Netherlands

This page contains pictures and other items about the Netherlands. It shows some of my favourite spots.

Alblasserwaard, 17 April 2005

17 April 2005

ALBLASSERWAARD

The Alblasserwaard is a rural area of great beauty. It's just to the north of Papendrecht, hemmed in between two of Holland's great rivers: to the north there is the River Lek, and to the south the River Merwede.

It's an old polder landscape with a number of villages, notably Bleskensgraaf, Oud Alblas and Molenaarsgraaf. In the north-west corner of the Alblasserwaard we find the famous Kinderdijk, with a collection of approximately 20 windmills attracting visitors from all over the world.

It took six of these photos along the N214 road on Sunday 17 April 2005, when I was on my way home coming from Utrecht. The weather just happened to be quite nice, after a very rainy Saturday...

17 April 2005

22 April 2005

I shot the other photos on Friday 22 April, just a few miles from Papendrecht. It is an area called the "Papendrechtse Bos". It was around 8 pm and therefore dusk. The light was great...

There were plenty of sheep and lambs in the fields. The moon was clearly visible. There wasn't anyone there but Linda and myself.

22 April 2005

MAP OF THE NETHERLANDS

The map below (which you can enlarge by clicking it) shows The Netherlands. It's just a small country: about the size of Massachusetts and Connecticut put together. It does have almost 17 million inhabitants, however, which makes it a pretty crowded place. The North Sea (with England beyond) is to the west, Germany lies to the east, and Belgium is our southern neighbour. Papendrecht isn't on this map (you can find a more detailed map on the Papendrecht page), but it's right on the River Merwede and just north of Dordrecht, which are.

Approximately 20 km (12 miles) west of Utrecht lies Woerden, where I grew up. It's just inside the province of Utrecht. My parents are still living there.

I was born in Nijmegen, which is in the east, near the German border. Nijmegen is the oldest city of The Netherlands: it was granted this status by the Roman Emperor Trajan in the first century.

Europe

The Netherlands

North Sea Coastline

This picture was taken from a Shuttle in orbit

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AMERSFOORT

Amersfoort is a medieval town about 20 kilometres east of Utrecht. My grandparents used to live in Amersfoort and Linda was born there. Somehow it's always played some kind of role in my life, even though I've never lived there myself.

The first time the name Amersfoort was documented is 1028, when it was probably not much more than a collection of farms. Its development really started when the Bishop of Utrecht built a fortified farm there. In 1259 Amersfoort was granted a charter by the then Bishop of Utrecht, Hendrik van Vianden.

The first town wall was built by the end of the 13th century, and this had to be extended and a new wall had to be built in 1380. Some of the gateways built in 1380 are still there to be seen. amersfoort became a thriving medieval town with one of the highest church towers in the Netherlands. Its construction was started in 1444.

The famous painter Piet Mondriaan was born in Amersfoort on 7 March, 1872. There is a Mondriaan Museum in Amersfoort today.

Visit The Mondriaanhuis Website

Click here for Amersfoort Tourist Information

Amersfoort

Amersfoort canal

Amersfoort

Delft Town Hall in Market Square

DELFT

Delft is between Rotterdam and The Hague. Its name derives from its first canal, the Delf, which was probably dug around the year 1100. This canal is nowadays called Oude Delft and still runs through the town, parallel to the railway. Around 1200 Delft was first mentioned as a town in contemporary documents. In the middle of the 13th century the Count of Holland, Willem II, granted Delft its town rights and therefore it got an important position in the Staten van Holland, the medieval government. In the same period the construction of the Oude Kerk (old church) was started; it was originally called Bartholomeuskerk. In the 14th century the Delfshavense Schie canal was dug to give Delft access to the Maas River and its own seaport. Around the port on the banks of the Maas the Delfshaven (port of Delft) settlement arose. It is so distant from Delft that it is now a Rotterdam district. But in the Middle Ages the construction of Delfshaven was a considerable extension of the transport- and trade opportunities, and Delft could develop itself further into a trade centre. Important products were butter, textile, carpets and Delft beer. As a result of the town’s growth the need for a second church arose and the construction of the Nieuwe Kerk (new church) was started. For all its growth and prosperity the town also had to suffer some serious disasters. In the 16th century, when houses were still built of wood, a third of the town was burned down.

In the 16th century Delft joined the revolt of the Dutch towns against the King of Spain. Prince William of Orange took his residence in the Prinsenhof (prince’s court), a former convent, to lead the revolt. The battle for independence was to last eighty years, so William was never able to enjoy the victory. In 1584 he was assassinated at the Prinsenhof by order of the Spanish King Philip II. The bullet holes are still visible on the spot where he fell. William of Orange was buried in the Nieuwe Kerk, a tradition that still is followed by the Dutch royal house.

In the 17th century the Golden Age began, a relatively peaceful period, in which the Dutch towns were able to increase their trading activities even more. This was also true for Delft where the VOC (United East-India Company) had one of its six establishments, later followed by the West-India Company. The VOC imported luxury products such as tea, spices, porcelain and silk from Asia. In this period a product was invented that was to make Delft world-famous: Delft pottery inspired by Spanish earthenware and Chinese porcelain. Dozens of Delftware factories arose on the sites of former beer breweries. Nowadays Delft blue is still made by hand in one remaining factory.

In the mid-17th century once again Delft was hit by a large disaster. An enormous explosion of the Kruithuis, a gunpowder storage, made many victims and devastated a large part of the town. Thanks to its increasing prosperity Delft was able to repair the damage. Meanwhile it had become normal to construct houses of stone, rather than wood, and as a result most of the present historical buildings date from this period. The new Kruithuis was built along the Schie, far away from the town and it still exists. In this rich period the arts and sciences prospered as well. The Delft painters Johannes Vermeer, Jan Steen and Pieter the Hoogh became world-famous. Hugo de Groot became an internationally well-known magistrate and Antonie van Leeuwenhoek improved the primitive microscope in such a way that scientists were able to put it to use.

Nieuwe Kerk

Oude Kerk

The photos of Delft are not my own, I'm afraid. With Linda I went to Delft on 22 January 2005, which was a nice sunny day. However, I hadn't brought my camera. I think I'll be going back this summer to take some pictures of my own!

One reason why Delft is special is that my favourite 17th century painter, Johannes (Jan) Vermeer, lived there. He was born in 1632 and died in 1675 having spent all his life in Delft. Unfortunately, neither his birthplace nor the home where worked remain.

Below are three of Vermeer's most famous paintings.

The Little Street

Girl with the Pearl Earring

View of Delft

From my Links page, go to the Web Gallery of European Art, which shows most of Vermeer's paintings

NIJMEGEN

River Waal at Nijmegen

Nijmegen is the oldest city of the Netherlands. It was granted this status by the Roman emperor Trajan in the 1st century. The Valkhof Museum has a large number of Roman artefacts on display.

The town centre was heavily damaged on 22nd February 1944, when American bomber pilots mistook it for a German town and bombed it. My own dad only just survived the ordeal.

RIVER WAAL AT ZALTBOMMEL

Linda and I went to Den Bosch and Zaltbommel on Saturday 6 August 2005. The weather was changeable, with bright, sunny spells and heavy showers. I was standing on the banks of the River Waal in the early evening as I saw these storm clouds coming our way. A few minutes later, another shower pelted us.

Zaltbommel Storm Clouds

The River Waal is an extension of the Rhine. In its turn, it becomes the River Merwede further on downstream, which is the river that Papendrecht is on.

It is one of Europe's busiest waterways, linking Rotterdam to the Ruhr area in Germany, and French industrial areas and Switzerland beyond.

At Zaltbommel, there is a new bridge, carrying the A2 motorway from Den Bosch to Utrecht.

River Waal Shipping