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In 1916, the Dutch Ministry of War commissioned a cinema owner in The Hague named Willy Mullens to make a film showing that the military were ready to defend the country's neutrality, while also boosting the people's appreciation of the armed forces. Mullens and his camera crew presented the broadest possible range of army and navy activities in meticulous detail: everything from torpedo shooting to the transportation on tiny mattresses of carrier pigeons in shockproof straitjackets. On January 9, 1917, the film premiered in Mullens's own cinema, with Queen Wilhelmina and many dignitaries in attendance. It went on to be screened widely in Dutch cinemas, with special screenings for the elderly and schoolchildren. Although the reception was mostly positive, socialists and anti-militarists protested against the film. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)
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