Operation Tulip, Guest Post by Deborah Swift

Holland, 1944: Undercover British agent Nancy Callaghan has been given her toughest case yet. A key member of the Dutch resistance has been captured, and Nancy must play the role of a wealthy Nazi to win over a notorious SS officer, Detlef Keller, and gain crucial information.

England: Coding expert Tom Lockwood is devastated that the Allies have failed to push back the Nazis, leaving Northern Holland completely cut off from the rest of Europe, and him from his beloved Nancy. Desperate to rescue the love of his life, Tom devises Operation Tulip, a plan to bring Nancy home.

But as Nancy infiltrates the Dutch SS, she finds herself catching the eye of an even more senior member of the Party. Is Nancy in too deep, or can Tom reach her before she gets caught?

Inspired by the true events of occupied Holland during WW2, don’t miss this utterly gripping story of love, bravery and sacrifice.

Struggle and Sacrifice – The Dutch Resistance in WW2

The Netherlands was swiftly overrun by German forces in May 1940, after just a few days of fierce fighting. The country, known for its neutrality during the First World War, thought Germany a friend and was completely unprepared for the onslaught. The Dutch government fled to London, leaving Holland under the control of a German administration led by Arthur Seyss-Inquart, formerly Chancellor of Austria, and now the Reich Commissioner for the Netherlands.

Dutch recruiting poster for the *Waffen-SS*

Holland was immediately occupied and the Nazis established a strict and oppressive regime, one which aimed to integrate the Dutch into their vision of a Greater Germanic Reich. To do this, they took strong control of its population through a combination of propaganda, intimidation, and brutality, so the Dutch resistance didn’t begin as any kind of unified movement. Many Dutch men were encouraged to side with the Germans and join the Waffen SS, as in the recruiting poster.

To begin with, Resistance consisted of isolated groups and individuals acting independently. One of the primary difficulties was the isolation of resistance cells. In the early stages of the occupation, there was no widespread network to connect these groups, which limited their ability to share intelligence, resources, or support. This isolation also made it easier for the Nazis to suppress resistance activities, as any captured resistance members had limited information about other groups.

Owning a Radio was a Death Sentence

Weapons were particularly difficult to come by. The Dutch military was quickly disbanded after the occupation, and most of its weapons were either confiscated by the Germans or destroyed to prevent their use by resistance forces. This left resistance groups with few options; they had to rely on homemade explosives, stolen German weapons, or arms smuggled in from Allied forces, all of which were dangerous to acquire and store.

The Queen of the Netherlands broadcast from London via Radio Oranje

In addition to weapons, communication equipment was also scarce. Resistance groups needed radios to receive information from the exiled Dutch government and Allied forces, but possession of a radio was punishable by death. Despite these risks, many brave individuals operated clandestine radio stations, transmitting and receiving crucial information that helped coordinate resistance efforts. In my novel, Operation Tulip, members of the Dutch Resistance take great risks to get hold of a suitcase radio.

Everyone could be the Enemy

There was the constant threat of betrayal. The Nazi regime employed a vast network of informants and collaborators, many of whom were Dutch citizens. These were people motivated by fear, financial gain, or belief in Nazi ideals. This climate of fear and suspicion made it difficult for resistance groups to trust new recruits or even existing members, hampering their ability to grow and carry out operations. Nevertheless, many brave citizens persisted.

The most notorious example of infiltration was the betrayal of the Dutch resistance leader, Willem Arondeus. In March 1943, Arondeus and his group carried out a successful attack on the Amsterdam public records office, destroying thousands of documents that the Nazis used to identify Jews for deportation.

However, their success was short-lived, as a collaborator informed the Gestapo of their identities. Arondeus and many of his comrades were arrested and executed, a tragic reminder of the high price of resistance.

Nazi Revenge made Resistance Unpopular

One of the most difficult decisions was whether to engage in violent actions that could result in civilian casualties. The Nazis were known for their brutal reprisals; for every German soldier killed by the Resistance, dozens of Dutch civilians could be executed in retaliation.

Another dilemma was evident in the case of Englandspiel, or “The England Game,” a disastrous operation in which Dutch resistance fighters were lured into a trap by the Germans. (This story is told in The Silk Code.) The Gestapo managed to capture several resistance members and, using their radio codes, sent false messages to the British intelligence service. This led to the capture and execution of more than 50 Dutch agents. The operation highlighted the excruciating choices faced by resistance agents, uncertainty about whether they could trust and then act on information they received.

The Germans Cornered

Members of the Resistance with troops of the US airforce during Operation Market Garden

As the war progressed the German occupiers became increasingly desperate, intensifying their crackdown on resistance activities. One of the most significant events during this period was Operation Market Garden, an ambitious Allied operation aimed at liberating the Netherlands. It failed but meant that the North West of Holland became a bottleneck of German troops who had fled North from the liberated South.

Being cut off from the rest of Europe led the “Hunger Winter” of 1944-1945, during which thousands of Dutch civilians died from starvation and exposure. The Resistance in Holland at this time, depleted and demoralised from years of occupation, nevertheless fought on until the end.

Their story, of their battle to get food to a starving population, is told in Operation Tulip.

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Meet Deborah Swift

Deborah Swift is a USA TODAY bestselling author who is passionate about the past. Deborah used to be a costume designer for the BBC, before becoming a writer. Now she lives in an old English school house in a village full of 17th Century houses, near the glorious Lake District. She divides her time between writing and teaching. After taking a Masters Degree in Creative Writing, she enjoys mentoring aspiring novelists and has an award-winning historical fiction blog at her website www.deborahswift.com

Deborah loves to write about how extraordinary events in history have transformed the lives of ordinary people, and how the events of the past can live on in her books and still resonate today.

Recent books include The Poison Keeper, about the Renaissance poisoner Giulia Tofana, which was a winner of the Wishing Shelf Book of the Decade Award, and a Coffee Pot Book Club Gold Medal. Her most recent books are The Silk Code and The Shadow Network both set in the Second World War.