Hugo Samkalden was born in the province Atjeh on the island Sumatra in the Dutch East Indies. He studied law at Leiden University where he also graduated. In 1932 Hugo Samkalden went back to the Dutch East Indies where he became Clerk of the Council of Justice. In this period he also wrote scientific articles. In 1939 he got involved in an indecency for which also homosexual officials were prosecuted. He was sentenced to one year imprisonment for having had ‘sexual contacts’. After his release he could not work anymore in the Dutch East Indies. He left for the Netherlands where he arrived on 3 May 1940. After some days the Germans came and occupyed the Netherlands. Hugo Samkalden was arrested in September 1941 because he was involved in mapping out airborne places near Haamstede.
Till July 1942 he was imprisoned in the Oranjehotel in Scheveningen and in Utrecht. Then he was deported to Mauthausen where he has died.
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For additional information see Biografisch Woordenboek van Nederland op de website van het Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis. Een korte Necrologie met foto is te vinden in het Doodenboek van het Oranjehotel op de website van het Nationaal Archief.