In the previous blog, Tera went back to work after the honeymoon and wrote an article about the fauna of Walcheren after the inundation. During the last war winter, Tera wrote a biography of Jan Govertus de Man to get through the long evenings. J.G. de Man (1850-1930) was a Zeeland biologist. He studied zoology […]

In the previous blog we read about Tera and Picos honeymoon. In the first few months after the wedding Pico spends a lot of time in Zeeland. He wants to get the Wael back in order and to get the museum in Middelburg up and running again. Tera goes back to work in Amsterdam. Her

In the previous blog we read  about Tera and Pico getting married in Amsterdam. In October 1944, Allied bombers bombed the dikes of the island of Walcheren (Zeeland) in an attempt to inundate the island and driving out the Germans. The result was that huge gaps  were made in the sea- defense works, the gap

In the previous blog we saw Pico and Tera making wedding plans in Nunspeet. However, that is not as simple as it seems. First, there is the problem of incapacity to act. Under the Civil Code, introduced in 1838, women were legally “incapacitated” from the moment they married. This meant that a woman could not

In the previous blog we saw how Tera survived the Dutch famine and sent a first postcard to Pico on May 5, 1945. The summer of ’45 is very important for both Tera and Pico as a couple and for the Netherlands as a whole. In the weeks following the liberation she writes a lot,

In the previous blog, Tera went on holiday to Zeeland together with Piet Meertens in June 1944. After the summer of 1944, however, the situation quickly becomes very worrying. On June 6, 1944, Allied troops land on the beaches in Normandy. This is followed by an advance of the Allies through Northern France and Belgium.

In the previous blog we saw “normal” life getting more and more difficult as the war continues. In this blog we meet a new friend of Tera. In the early months of 1944, the name Piet Meertens appears in Tera’s letters. Meertens is also from Zeeland, interested in the Dutch language and dialect and active

In the previous blog we saw how Tera’s Jewish friends fared and how Tera was involved. This blog is more about Tera’s own worries in wartime. We already came across Lieven de Beaufort in previous blogs. De Beaufort is director of the Zoological Museum. His son, Hans de Beaufort (1915-1942) became a well-known motorcycle racer

In the previous blog we said goodbye to Anna Weber. We now return to Amsterdam and read about Tera’s involvement with her Jewish friends, where more goodbyes follow. In October 1942 Tera is very concerned about the Arbeitseinsatz (the German system of forced labor). Young men are arrested to work in Germany. Her nephew Chris,

In the previous blog we saw Pico moving to Ginneken near Breda with his sick mother. Today we say goodbye to Anna Weber. In previous blogs we already learned that Anna Weber is a great example for Tera and a dear and loyal friend. In the summers of 1940 and 1941 Tera stays for  a