July 6, 2007, Amsterdam – A peaceful and almost holy atmosphere descended on the red light district of Amsterdam on Saturday 30 June as the funeral procession of Lieut-Colonel Alida M. Bosshardt OF passed through. Church bells rang and people applauded as ‘Major Bosshardt’, as she was known, made her last visit to the district where she had worked for almost 50 years.
The procession, headed by police on horseback in gala uniform and members of the Amsterdam West Corps Band, stopped at places where the most famous Salvation Army officer in The Netherlands had worked and lived. At Dam Square thousands of people gathered to witness this testimony of faith.
The whole country mourned when it was announced that ‘Major Bosshardt’ had been promoted to Glory on 25 June. Salvationists who had known her personally were invited to talk on Dutch television about the impact she had on their lives. The media wrote and spoke about the death of a great hero.
Even Her Majesty Queen Beatrix expressed her feelings and wrote about the loss of this remarkable woman. As a princess she had distributed The War Cry in bars and visited prostitutes and poor families in the red light district with Major Bosshardt.
Madame Tussaud’s also joined in, displaying in its window the wax figure of Lieut-Colonel Bosshardt, holding a Bible and with a Salvation Army flag draped behind. Thousands of tourists saw this unusual scene.
For two days people could say farewell to the colonel in the hall of the Salvation Army Goodwill Corps in central Amsterdam. More than 3,500 people passed the coffin – on top of which were the colonel’s Bible and bonnet – to pay their last respects, amongst them many young people, who spoke about her as ‘an example for us all’. At the time of writing, at least 15,000 people have signed the register for condolences on the Internet.
The Amsterdam Staff Band marched in front and the Amsterdam Staff Songsters marched behind the hearse from the Amsterdam East Corps to the Koningskerk (The King’s Church) where the remembrance service was held. The Prime Minister of The Netherlands, Jan Peter Balkenende, and the Mayor of Amsterdam, Job Cohen, were in the congregation. Many TV personalities and well-known Dutchmen attended the service and more than one million viewers watched the funeral live on television.
The Mayor called the colonel ‘The Angel of Amsterdam’ and Commissioner Wim van der Harst, on his last day as leader of The Salvation Army’s Netherlands and Czech Republic Territory, saluted ‘this true and faithful soldier of God, whose weapon was the love of Christ and armour was her Salvation Army uniform’. He then read a message from General Shaw Clifton (see below for the General’s message in full).
Commissioner Reinder Schurink led the service in the church and at the cemetery. He said Alida Bosshardt had followed in Jesus’ footsteps.
From the church all present marched to the Salvation Army grave, where the colonel’s body was laid to rest.
Lieut-Colonel Bosshardt’s slogan was: ‘To serve God is to serve people and to serve people is to serve God.’ Even through her death Lieut-Colonel Alida Margaretha Bosshardt was able to touch the hearts of thousands of people who applauded her in the streets or who watched the funeral service on television. ‘If there were more people like you,’ wrote one person on the condolences web site, ‘the world would be a better place.’
Report by Ruud Tinga