Oudewater () is a municipality and a town 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 ...

History

The origin of the town of Oudewater is obscure and no information has been found concerning the first settlement of citizens. It is also difficult to recover the name of Oudewater. One explanation is that the name is a corruption of ''old water-meadow''. Oudewater was an important border city between

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

and

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

. Oudewater (lit. "Old water") was of great strategic importance. The town was granted city rights in 1265 by Hendrik van Vianden, the bishop of Utrecht. Oudewater took its place in the First Free States council in Dordrecht on 19 July 1572, Oudewater was one of the twelve cities taking part in the first free convention of the

States General The word States-General, or Estates-General, may refer to: Currently in use * Estates-General on the Situation and Future of the French Language in Quebec, the name of a commission set up by the government of Quebec on June 29, 2000 * States Gener ...

Dordrecht Dordrecht (), historically known in English as Dordt (still colloquially used in Dutch, ) or Dort, is a city and municipality in the Western Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland. It is the province's fifth-largest city after R ...

. This was a meeting that laid down the origin of the State of the Netherlands, as we know it now, under the leadership of the House of Orange. This happened at the beginning of the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) when the Netherlands were still part of the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

. After a Siege of Oudewater, the city was conquered by the Spanish on 7 August 1575, and most of its inhabitants were killed, including the family of famous Oudewater native and Protestant theologian

Jacobus Arminius Jacobus Arminius (10 October 1560 – 19 October 1609), the Latinized name of Jakob Hermanszoon, was a Dutch theologian during the Protestant Reformation period whose views became the basis of Arminianism and the Dutch Remonstrant movement. H ...

(1560-1609). In the 16th and 17th century, Oudewater was an important producer of

rope A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similar ...

. In the surrounding area, hemp was cultivated. There still is a rope manufacturing plant and a rope museum in the town. In 1970 the municipality of Oudewater moved from the province of South Holland to the province of Utrecht.

Geography

Oudewater is located at in the southwest of the province of

in the center of the

. It is situated where the Linschoten river flows out in the

Hollandse IJssel The Hollandse (or Hollandsche) IJssel (; "Holland IJssel", as opposed to the 'regular' or Gelderland IJssel) is a branch of the Rhine delta that flows westward from Nieuwegein on river Lek through IJsselstein, Gouda and Capelle aan den IJsse ...

. Oudewater is bordered by the municipalities of

Montfoort Montfoort () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. Montfoort received city rights in 1329. Population centres The municipality of Montfoort consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or district ...

(in the northeast),

Lopik Lopik () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht, close to the Lek river. History Lopik lies within the Lopikerwaard region, which used to be occupied by swamps and forests until the area was cultivated in th ...

(southeast), Krimpenerwaard (southwest), and Bodegraven-Reeuwijk (northwest). The municipality of Oudewater consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Diemerbroek,

Hekendorp Hekendorp is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Oudewater, and lies about 6 km east of Gouda. Hekendorp was a separate municipality between 1817 and 1964, when it merged with Driebruggen. During t ...

, Hoenkoop,

Lange Linschoten Lange Linschoten is a hamlet in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Oudewater Oudewater () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands. History The origin of the town of Oudewater is obscure and no informat ...

, Oudewater, Papekop,

Ruigeweide Ruigeweide is a hamlet in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Oudewater, and lies about 2 km northwest of the city of Oudewater. It was first mentioned in 1371 as "in de ruwer weyde, ende op ter langher weyde", ...

, and Snelrewaard.

Buildings

Oudewater is famous for the ''Heksen

waag A weighhouse or weighing house is a public building at or within which goods are weighed. Most of these buildings were built before 1800, prior to the establishment of international standards for weights, and were often a large and representative ...

'' (

Witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

es'

scales Scale or scales may refer to: Mathematics * Scale (descriptive set theory), an object defined on a set of points * Scale (ratio), the ratio of a linear dimension of a model to the corresponding dimension of the original * Scale factor, a number w ...

). This Weighing house, an official town building, became famous at the height of the European witch trials of the 16th century because people accused of

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...

were offered a fair chance to prove their innocence as opposed to many other places where the scales were rigged. From all over Europe people made the journey to Oudewater to avoid prosecution. After the weighing, they received an official certificate proclaiming them not a witch. Nobody was ever found to be an actual witch in Oudewater, though the weighings were still a public spectacle. Certificates would state that "the body weight is in proportion to its build." The reasoning behind this is the old belief that a witch has no soul and therefore weighs significantly less than an ordinary person; this distinction would supposedly allow the witch to fly on a broomstick. Oudewater, stadszicht met kerk2 2009-04-13 16

Oudewater, stadszicht met kerk2 2009-04-13 16

In early modern times, when accusations of witchcraft could result in being burned at the stake, the town of Oudewater offered the accused a chance of proving their innocence. This can be seen as a sign of the growing power of the citizenry as a third force next to that of the church and nobility. Before witch hunts were sanctioned by the law and the church in their bid to break the power of local herb doctors and

midwives A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialization known as midwifery. The education and training for a midwife concentrates extensively on the care of women throughout their lifespan; co ...

. By giving out these certificates the citizens of Oudewater, therefore were defying the church. The Waag is still open as a tourist attraction, and official certificates are available. The town hall dates from 1588 and features a stork's nest. Oudewater has a monumental protected city centre with more than 250 protected houses. The church, now

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

, dates from the 15th century. Its tower is from about 1300. During the religious wars, until the sacking of Oudewater, both

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

s and Protestants used this church. Thereafter Catholics were still tolerated (the Spanish occupiers being Catholic) but more in low profile.

In fiction

Oudewater is the setting for the 1975 novel ''Das Geheimnis des Baron Oudewater'' set in the 16th century, when the Netherlands was fighting for its independence from Spain. Written by the German author Alberta Rommel, it has been described as a romantic historical novel. The 2014 film '' Reckless'' was filmed in Oudewater.

Notable people

Gerard David selfportrait in The Virgin among the Virgins

* Albert van Ouwater (ca.1410/1415 – 1475) an early artist of Early Netherlandish painting working in the Northern Netherlands *

Gerard David Gerard David (c. 1460 – 13 August 1523) was an Early Netherlandish painter and manuscript illuminator known for his brilliant use of color. Only a bare outline of his life survives, although some facts are known. He may have been the Meester ...

(ca.1460–1523) an Early Netherlandish painter and manuscript illuminator, used brilliant colour *

Rudolph Snellius Rudolph Snel van Royen (5 October 1546 – 2 March 1613), Latinized as Rudolph Snellius, was a Dutch linguist and mathematician who held appointments at the University of Marburg and the University of Leiden. Snellius was an influence on some ...

(1546–1613) a Dutch linguist and mathematician, a political and intellectual force of the Dutch Golden Age *

(1560–1609) a Dutch theologian, formed Arminianism and the Dutch Remonstrant movement * Hendrikus Albertus Lorentz (1871–1944) a Dutch explorer in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

and diplomat in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

Jan Montyn Jan Montyn (13 November 1924 – 10 August 2015) was a Dutch artist, specialized in etching. He was best known for his paintings of wars to which he had been an eyewitness. Montyn was born in a conservative Calvinistic family and was raised in Oude ...

(1924–2015) a Dutch artist, specialized in

etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...

* Wim Klever (born 1930 in Snelrewaard) a Dutch scholar of the Jewish Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza * Dirk de Ridder (born 1972) a sailor, competed at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...

Image gallery

Image:Oudewater, stadszicht met kerk1 2009-04-13 16.41.JPG, Church near a canal File:Oudewater, de Sint-Franciskuskerk RM517464 vanaf de Waardsedijk IMG 9275 2019-04-20 13.21.jpg, Church: the Sint-Franciskuskerk from Waardsedijk File:Oudewater, zicht op gracht en brug vanaf West IJsselkade IMG 9276 2019-04-20 13.41.jpg, View to the canal and the bridge from IJsselkade File:KerkOudewater.JPG, St.-Michaëls kerk, Oudewater File:Oudewater, straatzicht met voormalig stadhuis RM32083 foto2 2013-07-07 11.39.jpg, Former townhall in 2013

References

External links

*
Tourist information

Museum de Heksenwaag
* {{Authority control Populated places in Utrecht (province) Municipalities of Utrecht (province) Former municipalities of South Holland Cities in the Netherlands