“We glued warnings across German posters in the street calling men to work in Germany. And then we’d hurry off on our bikes.” – Freddie Oversteegan, recalling the beginning of their efforts.
THE HIGHLIGHTS
Freddie and Truus Oversteegen were just teenagers when the Nazis invaded their homeland. Like many sisters, they didn’t always get along. However, their combined agreement to join the Dutch Resistance against the Nazis was the most important decision they ever made. Thrown into dangerous work, like bombing trains, and running safe houses in broad daylight, the Oversteegen sisters became heroes for many during World War II.
Born into Activism
Truus Oversteegen was born on August 29, 1923, in Scoten, Netherlands. Truus was the firstborn of her family, and grew up in the city of Haarlem with her two parents Truus was the older sister of Freddie Oversteegen, born 2 years later on September 6, 1925. For the majority of their lives, the family of four lived on a small barge and suffered financially. Eventually, her parents got a divorce, and the two sisters ended up living with their single, working-class mother in a small apartment where they slept on straw mattresses.
Growing up, their mother considered herself a communist and avidly taught her daughters the importance of fighting injustice. In 1939, when Europe was on the brink of war, and although they did not have much, their mother still took Jewish refugees into their home to provide safety. It was through this influence that Truus and Freddie learned the power of helping others, and understanding that it takes sacrifice to fight injustice.
Truus and Freddie could not be more contrary if they tried. Where Truus was assertive and dictatorial, Freddie was eager to portray her independence. Truus was a tomboy, with mannerisms resembling that of a man. Freddie was described as fetching and unobtrusive. Despite their differences, they came together under one singular goal: to fight injustice.
Joining the Good Fight
Due to their mother portraying a sense of compassion for those in need, Truus and Freddie began their fight early. During the beginning of the Nazi invasion, the sisters worked together to distribute the Trouw (The Faith), an underground newspaper that reported on the transgressions of the German occupiers. One of the sisters would serve as the lookout, while the other would stuff the newspaper into the bags of strangers on the street.
To advertise their newspaper, the sisters would devise bold slogans made from stencils and paste them over the German announcements. After the German invasion of Russia, Truus and Freddie placed a large banner directly over government announcements outside the train tracks to Heemstede. While at first, their efforts were harmless, it was still illegal, and soon caught the attention of many people in their city.
Specifically, this caught the attention of the Haarlem Council of Resistance’s leader Frans van der Weil. Upon hearing about their activism, Frans showed up at the front door of their mother’s apartment to recruit the sisters to the Resistance. This would be the end of their innocuous efforts of fighting injustice. The sisters were only 14 and 16 years young.
Becoming Heroes
Frans informed them of the dangerous missions they were to go on, missions so secretive that they could not even mention them to their mother. Frans explained that the sisters would be called upon to blow up bridges and trains. They would also need to learn how to use pistols, throw grenades, and detonate bombs. The sisters were incredibly valuable, as no one would assume that two young girls could be capable of such blatant and dangerous sabotage. Their first mission was arson and burnt down two Nazi warehouses. After the success of this mission, Truus and Freddie were taught how to shoot, and from then on, became trained assassins.
For years, the sisters went on assassinations missions with others and their own. Sometimes, they would often flirt and seduce German officers by asking them to go on a “stroll in the woods,” only for the other to shoot them down from afar. Their favorite method of attack was the drive-by, where Truus would cycle a bike while Freddie shot from the back. They detonated bombs, blew up bridges and train tracks, and eventually became some of the most deadly killers within the Resistance.
“It was tragic and very difficult and we cried about it after. [Killing] never suits anyone, it poisons the beautiful things in life.” Truus Oversteegen recalls how it affected their lives.
Bother women died at the age of 92, Truus in 2015 and Freddie in 2018. Unfortunately, the Netherlands did not recognize much of the women’s achievements and sidelined them as communists. However, their efforts will live on to be acts of heroism for many people around the world.