one, countries are falling prey to his ruthless expansion. It is May 10, 1940, when the Netherlands is attacked and Dutch soldiers must face a superior German force. Meanwhile, Commander-in-Chief Winkelman must try to keep a cool head.
The Netherlands is occupied by Nazi Germany. The Nazis regard the Dutch as a brother nation and emphasize that they will treat them with respect. At least... if the Dutch comply. German soldiers are billeted in families' homes, leading to tensions in Dutch living rooms.
The Nazis label Jews as so-called Untermenschen. Through systematic exclusion, registration, and isolation, everything is taken from them: work, possessions, and freedom of movement. In a cunning manner, the occupier attempts to drive Dutch society apart. All this with one goal: the complete extermination of the Jewish community.
While most Dutch people obey the occupier, there are also those who offer resistance. At universities, through illegal newspapers, and by helping those in hiding. Resistance groups emerge throughout the Netherlands. The occupier responds to every form of opposition with harsh reprisals. Time and again, the question arises as to what extent resistance fighters are willing to continue.
With the advance of the Allies, the liberation of the Netherlands seems close, but it does not come without a price. Hundreds of Dutch people die in Allied bombardments, and in large parts of the country, a bitterly cold winter sets in with a harrowing shortage of food and fuel. The grueling final act of the occupation. When liberation finally arrives, not only joy prevails; it is also the beginning of the reckoning.
With the fall of Nazi Germany, the war is over. At least, that is the hope of the Europeans. But soon, it is precisely the Netherlands that is put to the test and will itself act as an aggressor. In August 1945, Indonesia, a Dutch colony, declares its independence. What follows is a bloody colonial war.
