The "korps Pontonniers en Torpedisten"

Regarding the Corps of Pontonniers and Torpedisten:( Or Army Maritime Engineers Corps )

The Pontonniers, throughout history, have been under the artillery branch. This explains the red trim on the collar of the pontonnier uniform, which is also seen on artillery uniforms. The task of the Pontonniers was to construct bridges over waterways to facilitate the movement of armies. Later, the Torpedisten were added to the Pontonniers. Their task was to lay or remove underwater mine barriers, hence the name Torpedisten derived from the word “torpedo.” It wasn’t until 1927 that the Corps of Pontonniers and Torpedisten fell under the Engineering branch as one corps. The Depot for Pontonniers and Torpedisten was located in Dordrecht. Part of it was stationed at the Benthienkazerne on the Buiten-Walevest, which also housed the training company, or the school for Pontonniers and Torpedisten. Just a little further down the Buiten-Walevest was the Pontonnierskazerne, which still exists to this day. The rest of the garrison during mobilization was spread across various locations in Dordrecht, including several schools in Krispijn. There were also Pontonniers stationed in Papendrecht. In May 1940, the strength of the garrison was almost 1500 men, but about 20% of them had only been called up days before the outbreak of the war and were not yet ready for active service. These were the youngest recruits from the school company. The Pontonniers had little to no training in warfare and weapon deployment, as most of their attention during their training was focused on their specialized engineering tasks. Nevertheless, during May 1940, the Pontonniers and Torpedisten displayed surprising bravery and tactical acumen.

I am always searching for Pontonnier-related items from the time of mobilization or May 1940. If you have any examples of such items, I would be happy to include them in the collection! Please contact me via the contact form .