HMS Princess Beatrix HMS Princess Beatrix HMS "Princess Beatrix" was a commando troop ship of the Royal Navy during the Second World War. Built as a civilian passenger liner in 1939 by De Schelde at Vlissingen, she was named the MS "Prinses Beatrix", after Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, and operated by Stoomvaart Maatschappij Zeeland (SMZ) (The Zealand Steamship Company) between Flushing and Harwich, along with her sister ship, MS "Koningin Emma". After fleeing to Britain after the German invasion in 1940, she was requisitioned by the British Ministry of War Transport, renamed HMS "Princess Beatrix" and converted to a troopship at Harland
Beatrix de Rijk Beatrix de Rijk Beatrix de Rijk (1883–1958) was a pioneering Dutch aviator. On receiving her pilot's licence from the Aéro-Club de France on 6 October 1911, she became the first Dutch woman pilot. Born on 24 July 1883 in Surabaya in the Dutch East Indies, de Rijk was raised in a well-to-do family. She was able to take part in a variety of activities including riding, tennis, and driving. When she was about 20, she went to Paris where she chose a well-paid occupation working as a mannequin for a fashion house. When she became interested in ballooning and flying,