Raymond Westerling
| Raymond Westerling | |
|---|---|
Raymond Westerling in 1948
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| Nickname(s) | The Turk |
| Born |
31 August 1919 Istanbul, Ottoman Empire (now Turkey) |
| Died | 26 November 1987 (aged 68) Purmerend, Netherlands |
| Allegiance | Netherlands |
| Service/branch | Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) |
| Years of service | 1941–1950 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Commands held | Korps Speciale Troepen (KST) |
| Battles/wars |
Indonesian War of Independence APRA coup Events |
Raymond Pierre Paul Westerling (31 August 1919 – 26 November 1987), nicknamed the Turk, was a Dutch military officer of the KNIL (Royal Netherlands East Indies Army). He waged a massacre in Sulawesi during the Indonesian National Revolution after World War II. He was also responsible for a coup attempt against the Indonesian government in January 1950, a month after the official transfer of sovereignty. Both actions were denounced as war crimes by the Indonesian authorities.
Westerling, born in 1919 in Istanbul, was the son of a Greek mother and a Dutch antique dealer whose family had lived there for three generations. He grew up speaking Greek, Turkish, French and English. In his memoirs he wrote, "One of the few Western European languages that I didn’t speak a word of was my 'mother tongue': Dutch". When the Second World War engulfed Europe in 1941, he went to the Dutch consulate in Istanbul and enlisted in the Dutch army, much to his father’s dismay.
Westerling received his military instruction under the British. In July 1942, he completed his commando training from the Commando Basic Training Center in Achnacarry, Scotland under "Dangerous Dan", a.k.a. William E. Fairbairn. After his promotion to corporal, he became the instructor for "Unarmed Combat" and "Silent Killing" with No. 2 Dutch Troop, 10th Inter-Allied Commando. Within less than a year, Westerling became the instructor for the entire 10th Commando and also instructed "Toughness Training". At his request he left the British Commando staff position and, on December 1943, joined his old No. 2 Dutch Troop in India for Operation Burma. In Ceylon he underwent jungle training, a valuable asset for future assignments. To his disappointment, Westerling was never sent to the front line.
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