Trial of the Major War Criminals Before the International Military Tribunal, Nuremburg, 14 November 1945-1 October 1946, Volume 05

by Various

2) From June 1941 on, the Netherlands was obliged to pay, as a contribution to the expenses of the war against Russia, a monthly sum of 37 million guilders, of which a part was payable in gold. The total of the sum that Germany raised under this heading is 1,696 million guilders.

3) The Bank of The Netherlands was obliged to undertake the redemption of Reichskreditkasse notes to the sum of 133 million guilders.

4) The costs of the civilian German government in Holland were charged to that country and amounted to 173 million guilders.

5) The Dutch Treasury was, moreover, obliged to pay 414 million guilders to the Reich account, covering divers expenses, such as wages of Dutch workers deported to Germany, the costs of evacuation of certain regions, costs of the demolition of fortifications, so-called costs for guarding railroads, funds placed at the disposal of the Reich Commissioner, and for various industries utilized by the Germans.

6) The Germans in July 1940 seized 816 bars of gold bullion belonging to the Bank of The Netherlands, which were in the wreck of a Dutch ship sunk at Rotterdam, which represented, including costs of recovery, 21 million guilders.

7) The Government of The Netherlands was obliged to bear annual expenses of 1,713 million guilders to assure the financing of new administrative services imposed on Holland by the occupying power.

In this way, Holland lost 8,565 million guilders. Altogether, including the raising of the gold from a ship sunk in the Meuse, the payments actually made to Germany amount to 11,380 million guilders. If these costs are added to the costs of occupation and clearing, the total of the financial charges imposed on Holland during the occupation amounts to the sum of 22,224 million guilders.

These operations had serious consequences for the economy of the Netherlands. Indeed, the gold supply, which on 1 April 1940 amounted to 1,236 million guilders, had, by 1 April 1945, fallen to 932 million guilders, owing to German levies.

The paper money in circulation, on the contrary, had risen from 1,127 million guilders on 1 April 1940, to 5,468 million guilders on 1 April 1945.

When the Germans occupied the Netherlands, a great portion of the gold of the Bank of The Netherlands had been sent abroad.