Beatrix of the Netherlands Athlone; Elisabeth, Princess of Erbach-Schönberg; Duke Adolf Friedrich of Mecklenburg; and Countess Allene de Kotzebue. Beatrix's middle names are the first names of her maternal grandmother, the then reigning Queen Wilhelmina, and her paternal grandmother, Armgard of Sierstorpff-Cramm. When Beatrix was one year old, in 1939, her younger sister Princess Irene was born. World War II broke out in the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 (Westfeldzug). On 13 May, the Dutch Royal Family evacuated to London, United Kingdom. One month later, Beatrix went to Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, with her mother Juliana and her sister Irene, while her father Bernhard and
HMS Princess Beatrix 14 February 1942 "Princess Beatrix" left Freetown, and returned to England for refitting, after which she was reclassified as a landing ship, infantry (medium). In April 1942 "Princess Beatrix" was selected to take part in a raid on the French coast at Dieppe. On the evening of 18 August 1942 a fleet of more than 200 ships sailed across the Channel. "Princess Beatrix" and the British ship landed men of the South Saskatchewan Regiment on "Green Beach" to the west of Dieppe at Pourville. However, the raid was not a success, and the losses were high. "Princess Beatrix" sustained slight