Nederland: steden en dorpen

Oudeschans is the smallest fortress-village of the Netherlands. The fortress itself was built in 1593 ad the fortification was used for military purposes until 1814. The sconce changed into a common rural village and much of the military past disappeared. Until 1972, when a reconstruction of the fortress started. As a result the walls, moats and bastion are visible again. Almost twenty years later the fortification became a state protected village area. Oudeschans had and has four so called bastions: a pentagonal masonry or earthen extension of a defensive wall or embankment. On one of the bastions lies a cemetery, called the Doodenbastion (“Death Bastion”). It is situated on a bastion because the fortress itself was located in a marshy area, which is not very suitable for a cemetery. The cemetery has been put into use shortly after the construction of the fortress. The cemetery has very old tombstones and tombs from our time.

Oudewater originated around 1100 in a meander bend where the Lange Linschoten rivulet meets the Hollandse IJssel river. The origin of the name Oudewater is not known. Most likely, it is a corruption of oude (uiter)waarden (old water-meadows). It became city rights in 1265. given by the bishop of Utrecht. Oudewater suffered immensely during the Eighty-years war in the hands of the Spanish due to its recognition of William van Oranje as their rightful governor. The siege resulted in the murder of nearly the entire town’s population and the destruction of most of the medieval city. After that war - during the 16th and 17th century -Oudewater rebuilt itself and prospered. Cheese and ropes were a major industry, which cultivated hemp to create high-quality ropes used for the boats sailing to Indonesia and beyond. Cheese has remained a major industry to this day, which is why the Waag (Weigh House) in Oudewater was built at the end of the 15th century. Oudewater is well known for its Heksenwaag (Witches' scales). This Weighing house, an official town building, became famous at the height of the European witch trials of the 16th century because people accused of witchcraft were offered a fair chance to prove their innocence as opposed to many other places where the scales were rigged. Today De Waag - with a small museum - is the main attraction of Oudewater, next to other attractive monumental buildings in its historic center.

During our walk through Roermond, we came across several mansions with beautifully decorated carriage gates in the Swalmerstraat.

Schiedam was founded in 1230 when the local river the “Schie”, had a dam built on it to protect the existing polders from the North Sea. The dam brought much trade to the area, due to goods being brought to, or transported from the area, to other Dutch towns. The village quickly grew and in 1275 the village received city rights. Large parts of Schiedam were destroyed by fire in the year 1428, due to most of the buildings being made of wood. But the city was rebuilt and again, flourished. During the 1700’s the production of jenever (gin) started. Soon there were many distilleries in Schiedam. From dozens of distilleries the jenever was traded to many parts of the world and brought great wealth to the city. The gin industry gave the city its nickname 'Black Nazareth'. Schiedam is known for its historical center with picturesque canals, lined with former warehouses, distilleries and the tallest windmills in the world.

Schiedam was founded in 1230 when the local river the “Schie”, had a dam built on it to protect the existing polders from the North Sea. The dam brought much trade to the area, due to goods being brought to, or transported from the area, to other Dutch towns. The village quickly grew and in 1275 the village received city rights. Large parts of Schiedam were destroyed by fire in the year 1428, due to most of the buildings being made of wood. But the city was rebuilt and again, flourished. During the 1700’s the production of jenever (gin) started. Soon there were many distilleries in Schiedam. From dozens of distilleries the jenever was traded to many parts of the world and brought great wealth to the city. The gin industry gave the city its nickname 'Black Nazareth'. Schiedam is known for its historical center with picturesque canals, lined with former warehouses, distilleries and the tallest windmills in the world.

Sint Anna ter Muiden is the westernmost town of the Netherlands, located about 1 km west of Sluis (province of Zeeland), almost on the border with Belgium. Nowadays it has a population of about 50 people and therefore it is the second smallest city in the country. Orginally known as ‘Ter Muiden’ or ‘Mude’, named after ‘at the mouth’ (mude) of the river Zwin (‘Sint Anna’ was added in the 17th century to differentiate it from another ‘Muiden’ in the Netherlands). Before the ascent of Sluis, Mude was the main harbour of Bruges. The city came to existence around 1200 and it was granted city rights in 1242 by the counts of Flanders and became member of the Flemish Hansa. Silting of the river Zwin left ‘Mude’ landlocked and all went downhill in ‘Sint Anna ter Muiden’. Early 15th century the city was plundered by English soldiers, who only spared the church. The impressive church tower is the only remaining witness of the turbulent history of Muyden. This tower dates back to the 14th century and even survived the 80-years war between Spain and the Northern Netherlands. Most houses and the city hall along the picturesque market square are built in the 17th century. The square has a large city pump, which dates back to 1789 and is in Louis XIV-style, displaying the coat of arms of Sint Anna ter Muiden, containing a striking anchor, recalling the former maritime links of the city.

Sittard - assumed to have been founded around the year of 850 - is one of the oldest cities in the Netherlands. The Duke of Limburg is said to have granted the city its “city rights” in 1243. In 1400 Sittard became part of the Duchy of Jülich, which it remained until 1794. During the 15th - 17th centuries the city saw much conflicts and it was destroyed by multiple fires and rebuild a number of times. From 1798 to 1814 Sittard belonged to France as a part of the so called the Roer department, with Aachen as its capital. In 1814 it became part of the Netherlands, except for the years 1830 - 1839. During World War II the historic centre of Sittard was mostly spared destruction, although over 4.000 shells and rockets struck the city. Although the city of Sittard has continued to grow after the war, it has maintained its connection with its history. Many of the buildings in existence still today are indicative of the 16th and 17th centuries. Even the original city walls, built in the 13th century, are still visible in many places throughout the city. The city centre 0f Sittard has been officially designated as a protected national monument.

Sloten originated in the 13th century as a settlement near a small, stone-fortified house - called a stins , which is typical for Friesland. The house was owned by the family Van Harinxma thoe Slooten and stood at the crossing of the trading road from Bentheim to Stavoren. Sloten was first mentioned having city rights in a charter of 30 August 1426. In 1523 the little town was the last Frisian fortress to fall into the hands of the heirs of the Counts of Holland. . Sloten also held a key position in the Eighty Years' War. A Spanish plot to conquer the city by hiding men in a beer ship failed. Sloten was located on an important waterway between the city of Sneek and the (former) Zuiderzee and also to the Hanseatic cities along the river IJssel. In Sloten this waterway crossed the road from Germany to Stavoren, a large and important trading city in the middle ages. At this crossing, one could charge users a toll and exercise strategic control. Nowadays Sloten is no longer of strategic importance, but is popular with water sports enthusiasts and day-trippers. The city has retained almost all of the original ramparts and the entirety of the original structure. The fortress was designed and built by the well-known Dutch fortress builder, Menno van Coehoorn. Because of its onion shape Sloten is called Sipelstêd (onion town). Sloten has less than 800 inhabitants and is the smallest of the eleven cities in Friesland. The Frisian name for Sloten is Sleat.

Spaarndam is a small quaint village, which was was created around a dam where the river Spaarne flows into the IJ. This dam was built by count Floris V van Holland in 1285 (he was also responsible for the construction of castle Muiderslot . The oldest part of the village lies around the Westkolk . There you will also find the Kolksluis , the oldest working lock in Europe dating back to the year 1280. The village collected toll at the dam and people made their living from fishing. From 1812 to 1927, the western (oldest) part of Spaarndam was an independent municipality. Nowadays it belongs to the municipality of Haarlem. Spaarndam has always been strongly connected to water. It is also famous because of a story within the 1865 American novel, Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates . The story within the book is about a Dutch boy, "The Hero of Haarlem," who stuck his finger in a dike to prevent the town from flooding. The story became a popular legend in America. In 1950 the local tourist bureau put a statue of this character on the dam in Spaarndam (PiP5).

“De Woude” is a hamlet in the Alkmaardermeer, nowadays part of the municipality of Castricum. The village is located in the “Westwouderpolder” (commonly also called “De Woude”). The picturesque village with its wooden houses has about 160 inhabitants and can only be reached by a ferry. The Dutch Reformed church De Kemphaan is a little wooden church which was rebuilt by the villagers in 2002. The old church from the 16th century had become derelict and beyond repair, and a village house was desired by the inhabitants of “De Woude”. The church is in use for meetings, cultural activities and can be rented for weddings and parties.

Spakenburg (formally Bunschoten-Spakenburg since its fusion with Bunschoten) was a real fishing village located at the borders of the IJsselmeer (former Zuiderzee). The heart of the village still is its harbour with an active wharf and many heritage ‘botters’ (authentic fishing boats), although there is no longer commercial fishing done from this area. These smacks are now used for sailing trips. Spakenburg is one of he few villages in the Netherlands where mostly elderly women still wear traditional costumes.

In the past the village of Twisk was a linear settlement, but since the end of the 20th century there are also side roads with new buildings. The village has just more than 1.000 inhabitants. Twisk is a conservation village - with fifty listed buildings - and has two churches, one of which is a late Gothic church and many old farmhouses. It even has one of the highest concentrations of so called stolpboerderijen , a kind of farmhouses typical for this part of the Netherlands. These ‘pyramids of the polder’ had their hay barns in the center of the house ; box beds were built beside them, as it was nice and warm. The village was mentioned in 1245 as Twisca and in 1639 as Twiscke . The name of the village is derived from the old Frisian twisca , which means "between". Twisk must have been a hamlet on a road between two other villages. Today Twisk is a combination of lovingly restored farms and houses; some of the them date from the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. When visiting the picture-postcard village of Twisk, it feels if you are taking back a step in time.

Vlieland is one of the so called Waddeneilanden (West Frisian Islands), located between Texel and Terschelling. The island was permanently separated from the mainland during St. Lucia's flood in 1287. The name Vlieland is probably derived from "Insula Fle", which means “the island near the Flevostroom”, which was the estuary of the river IJssel in medieval times. Vlieland used to consist of two villages: West-Vlieland and Oost-Vlieland. Before the latter became of any importance, West-Vlieland (Westeynde) was already a prosperous village. Storm tides in 1717 and 1727 caused the collapse of the village. In 1736, the last houses were evacuated. Oost-Vlieland was is the only remaining village on the island. Because of its cultural-historical value, Oost-Vlieland has had the status of a protected village sight since 1971, with the Dorpsstraat (main image and PiP1) as its most important street. It has 39 buildings that have been declared national monuments. The oldest house on Vlieland is the building in which museum Tromp's Huys is located. This building dates back to 1575. Without doubt, one of the most famous (and important) inhabitants of Vlieland was Willem de Vlamingh: a sea captain who explored the central west coast of Australia in the late 17th century. This explorer is honoured with a statue on the Havenplein in Oost-Vlieland (PiP2 and 3). The island of Vlieland has a surface area of only 39 square km and therefore is the smallest inhabited Waddeneiland of the Netherlands. With about 1.150 inhabitants - about 30 inhabitants per km² - Vlieland is the second least populated municipality in the Netherlands.

Statue of Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter was unveiled by King William II on 25 August 1841. The cast iron statue was designed by sculptor Louis Royer. He based the statue on a painting by Ferdinand Bol. In 1894 the statue was give its current location on the ‘Keizersbolwerk’, where it is overlooking the mouth of the river Scheldt. Since 1905 the statue is flanked by two cannons recovered from the Sea of Messina. After a massive restoration the statue was unveiled again on 5 July 2011. Michiel de Ruyter - the Netherland’s best known admiral - was born in Vlissingen (Flushing) on 24 March 1607. He went to sea as a young boy and would rise from cabin boy lieutenant admiral general, after he had been a mate on a whaler and worked for the Lampsins mercantile house in Vlissingen. During the second half of the 17th century the Dutch Republic waged wars to protect the trade. These wars were mainly fought at sea. In the period 1666 - 1676 De Ruyter showed his skills as a commander-in-chief. He died in harness 29 April 1676 in a battle with the French in the Sea of Messina. His remains were interred in the ‘Nieuwe Kerk’ in Amsterdam. (For more info about De Ruyter: nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michiel_de_Ruyter)

Panorama of Zaandijk, seen from the Zaanse Schans Zaandijk is one of the most beautiful villages in the Zaan region. It is located on the banks of the river Zaan, opposite the famous Zaanse Schans . The village has a number of working windmills, but is known for its typical green-painted wooden houses, which are mainly located along the Lagedijk (main image) and in the vicinity Domineestuin (PiPs). The history of Zaandijk goes back to the year 1494 when "Hendrik Pietersz" got a permit to build a house on the lage dijk (low dike) along the Zaan. In 1570 the town consisted of 19 houses. These dwellings were burned by the Spaniards in 1572, during the Eighty Years' War. Zaandijk was an independent municipality until 1974, when it became a part of Zaanstad.

Zaanstad is ‘just’ a municipality excisting of seven towns and villages - Assendelft, Koog aan de Zaan, Krommenie, Westzaan, Wormerveer, Zaandam, Zaandijk - with a population of about 150.000 inhabitants. In 1974 this villages and towns were merged into one new municipality. In 2012 Zaanstad became a new town hall, located on the Stadhuisplein , next to the railway station of Zaandam. The town hall was designed as a sequence of several large Zaan houses, in which the characteristics of the local architecture were applied in a new way. On the short side of the building, the council chamber - above the main entrance - has different dormer windows, decorated with the coats of arms of the municipalities that have merged into Zaanstad. The town hall was designed by architect Sjoerd Soeters. The town hall is located nearby the new Intell Hotel .

I had heard about it and saw a lot of pictures of the Inntel Hotel in Zaandam, but never seen it myself. I have to say it is one of the most remarkable (modern) buildings in my country. The very unusual building is located in the new centre of Zaandam. The external walls look like a lot of small houses, all piled up on top of each other. This spectacular design reflects the traditional architecture of the Zaan region with its cozy wooden houses. It seems that there are about seventy house fronts, each one on top of another. The walls are painted in several so called “Zaan-green” colours. Just one house has a blue colour, referring to “The Blue House”, a work by Claude Monet, which he painted in Zaandam in 1871 The hotel - opened in 2010 - was built as part of the so called “Inverdan project”, which started in 2003. The aim of the project was to restructure the centre of Zaandam. This traditional Zaan architecture is also found in other “Inverdan buildings” - like the new townhall of Zaanstad .

The Zaanse Schans is a historic neighbourhood in the Zaanstad municipality, which was established by relocating wooden buildings and industrial mills from the Zaan district. To preserve as much as possible original of these timber buildings, in 1949 a special neighbourhood was set up to relocate the houses. From the middle of the 20th century the plans were elaborated. From 1963 many wooden buildings from the Zaanstreek were moved to the Kalverpolder , where the Zaanse Schans was created. Although set up as a 'normal' residential neighbourhood, the area attracted more and more tourists. Between 1970 and 1974, the plan was expanded to include historic buildings and several replicas suitable for catering and tourism. Some of the buildings are now housing museums, small craft businesses and shops. In 1976, the Zaanse Schans became a tourist destination. Nowadays, it is one of the most visited tourist places in the Netherlands with more than two million visitors per year. The Zaanse Schans comprises approx. 30 inhabited houses, 15 commercial buildings/shops and 12 windmills. The neighbourhood has about 75 inhabitants. In 2010 the Zaanse Schans was designated as a protected village sight. The neighbourhood was named after the sconce, which “Diederik Sonoy”, governor in the service of “Willem van Oranje”, had built in the Eighty Years’ War to stop the Spanish troops.