Herdenkingsprogramma 14 mei

Rotterdam commemorates the German bombing of 1940 and the subsequent fire that destroyed the heart of the city. Under the theme The Face of Memory, the focus shifts from stones to people: from the physical destruction to the lives that were changed forever.

The program consists of a commemoration at the monument on Statenweg, an interfaith service in the Laurenskerk and a ceremony at the statue 'The destroyed city' on Plein 1940. Students recite poems, wreaths are laid and bells ring throughout the city - as a symbol of the duration of the bombing and its lasting echo in the collective memory.