Talk:HNLMS Jacob van Heemskerck (1939)

The launch photo misdated?
The ship was launched 16 September 1939, but the photo of the launch has description stating it is from 10 May 1940. The ceremony and the gathered crowd does not fit the circumstances of the first day of surprise invasion of their country... It is accepted that the ship made a successful run for Britain early after the invasion started and that would not be possible with the state it was in when this photo was taken. Also for example this source describes situation on the the fateful 10 May 1940 for the ship as already moored: "War with Germany breaks out early this morning. The Jacob van Heemskerck is still uncompleted moored at her dockyard, but fortunately has her propulsion system been installed and tested. During the day, as much equipment as possible is brought aboard, including 6 20 mm machineguns. On this day, the ship is prematurely commissioned by her executive officer, Lt Cdr A. van Foreest..." 2A02:8308:109:8000:C060:2325:63CA:E807 (talk) 20:51, 8 January 2024 (UTC)