KNIL soldier Marcus Hattu posthumously awarded Order of Orange-Nassau

KNIL soldier Marcus Hattu was posthumously awarded the Honorary Decoration for Order and Peace on Wednesday, October 7. During a ceremony at the Moluccan monument in Nuis, Mayor Ard van der Tuuk presented the military distinction to Hattu’s eldest son, Justus Hattu, in the presence of other relatives.

The award follows extensive historical research conducted by Hattu’s granddaughter, who reconstructed his military career with assistance from a KNIL expert and the Netherlands Veterans Institute. The investigation was prompted by the municipality of Westerkwartier’s decision to grant protected status to the graves of first-generation KNIL soldiers and their spouses in Nuis and Marum.

Hattu had rarely spoken about his military service and experiences during his lifetime. His granddaughter noted that the research aims to provide understanding of their family history rather than reopening old wounds, and she is currently developing a book based on her findings. The decoration is intended for soldiers who served in the former Dutch East Indies between 1945 and 1951.