Lauwers

The Lauwers () is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. It forms part of the border between the provinces of

Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...

and

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of t ...

. From the 730s to

Widukind Widukind, also known as Wittekind, was a leader of the Saxons and the chief opponent of the Frankish king Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars from 777 to 785. Charlemagne ultimately prevailed, organized Saxony as a Frankish province, massacred th ...

's defeat in 785, it was part of the border of the

Frankish Empire Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks dur ...

. The former

Lauwerszee Lauwersmeer () is a man-made lake in the north of the Netherlands, on the border of the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. The lake was formed on 23 May 1969, when the dike between the bay called Lauwers Sea and the Wadden Sea was closed. It i ...

and the present-day

Lauwersmeer Lauwersmeer () is a man-made lake in the north of the Netherlands, on the border of the provinces of Groningen and Friesland. The lake was formed on 23 May 1969, when the dike between the bay called Lauwers Sea and the Wadden Sea was closed. It ...

are both named after the river, which as a small stream has its source southeast of the village of

Surhuisterveen Surhuisterveen ( fry, Surhústerfean) is the largest of the 12 villages of the municipality of Achtkarspelen, in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. As of 1 January 2017, Surhuisterveen had a population of 5,929. General information Th ...

. Near

Gerkesklooster Gerkesklooster ( fry, Gerkeskleaster) is a village in Achtkarspelen in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. It forms, together with Stroobos, the double village Gerkesklooster-Stroobos. The double village had a population of around 1144 in ...

Stroobos Stroobos ( fry, Strobos) is a village in Achtkarspelen in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. The settlement of Stroobos used to be divided between Friesland and Groningen. In 1993, the entire village was transferred to Friesland. It forms ...

, it crosses the Prinsesmargrietkanaal/

van Starkenborghkanaal A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and bigger than a common car. There is some varying in the scope of the word across ...

. The Lauwers achieves the width of a true river at the place that it gains its tributary, the

Oude Vaart Awadh (), known in British historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a region in the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. It is synonymous with the Kośāla region of ...

, near the Schalkendam. Further along its course, the Lauwers splits into two branches, the Frisian

Oude Lauwers Awadh (), known in British historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a region in the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. It is synonymous with the Kośāla region of ...

and the Zijldiep, in

province. The Lauwers meets the sea at the

Wadden Sea The Wadden Sea ( nl, Waddenzee ; german: Wattenmeer; nds, Wattensee or ; da, Vadehavet; fy, Waadsee, longname=yes; frr, di Heef) is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern conti ...

, emptying into a channel between the islands of

Schiermonnikoog Schiermonnikoog (; fry, ) is an island, a municipality and national park in the Northern Netherlands. Schiermonnikoog is one of the West Frisian Islands, and is part of the province of Friesland. It is situated between the islands of Ameland ...

and Rottumerplaat/Rottumeroog, which can be viewed as the continuation of the river. File:Muntsjesyl.JPG, Lauwers River Rivers of Groningen (province) Rivers of Friesland Rivers of the Netherlands 0Lauwers {{Netherlands-river-stub