Christianus van Hugten

This memorial page is dedicated to Christianus van Hugten, one of more than 725 war victims connected to the municipality of Deurne documented by Stichting Oorlogsslachtoffers. The municipality of Deurne and the surrounding villages of Liessel, Vlierden, Helenaveen, Neerkant and Zeilberg were liberated in the autumn of 1944 during heavy fighting. Victims fell on all sides: Allied soldiers from countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and New Zealand, and German soldiers.

But the archive covers more than just the combat victims on Deurne soil. Residents of Deurne who lost their lives elsewhere are also commemorated: civilians who were murdered in concentration camps, forced labourers who died in Germany, people who were executed or succumbed to the effects of persecution and oppression. In addition, residents of Deurne who entered German military service and were killed elsewhere are also included.

Stichting Oorlogsslachtoffers has been documenting the story of all these people since 1995, without distinction of nationality, side or background. The goal is to give every person a name and a face, and to keep their memory alive.

Additional information

Son of Gerardus van Hugten and Maria Anna Huberta Sauvé, widow of Petronella Theunissen. Nephew of Martinus van Hugten.

On 27 October 1944, the Germans launched an unexpected counter-attack from Helenaveen and Meijel. Residents of Liessel fled in great haste to Deurne and Asten. The Americans stationed on the front line were unable to repel this attack. The 15th Scottish Division, which had just liberated Tilburg, came to their aid. After heavy fighting, often hand-to-hand, including in the Dennendijk woods, the German offensive was repelled. For a brief moment, Liessel made international headlines. War correspondents described the battle as one of the fiercest since the Normandy landings.

Fleeing the violence of the war, heading towards the air-raid shelter/silo at the neighbours’ house across the road, Christianus van Hugten, Johannes Jozef Willemse and his son Herbertus Mathijs Marie Willemse were caught unawares by a direct hit on the hatchery. Johannes Jozef Willemse and his son Herbertus Mathijs Marie Willemse were killed in the attack; Christianus van Hugten was seriously injured and taken to the hospital in Helmond, where he died of his injuries a few weeks later.

Memorial card

Joint memorial card

Register of deaths

View all persons in the category: Residents of Deurne who died outside Deurne