Castricum () is a municipality and a town in the province of North Holland 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 ...

. Castricum is a seaside town in the province of North Holland. It draws in a fair share of tourists who mainly come to visit the beach and nearby

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...

landscape. In Castricum's vicinity there is also the lake of Alkmaar-Uitgeest which offers various sailing and windsurfing opportunities.

History

On 6 October 1799, a Franco-Dutch army under

Guillaume Brune Guillaume Marie-Anne Brune, 1st Count Brune (, 13 March 1764 – 2 August 1815) was a French military commander, Marshal of the Empire, and political figure who served during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. Early life Br ...

defeated an Anglo-Russian army under

Ralph Abercromby Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Abercromby (7 October 173428 March 1801) was a British soldier and politician. He rose to the rank of lieutenant-general in the British Army, was appointed Governor of Trinidad, served as Commander-in-Chief, I ...

and the

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of List of English monarchs, English (later List of British monarchs, British) monarchs. ...

in the

Battle of Castricum The Battle of Castricum (October 6, 1799) saw a Franco-Dutch force defeat an Anglo-Russian force near Castricum, Netherlands. The battle was fought during the War of the Second Coalition against Revolutionary France between French and Dutch forc ...

. The municipalities of Akersloot and Limmen merged into the municipality of Castricum on 1 January 2002.

Population centres

The municipality of Castricum is made up of the following towns, villages and/or districts: Castricum, Akersloot, Bakkum, De Woude, Limmen.

Transportation

The town is served by Castricum railway station. From here there are 4 trains an hour to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, with a journey time of 28 minutes.

Local government

The municipal council of Castricum consists of 25 seats, which are divided as follows: *

VVD The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( nl, Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie ; VVD) is a conservative-liberal Andeweg, R. and G. Irwin ''Politics and Governance in the Netherlands'', Basingstoke (Palgrave) p.49 political party in ...

- 5 seats * Castricum Kernen Gezond (CKenG) - 3 seats * G

-2 seats * Labour Party (Netherlands), PvdA - 1 seat * CDA - 4 seats *

Green party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundati ...

- 3 seats * D66 - 2 seats * De Vrije Lijst - 2 seats * Forza - 1 seat * lijst Kooter - 1 seat * lijst van Schoonhoven - 1 seat At the moment, the

college van burgemeester en wethouders In the Netherlands, the municipal executive (, ) is the executive board of a municipality. It plays a central role in municipal politics in the Netherlands, similar to the communal college in Belgium. It consists of the mayor and the members of ...

(the municipal board) is formed by the VVD, CDA and de Vrije Lijst.

Castricum aan Zee

Castricum aan Zee is the seaside resort of Castricum. It is located on the North Sea coast at . It used to be called Bakkum aan Zee, and mainly consists of holiday homes, camping sites and the occasional house. Duincamping Bakkum is the oldest camp site of the Netherlands. The dune area used to be owned by Sophie, Princess of Albania. In 1906, a group of nature lovers asked permission to camp. The princess granted permission, and it developed into a permanent camp site. In 1942, construction started of the

Atlantic Wall The Atlantic Wall (german: link=no, Atlantikwall) was an extensive system of coastal defences and fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defence against an anticip ...

to defend against an Allied invasion. As part of the wall Stützpunkt Castricum was built, and 104 bunkers were constructed in the dunes. Many have been demolished, but some are still hidden under the sand. In 2020, a previously unknown bunker was discovered buried in the sand.

Notable people

* Willem Jacobszoon Coster (1590 in Akersloot – 1640) Dutch colonial

Governor of Zeylan The following is a list of governors of Dutch Ceylon. The Dutch arrived on the island of Ceylon on 2 May 1639. Parts of the island were incorporated as a colony administrated by the Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ...

in 1640 * John Ton (1826 in Akersloot - 1896) an American abolitionist active in the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

. *

Willem Schermerhorn Willem "Wim" Schermerhorn (17 December 1894 – 10 March 1977) was a Dutch politician who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 25 June 1945 until 3 July 1946. He was a member of the now-defunct Free-thinking Democratic League (VDB) ...

(1894 in Akersloot – 1977) a Dutch politician,

Prime Minister of the Netherlands The prime minister of the Netherlands ( nl, Minister-president van Nederland) is the head of the executive branch of the Government of the Netherlands. Although the monarch is the ''de jure'' head of government, the prime minister ''de facto'' ...

1945/1946 * Abraham Louis Schneiders (1925 in Castricum - 2020) a Dutch diplomat and writer *

Jan Gmelich Meijling Jan Christoffel Gmelich Meijling (4 February 1936 – 2 June 2012) was a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and naval officer. He served as Mayor of Castricum from April 16, 1978 until June 1, 1985 when he beca ...

(1936 in Heemstede – 2012) a Dutch politician, naval officer and Mayor of Castricum from 1978 to 1985 * Theo van den Boogaard (born 1948 in Castricum) a Dutch cartoonist *

Henk Jaap Beentje Henk Jaap Beentje (born 1951, Bakkum) is a Dutch botanist. In 1978 he obtained a masters in biology at the University of Amsterdam. He obtained his PhD at the Wageningen Agricultural University on the thesis ''A monograph on Strophanthus DC. (Apo ...

(born 1951 in Bakkum) a Dutch botanist, works at the

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,10 ...

* Sefa Jeroen Vlaarkamp (2000 in Alkmaar) a Dutch

frenchcore Frenchcore is a subgenre of hardcore techno. The style differs from other forms of hardcore in terms of a faster tempo, usually above 190-250 BPM, and a loud & distorted offbeat bassline. In the 1990s, drum machines and samplers were used to ...

musician

Sport

* Arjan de Zeeuw (born 1970 in Castricum) a retired Dutch footballer with 553 club caps *

Eddy Putter Eddy Putter (born 7 January 1982) is a Dutch former professional footballer. He was positioned as a striker and was also adept as a right sided winger. Career Born in Akersloot, and playing youth football for local club Meervogels '31, Putter ...

(born 1982 in Akersloot) a Dutch football player with over 200 club caps * Kees Luijckx (born 1986 in Beverwijk) a Dutch footballer with over 270 club caps * Teun Koopmeiners (born 1998 in Castricum) a Dutch footballer playing for

Atalanta Bergamo Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio, commonly referred to as Atalanta, is a professional football club based in Bergamo, Lombardy, Italy. The club plays in Serie A, having gained promotion from Serie B in 2010–11. Atalanta was founded in 1907 by Li ...

Gallery

File:Weide van Brasser, Castricum.jpg, Weide van Brasser, Castricum

References

External links

*
Official website
{{Authority control Municipalities of North Holland Populated places in North Holland