ooc : Sorry this is late, between vacation and the return from that, I’ve been fairly busy.
The Netherlands News, Q1, 1932 - Addendum
The Hauge Herald, March 16, 1932
Foreign Minister Pieter van Grootveld signed the PETA Treaty for The Netherlands, preparatory to sending it to the Eerste Kamer. Once approved by the Eerste Kamer, it will be presented to Prime Minister Eduwart Land and Queen Wilhelmina for their signatures.
"This is a fine day for the Netherlands. The expansion of our economic horizons will provide more demands for our products, cheaper access to resources to make those products more competitive, and thus more jobs within the widespread provinces of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. With this treaty we ensure that our ports will continue to thrive, and the commercial lifeblood of this nation continue unabated. “
The Hauge Herald, March 17, 1932
The old destroyers ZZ22, ZZ23, and ZZ24 have finished their conversions and been recommisioned. ZZt22 and ZZt23 will serve as target vessels, while ZZt24 will continue to serve as a basic training vessel in the Waddenzee.
The Netherlands News, Q2, 1932
The Brussels Sprout, April 1st
Fokker broke ground today for a new production facility outside of Ghent. This is expected to be a factory principally producing civil aircraft, expected to be the Fokker F.IX and F.XVIII air transports, though the facility will be large enough for the F.XXII being developed.
Fokker continues work on a land variant of the T.IVa, and production continues on the Avia F.39. In addition to the bombers, Fokker and Avia continue to work on improved fighter aircraft. The expansion of the D.XVII design to produce the D.XVIIbis has resulted in a serviceable fighter which is seen as an adequate stop gap.
However the advent of the Barron has placed pressure on the companies to field a new airframe. Fokker has returned to it’s D.XIV monoplane concept, while the Avia division is evaluating a monoplane variant of their B.34 all-metal biplane.
Octane improvements made by Shell have allowed more horsepower to be obtained from engines than before, promising continued improvements in performance, and the Alcoa factory in Dutch Guiana has been asked to evaluate a number of different aluminum alloys in an attempt to produce a superior structural material.
The Amsterdam Advocate, April 2nd
The Admiralty announced the keel laying of the S37 and S38, S19 class Sloops. Four of the ZZ13 class were admitted to drydocks to commence scrapping.
The Amsterdam Advocate, April 4th
The PETA treaty, approved by the Eerste Kamer, has been signed by Prime Minister Eduwart Land and Queen Wilhelmina.
April 5th, Yenbo, Saudia Arabia
Captain Hermann Daendals surveyed the docks. This was his second voyage to Saudi Arabia on supply runs for Shell’s exploration expedition, and the country was just a ugly as when he had last been here.
Most of his cargo was already unloaded and on it’s way to the drilling sites on those funny looking tracked FN lorries, but he was worried about getting the off-manifest cargo off his vessel, the Shell freighter SS Dufyken . While that little weasel of a man had claimed he was doing the government a great service, it was the money he offered that spoke true, that and the chance to repay the Indians for time in their POW camp back in ‘17.
A crash as a crate of pipes snapped loose of the cargo net drew eyes and security. The Captain hurried over and saw his crew safe. A look at the jackstrawed pipes confirmed his suspicions. Most pipes are not internally threaded, nor taper towards one end. The Captain had recognized one of the civilian passengers on the first trip, and expected the former gunnery instructor’s presence might be related to what was in these extra crates of equipment, as he felt reasonably sure those “drill heads”, “pipes” and other boxes just might be mislabeled like this one was.
The Amsterdam Advocate, April 11th
Researchers at Eindhoven University, working in conjunction with Azko Nobel LLC have announced a new formulation of fire retardant paints have been developed at the behest of the Admiralty. In conjunction with the fire retardant foams recently developed, it is expected that ship board fire fighting efforts will be substantially improved as these improvements make their way into the fleet.
The Batavia Bugle, April 22nd
Governor-General A.C.D. de Graeff issued a statement condemning the reported assassination attempt on Filipino Presidente de la Vega.
The Hauge Herald, April 24th, 1932
The wedding of Karel Théodore Henri Antoine Meinrad, Count of Flanders, Prince of Belgium, and Juliana Emma Louise Wilhelmina van Oranje-Nassau, Princess of the Netherlands, occurred today in The Hauge. A large audience was on hand to witness the event, including the amassed Royalty of the Benelux, the exiled Kaiser Wilhelm II, and nobility from many parts of Europe and parts more distant.
The Royal couple will depart on the Belgian Royal Yacht for the Carribean to honeymoon, after which they shall tour in America prior to journeying to Los Angeles, California. Prince Karel shall be competing in the Olympics there and needs must arrive early to resume training.
The Prince has been warmly embraced by the people of the Netherlands, and has sparked the formation of many equestrian, skeet, and glider clubs emulating his favored sports. The Princess has also been a popular choice with the people of Belgium, and the arrangement has tharwed relations between King Albert and Queen Wilhelmina considerably.
The marriage should placate many in Belgium who are concerned that the line of succession after the Prince is unclear. King Albert’s brother has abdicated, taken vows, and now serves as Abbot of a small monastery in Costelloe, Ireland. The succession would fall to either to Duchess Aimé , of Ghent, childless, aged 94 and rumored senile. The other contender would be Phillipe, aged 26, Duke of Brabant who was most recently arrested for shoplifting in Monaco, which would be among the least of his alleged scandals, though perhaps forced by his rumored expenditure of 23 million English pounds in the past eight years, bankrupting him.
The Amsterdam Advocate, April 25th
Commissioning ceremonies were held today for the 13th and 14th of the S19 class Sloops. S32 and S33 are expected to be worthwhile additions to the fleet.
April 28th, Antwerp
After the formal greetings, Prince William of Orange looked squarely at his host
“Prince Mish’al, I am afraid the business that brought me to call on you today is not a particularly pleasant matter. I of course am not representing the Dutch government, merely my family, the House of Orange.”
“But of course Prince William, of course”
“My house maintains information sources in many locations, and currently they primarily report to myself. We have reason to believe that one, or more, Shell vessels may be smuggling goods into your nation. What you wish to do about smugglers is of course the business of your government. The business of my house is to establish whom is subverting our merchants, but for this to occur we will have to allow the supply shipments to continue, which we cannot do.”
“Prince William, rest assured that the minor smuggling is not a source of aggravation for my government, we are perfectly capable of dealing with such matters privately, you may be free to allow the ships to continue so that you may find your spy. “
“Alas Prince Mish’al, that is indeed our desire, but with your country at war and interning foreigners…. the Queen is tremendously displeased at the rumored conditions and prohibition of Red Crescent examinations, I’m afraid she is far more inclined to pressure Shell to withdraw it’s workers and stop it’s payments, than to allow them to send more supplies, even those loading out there . After all, without knowledge of true conditions, how can we ask Shell employees to stay in the country? ”
“Prince William, I fail to see why these silly concerns would be given weight by the Shell board…”
“Prince Mish’al, my House’s holdings in Royal Dutch Shell are quite extensive, the board will do as they are told. I was hoping if you could be of tremendous aid to me by inquiring of your government if there is a date in the future where we can look forward to reporters and Red Cross personal being allowed to examine the pilgrim camps. If there is, then we can release the next supply freighters to continue to expand the exploration efforts and pay you for the new leases in good conscience. I am sure that if regular supply runs continue for another several months I will be able to establish just whom my Captains are working for, and more importantly, who those people work for. I don’t suppose you can aid me in this? I’ll be at sea for some time in transit to Jakarta, but I will be in contact with my people.”
….
The Batavia Bugle, May 3rd
Governor-General A.C.D. de Graeff issued a statement congratulating the Filipino efforts to combat El Derretir and possible preparation of a vaccine. The Governor-General will make Dutch facilities available for such an effort if the Filipinos find such assistance useful.
The Hauge Herald, May 10th
The royal palace was the site of a large party to celebrate the 18th birthday of Prince Alexander. The guest list was large and spanned society. While the prince spent considerable time dancing the night away, there was reportedly no lucky damsel singled out.
The Batavia Bugle, May 11th
After a ground breaking ceremony for a new marine-engine factory in Medan, Governor-General A.C.D. de Graeff held a press conference today to announce plans for redevelopment and settlement of the Manado area, to commence in 1933. The Government estimates that over 30% of the population of the area died from El Derretir . The response in Sorong has been more effacious at addressing the disease, drawing on lessons learned on Sulawesi. The Governor also announced plans to ease travel restrictions next quarter if the lack of new cases continues.
When questioned regarding the possibility of the Filipino 2nd Independent Infantry Regiment transiting to Asir, presumably transiting Dutch territorial waters in the Riau Archipelago, the Governor-General stated “No, as in the case of the Filipino revolution, we are not barring passage to SATSUMA military assets through our territorial waters, merely deploying submarines and planes in to shadow the force. As you may be aware, the extent of our territorial waters is a matter of some international confusion which has not been adequately corrected despite our government’s efforts in 1894 and 1907. We follow Bynkershoek’s maxim of terrae dominium finitur, ubi finitur armorum vis. and the IIL’s 1894 decision of six nautical miles. While under Article IV we could certainly extend the range to bar passage, whether by the Riau Archepelago or through the Strait of Malacca, unless they dared hug the coast inside the British territorial waters. ”
The ground breaking marks the fruits of the 15th large loan granted by the Bank of the Kongo, while the bank boasts over 200 small loans in the DEI since the opening of their DEI branches late last year.
The Amsterdam Advocate, May 12th
The Royal yacht Nassau left Amsterdam today escorted by KM Texel. The yacht will take the TIDE commission, including Crown Prince William, to Dutch Indonesia to prepare their report. Prince Alexander is traveling on board as far as South Africa, where he will depart for his first visit to Africa. The Nassau will refuel in Cape Town, and be met by the Maasricht which will escort for the remainder of the trip.
The Amsterdam Advocate, May 14
The new submarines, Kt33, Kt34, Kx35 have been commissioned today. The Kt33 is to serve as a target vessel and reportedly has been fitted with additional pressure chambers and fail safes in case of accidents or serious damage. Kt34 will give the service a dedicated training submarine with the most recent equipment. Kx35 is an experimental vessel of a differing appearance from the others, with a modified bow, stern, two odd hull blisters and several additions to the sail, which is of a more streamlined appearance. Filings for treaty compliance indicate she has a single torpedo tube forward, with provisions for a covering plate to “remove” the tube as a weapon, with a fitting for a deckside torpedo fitted in the carapace. These are presumably for torpedo development. Two 100mm and two 20mm guns are disclosed ‘improved design and hydrologic testing’.
The Batavia Bugle, May 15
The commissioning of the KBL-21 to KBL-24 brings the number of gunboat squadrons to 6, which will be complete with the commissioning of the final two Tijgerhaai class, KBH-5 and KBH-6. The Admiralty does not currently have further gunboats on order.
The Batavia Bugle, May 18
The old cruiser [I}Amsterdam [/I] lowered her ensign for the final time, and was formally transferred to the Phillipenes in a small ceremony at Butuan.
The Kinshaha Messenger, May 30
The royal yacht Nassau has arrived safely and on time in Cape Town, SAE. Crown Prince William, and Prince Alexander were met at the docks by their father, Prince-Consort Hendrik. Prince Hendrik had engaged in the ribbon cutting for a new tractor factor in Kongo and then taken the railway to Cape Town to meet his sons. The SAE provided an honor guard for the young princes and the Prince-Consort. The Prince-Consort will formally present his sons to the South African Court. Crown Prince William has of course visited South Africa before in 1907, but was only four years of age, while this is the first visit for Prince Alexander.
Both Princes are said to understandably excited to make their acquaintance with South Africa, but Prince William will be forced to depart for Jakarta after only a week, while Prince Hendrik and Prince Alexander will go on a South African Safari.
The Amsterdam Advocate, May 31
The old destroyer, ZZx21, has been recommisioned as an experimental vessel. The admiralty has made no announcements as to the nature of the experiments, but documents filed for treaty compliance indicate that she has “one forward 125mm gun in an improved mounting, one forward 100mm gun in an improved mounting, 4 AAA mounts amidships for mounting, feed, and director testing, 2x600mm torpedo tubes amidships for torpedo testing, a barbette aft for future mountings, a single “K” gun and 20 depth charges aft”.
The Amsterdam Advocate, June 6
The War Ministry has placed orders for a licensed redesign of the M1931 Carden-Llyod amphibious tankettes, also to be armed with the 13.2mm HMG. The Belgium firm Fabrique Nationale and the Czech Skoda have each been contracted to draw up designs for improved variants. The initial batch has proved promising, but insufficiently reliable and limited in performance.
The government has proven quite pleased with the Vickers “G” 6-ton tank aquirred last year. Continued evaluation of these have led to an order for three “H” prototypes to be produced with further modifications per War Ministry specifications. These apparently include a single, roomier three-man turret (still with the Dutch armament and Phillips radio), a diesel engine, further improvements to cooling systems and filters, and substantially wider tracks to reduce ground pressure. There is some expectation this should be called the
“7-ton tank”. Each of the three are to have slightly differing configurations. A fourth prototype, turretless with a hull mounted 75mm artillery piece, has also been ordered. The War Ministry has also approached Fabrique Nationale of Belgium and the Czechoslovakian companies of Skoda and Cesko-moravska Kolben Danek regarding possible new tank and artillery tractor designs.
The Kinshaha Messenger, June 8th
The Nassau and Maasricht have departed from Cape Town for Jakarta. The late departure is due to Prince William extending his stay. The members of the TIDE commission, enjoying Cape Town, do not appear to have objected overly much.
The Amsterdam Advocate, June 21st
The Admiralty issued orders to Koninklijke Fabriek van der Artillerie to start design work on 410mm and 435mm naval guns, and updating the M1917 305mm siege howitzer.
The Batavia Bugle, June 23rd
The Nassau and Maasricht arrived in Batavia today, delivering Prince William and the TIDE commision.
The Hauge Herald, June 25st
The Prime Minister and Queen issued a statement today expressing a hope for the rapid recovery of American President Roosevelt, wounded in an assassination attempt at 1:35 am this morning.
The Amsterdam Advocate, July 30th
The opening of Summer Olympics occurred today in the grand Olympic Stadium in Los Angeles, California. There are over 2,000 athletes representing the Nations of the world in 14 sporting competitions. Prince Karel and his new bride, our darling Princess Juliana are in attendance. The Prince will of course be competing in the Equestrian events, both individual and team grand prix, these Olympics, as well the Netherlands’ own Charles Pahud de Mortanges and Equestrian grand prix team. While this reporter is biased in favor of the grandeur of the Amsterdam Olympics of 1928, one must admit that the venue here in Los Angeles is quite fine. The weather is wondrously clear, though somewhat warm.
edit: fixed some wording problems.
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Though this kinda did get the final items added during a slow time this morning... but some flex is allowed Quoted
Originally posted by Red Admiral
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Thursday, April 18th 2024, 8:36am
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