Liberation Route Marker 156: The Driesprong Church

The Driesprong Church
On the 28th of October 1944, an imposing building, The Church of Our Lady of Good Counsel, still stands here. A German Demolition Unit sets explosives to prevent the advancing Poles using the church tower as an observation post. Meanwhile, 52 frightened people are sheltering in the basement of the church.

German demolition units often blew up tall buildings as their troops had to retreat before the Allied advance. The church that once stood on this spot also suffered this fate. The Germans wanted to prevent the enemy using the church tower as a lookout post. Hence other tall buildings, such as water towers and windmills were often blown up too.

However, the church that stood on this site was blown up without any warning, while 52 anxious people huddled in the shelter under the church. Nobody knew whether any more explosions would follow and what would happen then. A huge cloud of dust billowed into the shelter and everyone had to leave the cellar immediately.

The demolition unit had already disappeared and had ignored the frightened Breda citizens in the cellar.

Audiospot - The Driesprong Church

Liberation Route Europe is a certified Cultural Route of the Council of Europe. With hundreds of sites and stories in nine European countries, the route links the main regions along the advance of the Allied Forces in 1943-1945.
The entire route consists of themed routes that can be travelled by by hiking, walking, cycling and car. These routes pass numerous historical and interesting sites and tell stories from a multitude of perspectives that were important in the final phase of World War II.
Many routes feature listening spots, offering the opportunity to listen to a historical story at a location. In addition, many ‘Vectors of Memory’ have been placed, indicating that the passer-by is on one of the Liberation Routes.
The routes can be found on the Liberation Route Europe website or in the app through which many stories can also be listened to.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar & Liberation Route Europe
• Photos: Dick de Bruijne