Page 247 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - The Netherlands

SOUTH HOLLAND  245

u Kinderdijk
Road Map B4. @ 90 from Rotterdam
Lombardijen station; 18 from Dordrecht
Centraal Station. n Nederwaard 1
(078-6912830). 0 ∑ kinderdijk.nl
The famous 19 windmills
which were used to drain the
Alblasserwaard in the past are
situated where the Noord and
the Lek converge. New boezems
(drainage pools) and windmills,
however, were needed time and
time again in order to span the
height differences as the land
settled. The group of windmills
is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Middelharnis Lane (c.1689) by Meindert Hobbema
i Brielle Prinsehuis, the 17th-century of the 19th century, fishing
lodgings of the Admiralty of remained the most important
Road Map B4. * 16,000. @ metro
Rotterdam CS to Spijkenisse, then 103. the Maze, the dry dock and Fort source of income.
n Markt 1 (0181-475475). ( Mon; Haerlem from the 19th century. The Late Gothic cruciform
Jul & Aug: Wed. You can learn all about fire and church (15th century) stands
fire-fighting in the local National at the heart of the village.
The magnificent port of Brielle is a Brandweermuseum (fire service Outside the town hall (1639)
protected town. The 18th-century museum). It also houses the hang the wooden blocks that
fortifications are still mostly intact. tourist information office. women branded as gossips
The town, birthplace of Admiral had to carry through the town.
van Tromp, held a strategic posi- E Nationaal Brandweermuseum
tion until the 1872 opening of the Industriehaven 8. Tel 0181-314479.
Nieuwe Waterweg (new waterway). Open Apr–Oct: 10am–4pm a Goedereede
The Historisch Museum Den Briel (from 11am Sun). 7 - Road Map A4. * 1,900. @ metro
(historic museum of Brielle) depicts ∑ nationaalbrandweermuseum.nl R’dam CS to Spijkenisse, then 111
this and the famous Beggars of to Hellevoetsluis, then 104. ( Tue.
the Sea invasion in 1572 (see box).
The tourist information office p Middelharnis Goedereede was an important
is inside the museum. The Road Map B4. * 17,900. @ 436 port in the 14th and 15th
15th-century St.-Catharijnekerk, from Rotterdam Zuidplein. ( Wed. centuries. This town, where
in Brabant Gothic style, rises from Pope Adrianus VI was born,
the surrounding monuments. During the 16th century, began to decline when it began
Middelharnis became the to silt up. The early harbour
E Historisch Museum Den Briel regional port, outstripping houses are reminiscent of the
Markt 1. Tel 0181-475475. Open Goedereede. Until the end livelier days of old.
10am–5pm Tue–Sat, 1–5pm Sun.
Closed Mon, public hols. & 7
∑ historischmuseumdenbriel.nl The Beggars of the Sea
The Beggars of the Sea were a pirate fleet which consisted
of minor Dutch and Flemish nobles who had fled at the
o Hellevoetsluis beginning of the Inquisition and sailed across the North
Road Map B4. * 40,000. @ metro Sea. They plundered other ships and caused trouble in English
Rotterdam CS to Spijkenisse, then 101. and German ports. They were forced to leave England, where
n Industriehaven 8 (0181-314479). some of their ships were berthed,
( Sat. in spring 1572. Without any clear plan,
they entered Den Briel on 1 April
At the end of the 16th century, under the command of van Lumey,
this was the naval port for the which they then held “for the Prince”.
States of Holland. Fleets led by Other towns joined the Beggars of
van Tromp, de Ruyter and Piet the Sea or were forcibly occupied by
Hein left from Hellevoetsluis them. Their pursuits represented the
for their naval battles in the first steps towards Dutch independence
1600s. Within the old fortifi- from Spain and the creation of Dutch
cations, visitors are reminded Van Lumey sea power.
of the town’s naval past by the

244-245_EW_Netherlands.indd 245 16/01/17 11:54 am