Bert Sas
Encyclopedia
Bert Sas was the Netherlands
military attaché
in Berlin
at the time of the German
invasion of the Netherlands
in May 1940.
Gijsbertus Jacobus (Bert) Sas was born in Leeuwarden. He was named after his father, a soldier who by his pension had reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel
. His mother Geertrui Huiber was 20 years younger than her husband.
Bert was the youngest of 3 children, and attended a secondary school in Leeuwarden. In 1910 he went to the Koninklijke Militaire Academie
in Breda
. During World War I
, in 1917, he was promoted to First Lieutenant
and married Maria Johanna van der Minne. From 1923 until 1926 he followed the training for staff officier at the Hogere Krijgsschool. After this he obtained another staff function in The Hague
. In 1928 he was promoted to the rank of Captain and became head of the most important bureau of the 2nd division where all of the important military questions were handled. However during the period from 1928 until 1936, military expenditure was strictly limited.
Between 1936 and 1937 he was the military attaché in Berlin for 10 days per month, spending the remaining 20 days in The Hague. He was then recalled to The Hague, where he functioned as the right hand of general Reynders in the role of head of the operations division.
In March 1939, following the German annexation of the Sudetenland
, Reynders sent him back to Berlin. This time he set up residence there with his wife Miep.
In Berlin he immediately restored his friendship with the German colonel Hans Oster
. Oster had obtained an important position as the right hand of Wilhelm Canaris
at the German Abwehr
, the espionage
and counter-espionage
service of the army.
They were connected not only through their mutual dislike for the Nazi regime. Their friendship dated from the beginning of the 1930s, when they first met, possibly when Sas was working in The Hague.
Oster passed him all important information that he obtained. He did not do this out of sympathy for Sas, but because he considered it his duty to Germany. He did not see himself as a traitor, but someone who did his duty to the decent Germany that he loved.
At end of August 1939 he warned The Hague that a war with Poland
was about to begin. He gave 25 August 1939 as the invasion date, but this date passed by. At 14:50 on that day Hitler
gave the order for the invasion, but revoked it when he heard that England was not going to concede. Sas' credibility suffered. When he reported on 31 August that the war was now close, the head of intelligence, Van der Plassche did not believe him. Sas was the only one who delivered this report: London and Paris gave reassurance. However the Netherlands mobilised at the insistence of Queen Wilhelmina
.
General Reijnders, his superior in The Hague, was positive over Sas' information.
The relationship with general Reijnders remained good as long as the Netherlands neutrality was not discussed.
During September and October, Sas obtained more signals that the neutrality of the Netherlands would not remain inviolate. However Oster assured him that only Belgium
would be the target. However Sas did not believe this. At his insistence, Oster obtained further information from the Germain headquarters in Zossen
. This showed that Sas was correct: the Netherlands would be invaded together with Belgium, and that the violation of neutrality would not be limited to a passage through southern Limburg
.
Sas died in 1948 in a plane crash in Scotland
.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
military attaché
Military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
at the time of the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
invasion of the Netherlands
Battle of the Netherlands
The Battle of the Netherlands was part of Case Yellow , the German invasion of the Low Countries and France during World War II. The battle lasted from 10 May 1940 until 14 May 1940 when the main Dutch forces surrendered...
in May 1940.
Gijsbertus Jacobus (Bert) Sas was born in Leeuwarden. He was named after his father, a soldier who by his pension had reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
. His mother Geertrui Huiber was 20 years younger than her husband.
Bert was the youngest of 3 children, and attended a secondary school in Leeuwarden. In 1910 he went to the Koninklijke Militaire Academie
Koninklijke Militaire Academie
The Royal Military Academy is the service academy for the Dutch Army and the Dutch Air Force. Located in Breda, the Netherlands, the KMA has trained future officers since 1828.-Description:...
in Breda
Breda
Breda is a municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. The name Breda derived from brede Aa and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. As a fortified city, the city was of strategic military and political significance...
. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, in 1917, he was promoted to First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
and married Maria Johanna van der Minne. From 1923 until 1926 he followed the training for staff officier at the Hogere Krijgsschool. After this he obtained another staff function in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
. In 1928 he was promoted to the rank of Captain and became head of the most important bureau of the 2nd division where all of the important military questions were handled. However during the period from 1928 until 1936, military expenditure was strictly limited.
Between 1936 and 1937 he was the military attaché in Berlin for 10 days per month, spending the remaining 20 days in The Hague. He was then recalled to The Hague, where he functioned as the right hand of general Reynders in the role of head of the operations division.
In March 1939, following the German annexation of the Sudetenland
Sudetenland
Sudetenland is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the northern, southwest and western regions of Czechoslovakia inhabited mostly by ethnic Germans, specifically the border areas of Bohemia, Moravia, and those parts of Silesia being within Czechoslovakia.The...
, Reynders sent him back to Berlin. This time he set up residence there with his wife Miep.
In Berlin he immediately restored his friendship with the German colonel Hans Oster
Hans Oster
Hans Oster was a German Army general, deputy head of the Abwehr under Wilhelm Canaris, and an opponent of Adolf Hitler and Nazism. He was a leading figure of the German resistance from 1938 to 1943.-Early career:...
. Oster had obtained an important position as the right hand of Wilhelm Canaris
Wilhelm Canaris
Wilhelm Franz Canaris was a German admiral, head of the Abwehr, the German military intelligence service, from 1935 to 1944 and member of the German Resistance.- Early life and World War I :...
at the German Abwehr
Abwehr
The Abwehr was a German military intelligence organisation from 1921 to 1944. The term Abwehr was used as a concession to Allied demands that Germany's post-World War I intelligence activities be for "defensive" purposes only...
, the espionage
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
and counter-espionage
Counter-Espionage
-Cast:* Warren William as Michael Lanyard* Eric Blore as Jamison* Hillary Brooke as Pamela Hart* Thurston Hall as Insp. Crane* Fred Kelsey as Detective Wesley Dickens* Forrest Tucker as Anton Schugg* Matthew Boulton as Inspector J...
service of the army.
They were connected not only through their mutual dislike for the Nazi regime. Their friendship dated from the beginning of the 1930s, when they first met, possibly when Sas was working in The Hague.
Oster passed him all important information that he obtained. He did not do this out of sympathy for Sas, but because he considered it his duty to Germany. He did not see himself as a traitor, but someone who did his duty to the decent Germany that he loved.
At end of August 1939 he warned The Hague that a war with Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
was about to begin. He gave 25 August 1939 as the invasion date, but this date passed by. At 14:50 on that day Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
gave the order for the invasion, but revoked it when he heard that England was not going to concede. Sas' credibility suffered. When he reported on 31 August that the war was now close, the head of intelligence, Van der Plassche did not believe him. Sas was the only one who delivered this report: London and Paris gave reassurance. However the Netherlands mobilised at the insistence of Queen Wilhelmina
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Wilhelmina was Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1890 to 1948. She ruled the Netherlands for fifty-eight years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw World War I and World War II, the economic crisis of 1933, and the decline of the Netherlands as a major colonial...
.
General Reijnders, his superior in The Hague, was positive over Sas' information.
The relationship with general Reijnders remained good as long as the Netherlands neutrality was not discussed.
During September and October, Sas obtained more signals that the neutrality of the Netherlands would not remain inviolate. However Oster assured him that only Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
would be the target. However Sas did not believe this. At his insistence, Oster obtained further information from the Germain headquarters in Zossen
Zossen
Zossen is a German town in the district of Teltow-Fläming in Brandenburg, south of Berlin, and next to the B96 highway. Zossen consists of several smaller municipalities, which were grouped together in 2003 to form the city.-Geography:...
. This showed that Sas was correct: the Netherlands would be invaded together with Belgium, and that the violation of neutrality would not be limited to a passage through southern Limburg
Limburg (Netherlands)
Limburg is the southernmost of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands. It is located in the southeastern part of the country and bordered by the province of Gelderland to the north, Germany to the east, Belgium to the south and part of the west, andthe Dutch province of North Brabant partly to...
.
Sas died in 1948 in a plane crash in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.