Wolfheze

Geschiedenis

Wolfheze is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is located in the municipality of Renkum, 10 km northwest of the city of Arnhem.HistoryWolfheze has had a train station on the railway line between Utrecht and Arnhem since 1845. In 1906 a charitable institution for the care of the mentally ill (Dutch: Vereniging tot Christelijke verzorging van geestes- en zenuwzieken) purchased a large woods on the south side of the train line on which to build a care center. In 1911 a center for the blind purchased a tract of land on the north side. During the first World War German prisoners of war were camped nearby. It has about 1500 inhabitants.Mental health facilityThe Western part of the village is still a revalidation centre for the mentally ill, called Pro Persona today. The center has a small museum with historical artifacts illustrating the history of the care for the mentally ill in Wolfheze. The center was bombed by mistake in World War II and the hospital needed to be evacuated, an operation that resulted in several deaths among the weaker patients.Operation Market GardenWolfheze is also one of the many places where fighting in World War II took place, and an Airborne monument is situated there to commemorate Polish and British participants in Operation Market Garden.