Gemeenlandshuis van Rijnland

Last updated April 03, 2019

The Gemeenlandshuis van Rijnland on the Breestraat in Leiden is the oldest Gemeenlandshuis of the Netherlands that kept its function until the current century. Currently, it is still in use by the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland, but only for meetings and special occasions. Their day-to-day seat of water management is housed today on the Archimedesweg in Leiden.

Leiden is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden had a population of 123,856 in August 2017, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration with its suburbs Oegstgeest, Leiderdorp, Voorschoten and Zoeterwoude with 206,647 inhabitants. The Netherlands Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) further includes Katwijk in the agglomeration which makes the total population of the Leiden urban agglomeration 270,879, and in the larger Leiden urban area also Teylingen, Noordwijk, and Noordwijkerhout are included with in total 348,868 inhabitants. Leiden is located on the Oude Rijn, at a distance of some 20 kilometres from The Hague to its south and some 40 km (25 mi) from Amsterdam to its north. The recreational area of the Kaag Lakes (Kagerplassen) lies just to the northeast of Leiden.

Gemeenlandshuis Dutch water board meeting house

A Gemeenlandshuis, or Waterschapshuis is a building that is the headquarters of one of the Waterboards of the Netherlands.

The Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland is the oldest water board of the Netherlands, having received its first commission to protect the land from flooding back in 1248 from William II of Holland. It conducts water control activities in the general area known as Rijnland. The Netherlands has 21 Waterboards or Waterschappen acting independently from the National government administration to manage the continuing Dutch struggle against water.

History

The first steps towards a formal method of dike management in Leiden were taken according to Ortelius in Brittenburg, making Leiden the oldest place in the Netherlands to conduct water management. The current building was built to house the Hoogheemraadschap that dates from the 12th century when the Oude Rijn river silted shut at Katwijk. In the centuries afterwards, a group of officials called heemraden oversaw the dikes along the IJ, the Zyl, the Does, and the dams at Zwammerdam and Spaarndam. Their privileges were described in a document that was given to the dike wardens at Spaarndam in 1255. This was the subject of a painting by Caesar van Everdingen that hangs in the Gemeenlandshuis Rijnland, the meeting hall purchased in 1578 on the Breestraat.

Brittenburg Roman fort west of Leiden (now in the sea)

The Brittenburg is a Roman ruin west of Leiden, presumedly of the even older Celtic Lugdunum fortress, that was visible on the beach between Katwijk aan Zee and Noordwijk aan Zee after storms in the years of 1520, 1552 and 1562. It was originally a large complex located at the mouth of the Oude Rijn, which today is believed to be about a kilometer westwards of the current location of the European Space Research and Technology Centre.

Oude Rijn (Utrecht and South Holland) river in the provinces of Utrecht and South Holland, the Netherlands

The Oude Rijn is a branch of the Rhine delta in the Dutch provinces of Utrecht and South Holland. Its present-day length is 52 kilometres.

Katwijk is a coastal municipality and town in the province of South Holland, which is situated in the mid-western part of the Netherlands.

This building was also the permanent residence of the dijkgraaf (official). The facade was renovated twenty years later in 1598 to keep up with the new town hall.^[1] This Gemeenlandshuis is the first one designed for this purpose and financed by the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland. The organization later built a new Rijnlandshuis in 1641 at Spaarndam to stay at while inspecting the dam complex there, and another one to meet with the Amsterdam Water Board while inspecting the dikes along the Haarlemmertrekvaart and the sluices at Halfweg. The Gemeenlandshuis Zwanenburg was built by Pieter Post in 1645-1648. The building is nearly demolished today, but a town named after this building in the Haarlemmermeerpolder called Zwanenburg. The grandeur of all three buildings shows the relative wealth of the water board at the time. Besides building these houses, they also financed glass windows for churches and memorials to their members, such as the memorial to Nicolaas Kruik in the church in Spaarndam.

A dijkgraaf, sometimes called a watergraaf, is the chair of a Dutch water board. He is the equivalent of a mayor in local government and a King's Commissioner in provincial government, chairing both the legislative and executive council, while having both ceremonial and representational roles as well as his own portfolios. The term goes back to pre-medieval days.

Haarlemmertrekvaart Canal of the Northern Netherlands

The Haarlemmertrekvaart [ˌhaːrlɛmərˈtrɛkfaːrt] is a canal between Amsterdam and Haarlem in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands. It was dug in 1631, making it the oldest tow-canal in Holland. Travel on such canals was historically done by barges which were towed by animals on a path along the canal's edge (towpath).

Halfweg Village in North Holland, Netherlands

Halfweg is a town in the Dutch province of North Holland. Previously a part of the municipality of Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude, it is currently a part of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer and lies about 8 km (5.0 mi) east of Haarlem. Its name, which translates as "halfway," comes from its location approximately halfway between Haarlem and Amsterdam.

Modifications to the building

The facade was renovated twenty years after purchase in 1598 to keep up with the new Leiden town hall.^[1] In the years 1660-1670, the interior was redecorated according to a design by Pieter Post. In the early 19th century, it was painted brown, which caused damage to the brick and resulted in restoration activities in 1882.^[2] In 1878 the architect Pierre Cuypers conducted another restoration of the building.

Petrus Josephus Hubertus (Pierre) Cuypers was a Dutch architect. His name is most frequently associated with the Amsterdam Central Station (1881–1889) and the Rijksmuseum (1876–1885), both in Amsterdam. More representative for his oeuvre, however, are numerous churches, of which he designed more than 100. Moreover, he restored a large number of monuments.

Gemeenlandshuis today

The building is considered one of Rijnland's most valuable buildings and is open to the public each year on Monument Day. It is also available for use for weddings, with its atmosphere similar to an old city hall.^[1]

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The Royal Palace of Amsterdam in Amsterdam is one of three palaces in the Netherlands which are at the disposal of the monarch by Act of Parliament. It is situated on the west side of Dam Square in the centre of Amsterdam, opposite the War Memorial and next to the Nieuwe Kerk.

Zwanenburg is a town in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer, and lies about 11 km west of Amsterdam.

Flood control is an important issue for the Netherlands, as due to its low elevation, approximately two thirds of its area is vulnerable to flooding, while the country is densely populated. Natural sand dunes and constructed dikes, dams, and floodgates provide defense against storm surges from the sea. River dikes prevent flooding from water flowing into the country by the major rivers Rhine and Meuse, while a complicated system of drainage ditches, canals, and pumping stations keep the low-lying parts dry for habitation and agriculture. Water control boards are the independent local government bodies responsible for maintaining this system.

Pieter Jansz Post was a Dutch Golden Age architect, painter and printmaker.

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The Gemeenlandshuis Zwanenburg on the Haarlemmerstraatweg in Halfweg is a former Gemeenlandshuis of the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland designed by Pieter Post and built 1645-1648. Today it is part of Sugar City.

Christiaan Brunings was a Dutch hydraulic engineer.

The Hoogheemraadschap van Delfland is a Dutch waterboard, which is responsible for water management. It covers the municipalities of Delft, Midden-Delfland and The Hague, and is fully located in the province of South Holland. The organization was established in 1289 when William I, Duke of Bavaria authorized the "Heemraden of Delft" to manage water and serve as a court.

The Wijnkopersgildehuis is a former guildhall in Amsterdam. The 17th-century double house is located at Koestraat 10-12, near Nieuwmarkt square. It is one of the few remaining guildhalls in Amsterdam and has the oldest known neck-gables. The building has rijksmonument status.

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The Holy Spirit Orphanage was an orphanage in the city of Leiden in the Netherlands. It is a Rijksmonument located on Hooglandse Kerkgracht 17B.

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

Schielands Hoge Zeedijk, formerly called Hoogendijk is a Dutch dike in the province of Zuid-Holland that stretches from the Schie at Schiedam to the Gouwe near Gouda. Constructed in the 13th century, the dike continues to protect an area inhabited by 3 million people from flooding by the North Sea.

References

Dutch Rijksmonument 24607

1 2 3 Website Archived 2010-10-22 at the Wayback Machine . of the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland
↑ Gemeenlandshuis van Rijnland on the Rijksmonuments website for Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed

Water Canon ^{[ permanent dead link ]} (English version) website of The Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management
Waterschappen in Nederland: werken met water, een onberekenbare vriend, Koos Groen, Toon Schmeink, Bosch & Keuning, 1981, ISBN 90-246-4386-4

International Standard Book Number Unique numeric book identifier

The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a numeric commercial book identifier which is intended to be unique. Publishers purchase ISBNs from an affiliate of the International ISBN Agency.

Coordinates: 52°09′33″N4°29′19″E / 52.1593°N 4.4885°E / 52.1593; 4.4885

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[Rijnland-1] 1 2 3 Website Archived 2010-10-22 at the Wayback Machine . of the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland

[Monumentendag-2] Gemeenlandshuis van Rijnland on the Rijksmonuments website for Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed