Wieringermeer () is a former

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

and a polder 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 ...

, in the province of North Holland. Since 2012 Wieringermeer has been a part of the new municipality of

Hollands Kroon Hollands Kroon is a municipality located in the Northwest Netherlands. It was created on 1 January 2012, as a merger of four municipalities: Anna Paulowna, Niedorp, Wieringen, and Wieringermeer.Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations''Same ...

Population centres

The former municipality of Wieringermeer consisted of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Kreileroord, Middenmeer, Slootdorp, Wieringerwerf.

History

Around the year 1000 AD, this area was land. However, several storms after 1100 flooded the land, turning it into a flood plain. Wieringmeer means "

Wieringen Wieringen () is part of the municipality of Hollands Kroon, established in 2012 in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It is a former municipality in this province, with its name appearing in records of the late 9th and early 10 ...

Lake", the name of an inland lake that filled the area in the early

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

period. The Wieringmeerpolder is a polder, newly created land, and part of the

Zuiderzee Works The Zuiderzee Works ( nl, Zuiderzeewerken) is a man-made system of dams and dikes, land reclamation and water drainage work, in total the largest hydraulic engineering project undertaken by the Netherlands during the twentieth century. The proj ...

developed in the 20th century. The creation of this polder started in 1927. Originally the polder was planned to have been created after the completion of the

Afsluitdijk The ''Afsluitdijk'' (; fry, Ofslútdyk; nds-nl, Ofsluutdiek; en, "Closure Dyke") is a major dam and causeway in the Netherlands. It was constructed between 1927 and 1932 and runs from Den Oever in North Holland province to the village of ...

. As there was a severe lack of agricultural ground, the dikes for the polder had to be built in the

Zuiderzee The Zuiderzee or Zuider Zee (; old spelling ''Zuyderzee'' or ''Zuyder Zee'') was a shallow bay of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km (60 miles) inland and at most 50 km (30 miles) wide, with an o ...

, a sea. The dikes had to be tougher and ready to withstand the force of the sea. Draining of the polder was finished on 21 August 1930. After the completion of the Afsluitdijk in 1932, the lake IJsselmeer was formed from the waters. Exterieur OVERZICHT - Medemblik - 20284820 - RCE

Exterieur OVERZICHT - Medemblik - 20284820 - RCE

After desalinization, the new land became usable in 1934. Four villages (Slootdorp (1931), Middenmeer (1933), Wieringerwerf (1936) and Kreileroord (1957)) eventually were developed in the polder. Since 1 July 1941, the Wieringermeer had been an independent municipality. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, the

was occupied by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. On 17 April 1945, a vengeful German command ordered the dike of the Wieringermeer to be blown up: the area was inundated. No one was killed as the polder slowly submerged again (the inhabitants had been warned), but the high water and a subsequent storm destroyed most of the infrastructure built in the previous decade. The floodwater was fresh water, so the land did not have to be desalinated again. Reconstruction followed quickly; by the end of 1945, the polder was declared drained again. Rebuilding of roads and bridges, houses and farms, was greatly facilitated by the experience of building them the first time.

Local government

The former municipal council of Wieringermeer consisted of 15 seats, which were divided as follows: * CDA – 4 seats *

VVD The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( nl, Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie ; VVD) is a Conservative liberalism, conservative-liberalRudy Andeweg, Andeweg, R. and G. Irwin ''Politics and Governance in the Netherlands'', Basingsto ...

– 4 seats * Gemeente Belangen Wieringermeer – 2 seats * PvdA – 2 seats *

ChristianUnion The Christian Union ( nl, ChristenUnie, CU) is a Christian-democratic political party in the Netherlands. The CU is a centrist party, maintaining more progressive stances on economic, immigration and environmental issues while holding more social ...

– 1 seat * Independent – 1 seat * Progressief Wieringermeer – 1 seat

References

{{Reflist * Statistics are taken from th
SDU Staatscourant
Zuiderzee Works Municipalities of the Netherlands disestablished in 2012 Former municipalities of North Holland Polders of North Holland Hollands Kroon