Schie

Last updated
Schie
Delftse Schie, Delfshavense Schie, Rotterdamse Schie, Schiedamse Schie
Delftse Schie dans Overschie.jpg
Delftse Schie in Overschie, the Rotterdamse Schie is on the right, in front of the building, and the Schiedamse Schie is behind the photograph
4schieen.jpg
Schematic map of the 4 Schies:
  1. Delftse Schie
  2. Schiedamse Schie
  3. Delfshavense Schie
  4. Rotterdamse Schie
Location
Country Netherlands
Province South Holland
Physical characteristics
Source Vliet
  location Delft
  coordinates 52°00′20″N4°21′40″E / 52.00556°N 4.36111°E / 52.00556; 4.36111
Mouth Nieuwe Maas
  location
Delfshaven
  coordinates
51°54′23″N4°27′50″E / 51.90639°N 4.46389°E / 51.90639; 4.46389 Coordinates: 51°54′23″N4°27′50″E / 51.90639°N 4.46389°E / 51.90639; 4.46389
Length14 km (8.7 mi)from Delft to mouth at Delfshaven

Schie (Dutch pronunciation: [sxi] ) the name for four waterways in the area of Overschie, South Holland, the Netherlands. There are the Delftse Schie, the Delfshavense Schie, the Rotterdamse Schie and the Schiedamse Schie. The existence of these four streams is the result of medieval rivalry among the cities of Delft, Rotterdam, and Schiedam for toll rights.

Contents

History

Overschie (foreground), Rotterdam (top left), and Delfshaven (top right). Schiedam would be located to the right out of view. (Image from 1512.) Delfshaven, Overschie en Schiebroek.jpg
Overschie (foreground), Rotterdam (top left), and Delfshaven (top right). Schiedam would be located to the right out of view. (Image from 1512.)

The original Schie was a swampy creek in the area of Schiebroek that flowed into the former Merwede at the current town of Overschie. The city of Delft formed along this stream and gave it the name Delf, meaning "dig", indicating that this stream was at least partially dug out. The first excavations may have taken place back in Roman times, when the nearby Corbulo Canal also was dug.

In 1150, the Schielands High Seawall was built along the Merwede. When the outlying floodplains were made into polders afterwards, the Schie was extended southward and a dam was built at the new mouth. The settlement that formed there was named Schiedam, and became an important city since it levied toll on the ships that sailed on the Schie to Delft and beyond.

In 1280, the Poldervaart was built to drain the eastern amts of Delfland. This canal had a direct connection to the Merwede outside Schiedam. Political rivalry among the various landlords and the cities of Schiedam, Delft, and Rotterdam led to the construction of a new canal between Overschie and Rotterdam in 1343, thereby splitting the Schie at Overschie in the Rotterdamse Schie and the original Schiedamse Schie. Schiedam's control over shipping on the Schie was now lost.

In 1389, the city of Delft received permission from Duke Albert I, Count of Holland, to dig its own canal to the Merwede. The existing section from Delft to Overshie was widened, and became known as the Delftse Schie. From there a new canal was dug to the Merwede. At its mouth, Delft built its own new harbour: Delfshaven. This section was named the Delfshavense Schie.

Since 1893, the Delftse Schie, together with the Vliet, became part of the Rhine-Schie Canal that extends to Leiden.

20th century

In 1903, a dike broke near Kandelaar, nearly draining the entire Schie into the low-lying surrounding fields.

In 1933, the Coolhaven (Cool harbor) was completed that provided a new and better connection between the Delfshavense Schie and the Nieuwe Maas, reducing the shipping on the other Schie canals.

After the bombardment of Rotterdam at the beginning of World War II, the rubble of the ruined city was used to backfill the Rotterdamse Schie. Only a small section at Overschie remains of the Rotterdamse Schie.

In 1989, the Delftse Schie between Delft and Rotterdam was transferred from municipal to provincial jurisdiction.

Current situation

The Delfshavense Schie is now the main shipping connection between the Delftse Schie and Nieuwe Maas. Furthermore, it is also used for water management. On the other hand, the Rotterdamse Schie is mostly infilled and the Schiedamse Schie is little used for boating.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delft</span> City and municipality in South Holland, Netherlands

Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam, to the southeast, and The Hague, to the northwest. Together with them, it is part of both the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area and the Randstad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meuse</span> River in western Europe

The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of 925 km.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhine</span> Major river in Western Europe

The Rhine is one of the major European rivers. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein, Swiss-Austrian, Swiss-German borders. After that the Rhine defines much of the Franco-German border, after which it flows in a mostly northerly direction through the German Rhineland. Finally in Germany the Rhine turns into a predominantly westerly direction and flows into the Netherlands where it eventually empties into the North Sea. It digs an area of 9,973 sq km and was named after Celtic Rēnos. There are also 2 German states that were named after the river itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rotterdam</span> City in South Holland, Netherlands

Rotterdam is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the "New Meuse" inland shipping channel, dug to connect to the Meuse first, but now to the Rhine instead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schiedam</span> City and Municipality in South Holland, Netherlands

Schiedam is a city and municipality in the west of the Netherlands. It is located in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area, west of Rotterdam, east of Vlaardingen, and south of Delft. In the south the city is connected with the village of Pernis by the Beneluxtunnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beneden Merwede</span>

The Beneden Merwede is a stretch of river in the Netherlands, mainly fed by the river Rhine. It starts as the continuation of the Boven Merwede after the branching-off of the Nieuwe Merwede ship canal. It flows from Hardinxveld-Giessendam to Dordrecht, where it splits into the Noord and Oude Maas rivers. Its length is 14.8 km. The river is part of the main shipping route between the port of Rotterdam and the industrial region of the Ruhr, Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Europoort</span> Area of the Port of Rotterdam

Europoort is an area of the Port of Rotterdam and the adjoining industrial area in the Netherlands. Being situated at Southside of the mouth of the rivers Rhine and Meuse with the hinterland consisting of the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and partly France, Europoort is one of the world's busiest ports and considered a major entry to Europe. The port handled 12 million containers in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port of Rotterdam</span> Seaport in the Netherlands

The Port of Rotterdam is the largest seaport in Europe, and the world's largest seaport outside of East Asia, located in and near the city of Rotterdam, in the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. From 1962 until 2004, it was the world's busiest port by annual cargo tonnage. It was overtaken first in 2004 by the port of Singapore, and since then by Shanghai and other very large Chinese seaports. In 2020, Rotterdam was the world's tenth-largest container port in terms of twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) handled. In 2017, Rotterdam was also the world's tenth-largest cargo port in terms of annual cargo tonnage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merwede</span>

The Merwede is the name of several connected stretches of river in the Netherlands, between the cities of Woudrichem, Dordrecht and Papendrecht. The river is part of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and is mostly fed by the river Rhine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta</span> Delta formed by 3 rivers in the Netherlands

The Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta is a river delta in the Netherlands formed by the confluence of the Rhine, the Meuse and the Scheldt rivers. In some cases, the Scheldt delta is considered a separate delta to the Rhine–Meuse delta. The result is a multitude of islands, branches and branch names that may at first sight look bewildering, especially as a waterway that appears to be one continuous stream may change names as many as seven times, e.g. Rhine → Bijlands Kanaal → Pannerdens Kanaal → Nederrijn → Lek → Nieuwe Maas → Het Scheur → Nieuwe Waterweg. Since the Rhine contributes most of the water, the shorter term Rhine Delta is commonly used. However, this name is also used for the delta where the Alpine Rhine flows into Lake Constance, so it is clearer to call the larger one Rhine–Meuse delta, or even Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, as the Scheldt ends in the same delta. By some calculations, the delta covers 25,347 km2 (9,787 sq mi), making it the largest in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rotterdam Centraal station</span> Railway station in Rotterdam, Netherlands

Rotterdam Centraal railway station is the main railway station of the city Rotterdam in South Holland, Netherlands. The station received an average of 112,000 passengers daily in 2019. The current station building, located at Station Square, was officially opened in March 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nieuwe Maas</span> River in South Holland, the Netherlands

The Nieuwe Maas is a distributary of the Rhine River, and a former distributary of the Maas River, in the Dutch province of South Holland. It runs from the confluence of the rivers Noord and Lek, and flows west through Rotterdam. It ends west of the city where it meets the Oude Maas, near Vlaardingen, to form Het Scheur. After a few miles, the Scheur continues as the artificial Nieuwe Waterweg. The total length of the Nieuwe Maas is approximately 24 kilometres (15 mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rotte (river)</span>

The Rotte is a river in the Rhine-Maas-delta in the Netherlands. The Rotte is the eponym of the city of Rotterdam: the city was founded in the 13th century when a dam was built along the river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vliet (canal)</span> Canal in South Holland province, Netherlands

The Vliet is a canal in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. It starts at the Oude Rijn at Leiden and joins the Delfshavense Schie canal at Delft. Places along its banks include Voorschoten, Leidschendam, Voorburg, The Hague and Rijswijk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trams in Rotterdam</span>

The Rotterdam tramway network is a key element of the overall public transport arrangements in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coolsingel</span>

Coolsingel is a street in central Rotterdam. It is located in the Cool district. The street leads from the Hofplein to the Churchillplein. Plans were announced in 2016 to reduce traffic congestion on the street. The redevelopment is expected to cost 47 million euros and to be finished by 2020. In 2021 the renovation was finished giving cyclists and pedestrians more space. Car traffic was reduced from 4 lanes to 2 lanes.

The following is a timeline of the history of the municipality of Rotterdam, Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fahid Minhas</span> Dutch politician

Fahid Bashir Minhas is a Dutch politician of the conservative liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). He worked as a real estate developer and became a member of the Schiedam municipal council in 2014. He then served as alderman in the same city between 2018 and 2021 and, while in that position, encouraged the construction of housing. Minhas was elected to the House of Representatives in the 2021 general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Te Riviere Castle</span>

Te Riviere Castle is a ruinous castle located in Schiedam, Netherlands.