Camouflage is a vital strategy in warfare—whether on land, at sea, or in the air. During the First and Second World Wars, many Allied ships—both merchant vessels and warships—were painted in dazzling patterns of shapes and colours to confuse the enemy. But when a Dutch minesweeper found itself behind enemy lines without such camouflage, it had to improvise.
In 1941, Japanese forces advanced toward the islands of Indonesia—then a Dutch colony known as the Dutch East Indies—as part of a broader effort to seize control of Southeast Asia. After the successful invasion of the Philippines, they captured bases in eastern Borneo and northern Celebes. Using these as launch points for air and naval operations, a convoy of Japanese destroyers and cruisers steamed southward through the Makassar Strait and into the Molucca Sea, heading for Indonesia. Opposing the invasion was a small Allied fleet composed of Dutch, American, British, and Australian warships, many of them dating back to World War I.
Former Dutch minesweeper Abraham Crijnssen.
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