History

 Continuing on where I left off yesterday, there is a raised circular bed here where the tulips were just starting to show. On the far side are display panels telling the story of the Tulip Festival.

The festival is a legacy of the Second World War, and the liberation of the Netherlands by Canadian soldiers. That has resulted in an enduring friendship between the two countries.

Nazi Germany occupied the Netherlands during the war, as they did so many other places, and the people suffered greatly. These were my people- my parents were children during the war, and their families immigrated afterwards.

While Queen Wilhelmina operated out of London to keep hope alive for her people, her daughter Crown Princess Juliana was sent to Canada for safety, with her daughters. She lived in Ottawa, spending her time advocating for the Dutch people. Her husband, Prince Bernhard, spent the war helping his mother-in-law in London, but visited when he could.

Princess Margriet was born in Ottawa. The Canadian government designated Juliana's maternity suite at the Civic Hospital to be extraterritorial to ensure the baby's Dutch citizenship.

She was christened at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, with her father and grandmother having had made the voyage to attend. The service was broadcast by the CBC, and sent to Radio Orange for broadcast to the Netherlands. The photos on this panel were taken by the portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh, who was already on his way to becoming the pre-eminent portrait photographer of the century. 

By war's end, Canadian soldiers liberated the Netherlands, and were welcomed as heroes by the Dutch. That bond has carried on through the decades since. The Dutch Royal Family, and the country itself, began a tradition of sending tulip bulbs to Canada. The country itself imported more each year for planting.

Princess Margriet has returned often to Canada; she attended this year's opening of the Tulip Festival.

The Karsh family had immigrated gradually from Armenia to settle in Ottawa. Where Yousuf Karsh found fame as a portrait photographer, his brother Malak Karsh found his own fame as a landscape photographer. It was Malak who proposed the idea of a festival, and thus he is considered the father of the Tulip Festival.

The War

 One more view of that big bed of tulips to start the day.

Nearby, a bed with much less density of tulips, but appealing on its own merits.

Around a nearby raised bed of tulips are a series of panels that explore the origins of the Tulip Festival. It is a legacy of the Second World War. The Dutch Royal Family and the country itself sent tulips to Canada in gratitude for liberation, a tradition that continues to this day. When the festival was founded, the Canadian government began adding more tulips to the total, and it took off.

The occupation of the Netherlands by Nazi Germany during the war was particularly brutal.

Queen Wilhelmina spent the war in London, rallying her nation, assisted by her son-in-law Prince Bernhard. The Crown Princess, Juliana, was sent to Canada with her daughters for safety. She settled in Ottawa, and worked tirelessly to keep awareness of what was going on in Europe in the eyes of those in North America.

Her husband visited from time to time, and from that came a princess born in Ottawa. Princess Margriet was born at the Civic Hospital. The federal government at the time designated the maternity suite extraterritorial to ensure the baby's Dutch citizenship.

She was baptized at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church. Her father and grandmother came for the christening. She had numerous godparents, and the service was broadcast via Radio Orange to the Netherlands. The photographs in this panel were taken by Yousuf Karsh, the Armenian born photographer who had come to Canada and was making a name for himself as a portrait photographer. Karsh of Ottawa, as he was known, would become the pre-eminent portrait photographer of the 20th century.

The Canadian military was largely responsible for the liberation of the Netherlands, freeing the country from five years of occupation and ending the war. The Dutch were profoundly grateful, and the liberation resulted in one of the strongest friendships between countries one can think of.

Princess Margriet herself has often come back to Ottawa, making a point of meeting with Canadian veterans.

A Deep Bond

 Picking up where I left off yesterday. Crown Princess Juliana of the Netherlands found refuge in Ottawa during the Second World War, while her mother Queen Wilhelmina operated from London to rally the Dutch people. Juliana came with her daughters, while her husband Prince Bernhard, visited frequently.

She and the girls took to the city, and the city took to her, and she worked tirelessly to represent her people and encourage support for the war.

In 1943, another daughter, Princess Margriet, was born. The Canadian government declared the maternity suite extraterritorial to ensure her royal status.

She was baptized at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church; her father and grandmother made the journey overseas to attend, and the service was broadcast on Radio Orange. The photos you see here are by Yousuf Karsh, the Ottawa portrait photographer who became the pre-eminent portrait photographer of the 20th century.

The liberation of the Netherlands by Canadian soldiers deepened the friendship of these two countries- a positive result of war.

Princess Margriet has often visited over the years since to the city where she was born, and has made a point of spending time with Canadian veterans.

Malak Karsh was the brother of Yousuf Karsh, and he chose the landscapes of Canada as his subject for his life's work as a photographer- becoming famous in his own right. It was Malak who proposed the idea of the Tulip Festival, and he is thus considered its founder.

A splash of colour to end this post.

The Halls Of History

Carrying on where I left off yesterday, more photographs of this display in City Hall about the wartime connections of Canada and the Netherlands, and the enduring bond of friendship ever since. The Tulip Festival, The Man With Two Hats sculpture, and the Flentrop Organ, which resides in the National Arts Centre today, are examples of that friendship.

Princess Juliana spent the war raising her daughters in Ottawa, but working tirelessly to keep attention to her occupied Netherlands. More photographs of Juliana, by Yousuf Karsh, are seen here.

When Margriet was born, it was a momentous occasion. The Canadian government at the time designated the maternity suite as extraterritorial. Her godparents would be many, and her christening at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church would be attended by many, including her parents and her grandmother, Queen Wilhelmina, who made the journey from Britain, where she spent the war ceaselessly rallying her people. These two photographs by Karsh are from that day.

This is a copy of the 1943 birth certificate in Dutch, elaborately surrounded.

The liberation of the Netherlands by Canadian soldiers at the end of the war resulted in one of the strongest friendships of countries and a positive outcome of a war. Those faces say so much. For me, a first generation Canadian of Dutch parents, it's emotional.

The path led me upstairs. Outside the executive boardroom, accompanied by national, provincial, and city flags, is the coat of arms, rendered as a three dimensional sculpture mounted on the brick wall, which I believe would be the original portion of the building before expansions later in the 19th century.

Inside, art in various styles adorns the walls.

I like this fireplace with mantle clock.

The regalia of a mayor is discussed here. Ottawa has had some good mayors, and some not so good mayors. 

These robes feel very Canadian.

One last view from inside, down the long corridor.