De Rijp is a village and former island in the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Alkmaar, and lies about 10 km northwest of

Purmerend Purmerend () is a city and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and in the region of West Friesland. The city is surrounded by polders, such as the Purmer, Beemster and the Wormer. The city became the t ...

, between the

Schermer Schermer () is a former municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The name came from "''skir mere''", which means "bright lake" (ref. Groenedijk, 2000). Since 2015 it has been a part of Alkmaar. The municipality of Scherm ...

and the

Beemster Beemster () is a former municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The Beemster is the first so-called polder in the Netherlands that was reclaimed from a lake, the water being extracted from the lake by windmills. The Beem ...

polders. Before the poldering of the lakes surrounding it, De Rijp was famous for its herring industry. Today it is known for its characteristic rijksmonuments, which include some of the oldest wooden houses of North Holland. De Rijp was a separate municipality until 1970, when it merged with

Graft Graft or grafting may refer to: *Graft (politics), a form of political corruption * Graft, Netherlands, a village in the municipality of Graft-De Rijp Science and technology *Graft (surgery), a surgical procedure *Grafting, the joining of plant t ...

. The statistical area "De Rijp", which also can include the surrounding countryside, has a population of around 4020.Statistics Netherlands (CBS)
''Statline: Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2003-2005''
. As of 1 January 2005.

History

A Beemsterlants Caerte Daniël van Breen 1658

Before the lakes on either side of De Rijp were pumped dry, De Rijp was a port town with merchant ships that travelled the high seas on trade routes. The town had a medium-sized herring fleet, and searched for whales with larger ships. Rijper vessels travelled regularly to Spitsbergen. After the success of the polders near Alkmaar and Egmond, plans were formed to make polders of the other lakes in North Holland, including the ones on both sides of De Rijp. In 1605 De Rijp split off from

and became a relief center for the effort to pump the

dry. The project was run by the architect-engineer

Jan Leeghwater Jan Adriaenszoon Leeghwater (born Jan Adriaenszoon; November 1575 – January 1650) was a Dutch millwright and hydraulic engineer. Biography Leeghwater was born as Jan Adriaanszoon. Only later did he adopt the name Leeghwater, from ''l ...

, who had been born in De Rijp and even designed the Town hall. The coat of arms of De Rijp show two herrings which symbolize the importance of the fishing industry for the town. The polders meant that the Rijper ships needed to travel much further before they were on open water. The herring industry remained important however and the stained glass window in the Grote Kerk with the city coat of arms of

Enkhuizen Enkhuizen () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West-Frisia. History Enkhuizen, like Hoorn and Amsterdam, was one of the harbor-towns of the VOC, from where overseas trade w ...

, donated by the cooper's guild, shows the barrels that were made for use by the herring packers in De Rijp in 1655. The town had suffered a devastating fire in 1654 which wiped out the southern side of the town and destroyed the church, leaving only the north side (including the city hall) intact. The herring ships had been undamaged and it was their industry that enabled the town to rebuild the church. When it was completed in 1655, various guilds such as the coopers, and other towns of North Holland donated stained glass windows with their coats of arms in 1655. These included Medemblik, Alkmaar, Haarlem,

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

Monnickendam Monnickendam () is a city in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Waterland, and lies on the coast of the Markermeer, about southeast of Purmerend. It received city rights in 1355 and was damaged by the fir ...

, Edam,

, and

. This group of stained-glass windows are considered national treasures and were restored in 1993-1995 when safety glass with a fine mesh of metal was installed on the outside of the window frames but left open at the edges to prevent condensation. Similar safety measures have been taken for the stained-glass windows of Gouda. File:Interieur, gebrandschilderd glas, raam 3- "De vrijwillige kuiperij", detail B3 - De Rijp - 20362689 - RCE.jpg, Glass 3 (detail) showing two coopers making barrels File:Interieur, gebrandschilderd glas, raam 4- "Haringvisserij", detail B3 - De Rijp - 20362712 - RCE.jpg, Glass 4 (detail) showing the herring fleet

In fiction

Part of the 2021 film '' De Grote Sinterklaasfilm: Trammelant in Spanje'' was filmed in De Rijp.

References

* ''Glazen Verhalen: de Grote Kerk te De Rijp'', edited by Nelly de Goede, Stichting De Rijper Glazen, De Rijp, 2009

External links

* {{Authority control Former municipalities of North Holland Populated places in North Holland