Abbenbroek, Anton Willem Marie (Ton), born 09-12-1917 in The Hague,
Netherlands, the son of Teunis Johannes Abbenbroek. 
(Goudswaard, 16-03-1890 – Rotterdam, 12-03-1945) also a Dutch resistance fighter during World War II and his wife Johanna Pieternella, born Westhuis. Teunis was arrested on 27-12-1944 and was held in the Scheveningen prison until 12-03-1945. As a reprisal for the attack on SD’er Röhmer and SS’er Koster, he was shot, age 54, together with 19 others on 12-03-1945 in the Goereesestraat in Rotterdam. A monument was placed at the site of the execution. In 1950, the monument was moved to the Pleinweg in Rotterdam. The monument consists of a memorial stone with the 20 names of the fallen. 
At the outbreak of the war, Abbenbroek was a cadet at the Royal Military Academy 
in Breda. He joined a resistance group in The Hague, which had been founded in the summer of 1940 by Jonkheer Joan Schimmelpenninck, alias ‘Uncle Alexander’. 
On 27-04-1943 Joan was sentenced to death by the Wehrmachtjustiz. Schimmelpennick was shot on 29-07-1943, aged 55, on the Leusderheide, 
together with sixteen of his fellow resistance fighters.
This movement had two objectives. Assuming that the occupation would not last long and that the Allies had to be supported at the moment of liberation, it would contribute to temporarily filling the expected power vacuum in order to prevent disorder. In addition, it had set itself the goal of collecting military intelligence for the Allies. The intelligence had to be sent to Queen Wilhelmina 
in England. Members of the organisation were recruited from the ranks of midshipmen (naval officer in training) and cadets (army officer in training). In this way an intelligence group was created which, besides Abbenbroek, included Gerard Adrianus Dogger, 
Peter Tazelaar, 
Johan Birnie, 
Fritjof Dudok van Heel, 
He was executed on 29-07-1943, aged 35, on the Leusderheide, together with fifteen of his fellow resistance fighters. Christiaan “Chris” Navis 
and Johan Frederik Henri de Jonge Melly. 
excecuted, age 37 on 29-07-1943 also in the Leusderheide This group would later be incorporated into the Order Service.
Abbenbroek did resistance work with the Ordedienst under the pseudonym Thierens as a liaison officer (OD liaison officer) of the intelligence group. He belonged to the core of the OD and within the group he was called “Ab” by his fellow fighters and friends. After Schimmelpennink was arrested by the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) 
on 13-11-1941, Dogger and Abbenbroek temporarily assumed leadership of the OD in search of a new leader, during which time Abbenbroek’s room at Groot Hertoginnenlaan in The Hague functioned as the headquarters of the Ordedienst (HKO).On 06-03-1942, Abbenbroek was arrested by treachery and imprisoned in the Oranjehotel. 
In November 1942, he and the other imprisoned OD members, including Schimmelpenninck, were rounded up and taken by train to Camp Amersfoort under heavy guard. In early February 1943, they were transferred by train to the now established Vught concentration camp. 
On 11-03-1943, the OD group was transferred again, this time to the prison in Haaren camp. Here, on 15-03-1943, Abbenbroek was sentenced to death with twenty other resistance fighters during the second Ordedienst trial. Four of this group were “pardoned,” but were forwarded to a concentration camp, where three of these four still died.
Death and burial ground of Abbenbroek, Anton Willem Marie (Ton).
Meanwhile, in Utrecht, on 07-06-1943, Abbenbroek was married by a registrar to Annie Kientz, to whom he had been engaged for six years. This was said to have happened at the request of his father, who hoped that this would bring pardon for his son. On 29-07-1943, at the age of 25, Abbenbroek was executed on Leusderheide near Amersfoort. He was executed in a group of a total of 16 fellow resistance fighters. Apart from Abbenbroek himself, the group consisted of Lex Althoff, 
Christiaan Frederik van den Berg, 
jhr. Willem Theodore Cornelis “Pim” van Doorn, 
F. Dudok van Heel, Piet Hartogs,
W. H. Hertly, J.F.H. de Jonge Melly, Eduard Alexander Latuperisa, 
Willem Mulder, 
Antonius Cornelis Theodore “Cor” van Rijn 
, Johan Schimmelpenninck,Joannes Aloysius (Jan) van Straelen, 
Sieg Vaz Dias, 
G.F.M. Vinkesteyn and Bob Wijnberg 
Grave of Anton Abbenbroek at Rusthof cemetery. Anton Abbenbroek is buried at Rusthof General Cemetery near Amersfoort (box 12 row 150), Honorary Graves. “Ton” was posthumously awarded the Cross of Merit 
and the Resistance Memorial Cross. 
Abbenbroek’s father joined the resistance after his son’s death at his request. In Scheveningen, Abbenbroekweg is named after these resistance fighters.
Leave a Reply