Marinus Post

Dutch farmer and resistance fighter during WW2. Marinus Post was the elder brother of the famous Dutch resistance fighter Johannes Post. Their parents were the farmer and reformed local Anti-revolutionary politician Jan Wolters Post (1 Sep 1863, Kerkenveld - 10 Oct 1942, Hollandscheveld) en Trijntje Tempen (11 Oct 1865, Hijken - 16 Feb 1937, Hollandscheveld). On 30 April 1887 they married and between 1888 and 1906 they got eleven children. Like his brother Johannes, Marinus also took the for an anti-revolutionary Calvinistic Christian unusual step during WW2. Both became noted gang (Knokploeg, KP) leaders that carried out high risk operations in the by the Germans occupied Netherlands. Starting with unarmed passive resistance (spreading illegal papers, later hiding Jews), they ultimately became armed resistance fighters that tried to free tortured comrades in prisons, destroyed municipal archives with the names and addresses of Jews and robbed places to steal food distribution and identity cards, that were needed to support the persecuted civilians that went underground. As they had to feed many mouths in Nieuwenlande and elsewhere. They set up with others an unique project in the village Nieuwenlande (New Land): "A unique instance of collective rescue took place in the Dutch village of Nieuwlande. In 1942 and 1943 the village inhabitants resolved that every household would hide one Jewish family or at least one Jew. Given the collective nature of the activity, the danger to the village was small – there was no fear of denunciation since all the village dwellers were partners to the "crime". All 117 inhabitants of that village were recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. In July 1944 he was asked by his KP Waterland to participate in the robbery at the detention center in Amsterdam. Marinus refused because he considered the operation too risky. The action (15 July 1944 3 AM) indeed failed and his brother Johannes and other comrades were arrested and executed in Overveen (16 July 1944 at 2:00 PM). On 18 October 1944, Marinus Postal himself was arrested in Amsterdam. On 17 November 1944 he was executed in Alkmaar. He left his wife Hannechien Salomons (1 Dec 1901, Nieuw Buinen- 14 Febr 1982, Kampen ) and two children. After the war, he and his brother Johannes were reburied at the honorary cemetery in Overveen. Link to Dutch Wikipedia