If you have ever been to the Coach House of Paleis Het Loo in Apeldoorn, the Mercedes Benz 300 D Cabriolet with which Queen Wilhelmina transported herself in the 300s will have been noticed. Frans Vrijaldenhoven, an 'car man' who in his life has experienced many adventures that we can all enjoy from very close by, a few years ago some information about this Mercedes Benz XNUMX Cabriolet.
German-made
Queen Wilhelmina, who had now been relegated to the princess because of the succession, was looking for a 'new carriage' in 1953. A four-door convertible was preferred. Her preference was for a German-made automobile ... For understandable reasons - the 2e World War was only eight years behind us - very much against the will of its closest court officials. At the request of the Mercedes Benz dealer in Apeldoorn, Autobedrijf De Vries, AGAM NV, at that time importer of Mercedes Benz automobiles, contacted the Daimler-Benz AG export department in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim. To get a type of Mercedes benz 300 Convertible 'D', a four-door, four-frame convertible, for a demonstration. Such an automobile - with a price tag of NLG 31.500 - was not in stock during those years as an importer. After a while, 'Het Loo' could be driven in the Royal Domain around the Palace.
Porter
With Frits Loois, the princess's private driver, at the wheel. After the first ride, the princess asked him: "Is the machine good?", To which he answered affirmatively. Once more the princess wanted to get in at the back and then it happened ..., she hit the open rear door, which swung open no more than seventy degrees. The case would not go ahead. After being assured by the factory representative that a car would be delivered from the factory in Sindelfingen with rear doors that would actually open for the full 100 percent, the transaction was still confirmed.
With the clogs on
For many years the princess has been transported with the Mercedes Benz 300. "Come on in and keep the clogs," with these words, the princess often spontaneously invited Veluwe peasants to take a seat in her car for a relaxed chat. It was a kind of audience for her, an opportunity to stay in touch with 'her people'. Shortly before her death - at the end of 1962 - she asked Frits Loois to drive one more time with this car along a number of dear places. When they arrived at the palace again, she shook hands with her driver and said, "That was very beautiful." It was her last ride with the green convertible. After the death of Princess Wilhelmina, the car was driven to the Royal Stables in The Hague, after which the Mercedes Benz was later placed in the National Museum Paleis Het Loo, alongside, among others, the Winton of Queen Mother Emma and the completely restored Minerva van Prins. Hendrik. Derived models also appeared from the 'Adenauer', as the Mercedes Benz 300 was called in Germany, such as the Mercedes Benz 300 S 'Coupé and Cabriolet. In 1962 the curtain fell for this unique car from the 'Wirtschaftswunder' era.