When a biography was proposed to Prince Bernhard, he responded: “I detest all flattery. A book like this must fit the facts or it should not be written at all.”
Published in 1962, Alden Hatch’s authorised work ‘H.R.H. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands’ only covers half of the controversial Dutch royal’s life.
Described as “an unbiased account of Europe’s most democratic prince” who rejected ultra-conservative overtures to suspend democracy in post-war Netherlands, Bernhard was actually more sympathetic to authoritarianism than suggested, especially given his hidden Nazi past.
Despite public denials until his death in 2004, the German-born Bernhard had been a member of the Nazi Party, confirmed after his original membership card was found in 2023. Joining the Brownshirts in 1933 and the SS in 1934, he officially left in 1935.
Bernhard also met Hitler in the early 1930s and offered support to increase German influence in the Netherlands. After 1935, Bernhard worked for IG Farben in Paris, the company that produced Zyklon B gas used during the Holocaust.
After marrying Princess Juliana, Bernhard joined the Dutch army and became part of the London-based Dutch resistance during WWII. Later, he was made Commander of the Dutch Armed Forces but wasn’t trusted enough to join British intelligence. He also subsequently helped found the World Wildlife Fund.
While some aspects are absent from the book, his role in the Bilderberg Group is discussed. Selected by its founder, Polish diplomat Józef Retinger, Bernhard led the secretive annual elite meeting of Atlanticists, first held at the Bilderberg Hotel in the Netherlands in 1954.
Bilderberg is often dismissed or sensationalised, but its members wield substantial power and worked to bring about the formation of the European Union.
However, Bernhard’s career was later marred by scandal when he accepted a $1.1 million bribe from Lockheed Martin, leading to the cancellation of the 1976 Bilderberg meeting and Bernhard’s resignation. His daughter, Queen Beatrix, continued her involvement with the group for decades.
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