Book Production and Its Regulation during the German Occupation of the Netherlands
AbstractDuring the occupation of the Netherlands in the Second World War, the country’s book industry was subjected to control by a number of official bodies, both German and Dutch, in addition to which the German Sicherheitsdienst (SD) was also prone to interfering with the production and distribution of printed matter. In contrast to the sanctions imposed on the journalistic press, book production was censored preventively by a specially established reading panel called the Lectoraat. In reality, however, at least as effective an instrument of censorship was the government department responsible for allocating paper supplies. The article presents an overview of the legislation and regulations to which booksellers, writers and publishers had to adhere in the successive phases of the occupation.