One of the main roads into Willemstad has a sad reminder of part of the town's history.
In 1940, a ship that was carrying 1,200 Belgian prisoners of war sailed close to the Netherlands town. It hit a mine, split into two pieces, and sank into the ocean. More than 100 Belgians died in the incident, while others were taken in by those in Willemstad.
So in 1950, when life in this part of the world had settled down, Willemstad dedicated a new cemetery for the Belgian victims. There are 159 of them in a common graves, which is marked by the monument shown here. Not all of them were on the ship; a few other soldiers' bodies were buried here as well.
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