Zuilichem is a village 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

Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...

. It is a part of the municipality of

Zaltbommel Zaltbommel (), also known, historically and colloquially, as Bommel, is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. History The city of Zaltbommel The town of Zaltbommel was first mentioned as "Bomela" in the year 850. Zaltbommel received ...

, and lies about 11 km east of

Gorinchem Gorinchem ( or ), also spelled Gorkum, is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. It had a population of in . The municipality of Gorinchem al ...

. Zuilichem was a separate municipality until 1955, when it was merged with Brakel. The seventeenth-century Dutch diplomat and polymath

Constantijn Huygens Sir Constantijn Huygens, Lord of Zuilichem ( , , ; 4 September 159628 March 1687), was a Dutch Golden Age poet and composer. He was also secretary to two Princes of Orange: Frederick Henry and William II, and the father of the scientist Ch ...

purchased the manor and title of Zuilichem in 1630, which passed over to his first son

after his death.

History

It was first mentioned in 1143 as Solekeim, and means "settlement of the people of Sulo (person)". The village developed along the

Waal WAAL (99.1 FM "The Whale") is a commercial radio station licensed to Binghamton, New York. It airs a classic rock radio format and is owned by Townsquare Media. WAAL is the oldest FM radio station in the Binghamton metropolitan area. It is an ...

as a stretched out ''

esdorp __NOTOC__ An ''Angerdorf'' (plural: ''Angerdörfer'') is a type of village that is characterised by the houses and farmsteads being laid out around a central grassed area, the ''anger'' (from the Old High German ''angar'' =pasture or grassy place ...

''. The Dutch Reformed Church was rebuilt in 1866 after a fire. It suffered severe damage in 1945 and a new tower was built in 1950. In 1840, Zuilichem was home to 686 people. The village suffered severe damage during the flood of 1861. In 2004, 244 of the 872 of the members of the Reformed Church did not want to join the united

Protestant Church 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 ...

, and became members of the

Restored Reformed Church The Restored Reformed Church ( nl, Hersteld Hervormde Kerk, abbreviated HHK) is a Calvinist denomination in the Netherlands. It was founded in 2004, from congregations which made up the orthodox-reformed wing of the Dutch Reformed Church; t ...

. In 2010, they opened their own church building.

Windmills

There are two windmills near Zuilichem. The polder mill is a pumping mill from 1720. It was one of 17 windmills and the only one who has remained. In 1855, a steam powered pumping station was built, however the wind mill remained in operation as a backup and served until 1950, because it was no longer needed. The

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

De Hoop was built in 1863, and is usually in operation on Saturdays.

Gallery

File:Zuilichem, molen de Hoop RM10085 foto3 2016-06-19 14.19.jpg, Zuilichem, windmill: molen de Hoop File:5305 Zuilichem, Netherlands - panoramio.jpg, Fruit and pumpkins File:Tussen Zuilichem en Nieuwaal, de uiterwaarden van de Waal foto5 2016-06-19 14.49.jpg, De Waal River File:Hoek Molenstraat - Zuilichem - 20226081 - RCE.jpg, House in Zuilichem

References

Tim Crawford, '"Allemande Mr. Zuilekom". Constantijn Huygens's Sole Surviving Instrumental Composition', 'Tijdscrift van de Vereniging voor Nederlandse Musiekgeschiedenis', D. 37ste (1987), pp. 175–181. {{Authority control Populated places in Gelderland Former municipalities of Gelderland Zaltbommel