Freedom Square

For example, the square hosts the war monument, ‘the Merciful Samaritan’, by Jacob Maris. Additionally, you will find the Listening Stone as part of the Liberation Route. This tells the story of the Battle of Gennep. Also on the square is a Holocaust monument and the Veteranenanjerperk (Veterans flower bed). This bed honors all Dutch veterans and contains a special shoot from the Anne Frank tree.

In the vicinity of Freedom Square are places that remind of wartime. The bridge over the Niers is named 'Highlanderbridge', in tribute to the 51st Highland Division. More information can be found on the information board at the Gennepermolen. Further towards the center is Ellen Hoffman Square, named after a Jewish citizen who was murdered during the war. The visitor center of the Martinus Tower offers even more stories. This tower is the only building close to the Maas between Mook and Roermond that survived the war.

Veteranenanjerperk (Veterans flower bed)

The Veteranenanjerperk is a tribute to Dutch veterans who fought for peace and freedom. On May 11, 2024, the municipality of Gennep donated this bed to the Veterans Association North-Limburg (VVNL) and the Gennep community. Central to it is a weathering steel veterans' logo, created in collaboration with students from Elzendaal College. The flowerbed is an initiative of the VVNL.

At the head of the bed stands a shoot from the Anne Frank tree. Anne Frank looked out at the original tree from her hiding place and described it in her diary. This tree replaces the imposing Freedom Tree that previously stood here.

Holocaust Monument 

This monument honors the 22 Jewish citizens of Gennep who did not survive the war. Designed by Mirso Bajramovic, it displays the silhouettes of these victims. It is part of the stumbling stones project, which in 2018 placed a stone for each of the victims in front of their former homes.

The 22 Holocaust Victims On August 25, 1942, the first group of Gennep residents was deported.

-    Hedwig Bock
-    Helene Andriesse-Hes and
-    Hildegard Andriesse 
were gassed on Sunday, August 30, 1942, in Auschwitz.

-    Sjuul Andriesse died on March 6, 1943, in Ludwigsdorf labor camp.
-    Werner Hertog died on March 29, 1945, in Buchenwald.
-    Walther Andriesse died on April 30, 1943, somewhere in Central Europe.

On April 9, 1943, the deportation of the second group of Gennep Jews followed. 14 Gennep residents were deported to Vught and from there to Westerbork, to ultimately be gassed in Sobibor.

-    Reina Bock
-    Max Bock
-    Bertha Bock
-    Josephina Bock
-    Jet van Leeuwen and
-    Abraham Jakobsohn 
died on May 14, 1943.

-    Selly Andriesse
-    Jülchen Andriesse-jakobschn
-    Nanny Kaufman and
-    Jet Kaufman-Leefsma 
died on June 11, 1943.

-    Harry Andriesse
-    Jöbke Kaufman
-    Sam Andriesse and
-    Johanna Andriesse-Hesse 
died on July 16, 1943

-    Hedwig Kölling-Hirschberg was arrested in September 1943 in Gennep. She was transferred through the Oranjehotel in Scheveningen and Dortmund to Auschwitz, where she died on July 17, 1944.

-    Ellen van Leeuwen-Hoffmann was in hiding in Berlin. She was betrayed and arrested. She was held in Theresienstadt, Auschwitz, Gross Rosen, and Kurzbach. In early 1945, she was deported to Bergen-Belsen, where she never arrived.