De Haagse Dierentuin tussen 1920 en 1942 in kleur! The Hague Zoo between 1920 and 1942 in color!

Interesting footage of The Hague's Zoo in the Netherland during and before WW-II. This Zoo opened its doors to the public as early as 1863 and remained open until 1943.
The main building remained in existence until 1966 when it was demolished to make place for the Provinciehuis. A true act of cruelty and a totally unnecessary destruction of the Hagues heritage by the city council.

The Zoo did not house a huge collection of animals but nevertheless was very popular in The Hague and its surroundings. There were lions, tigers, bears, elephants, monkeys, seals, deer and a large variety of birds, including many pelicans as can be seen in this film. Elephant Betsy was one of its star attractions. Frequently this elephant would steal hats from the Zoo's visitors.

A very characteristic feature of the Zoo was the main building that was built in a Morish palace style. Hardly any film footage exists of this building and the 4 seconds of it at the beginning of the film is therefore rare.
The main theater inside the building was used for all sorts of gatherings, including exhibitions, music performances, exams, parties etc. During WW-II the building was used by the Germans for ralleys and the recruitment of young men who would serve at the various fronts.
Annually many funfairs were held at the Zoo.

Personally I remember the octagonal annex to the main hall as a child when Sint Nicolaas parties were held there by the Dutch Navy's civil servants society where my father worked. He was one of the organizers.

The first part of the film is from the 1940s, the second part (starting with the penguins) is from the 1920s.

The original B&W film fragments have been motion-stabilized, speed-corrected, enhanced, restored and colorized by means of Artificial Intelligence video software.

Source: Beeld en Geluid (Dutch Online historic film archive).
Music: Various.

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