Lisse () is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and

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 ...

in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of South Holland in the Western

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 ...

. The municipality, which lies within the

Duin- en Bollenstreek The Duin- en Bollenstreek (; Dutch for "Dune and Bulb Region") is a region in the Western Netherlands, that features coastal dunes and the cultivation of flower bulbs. Situated at the heart of historical Holland nearby the city of Leiden, South Ho ...

, covers an area of of which is water. Its population was in . Located within the municipal boundary is also the community De Engel.

History

Early history

The history of Lisse is closely related and similar to the neighboring towns of

Hillegom Hillegom () is a town and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. Hillegom is part of an area called the Duin- en Bollenstreek ("Dune and Bulb Region"). As such, a large portion of the local economy was traditio ...

and

Sassenheim Sassenheim () is a town and former municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The former municipality covered an area of 6.62 km² (of which 0.23 km² water) and had a population of 14,906 in 2005. Sinc ...

. Based on a document from 1198 which makes official mention of the town's name, Lisse celebrated its 800-year anniversary in 1998, although there is an indication that there was already a settlement there in the 10th century. In the Middle Ages, Lisse was a small settlement; there were only 50 houses in 1500. Because of prolonged warfare (particularly the wars of

Charles the Bold Charles I (Charles Martin; german: Karl Martin; nl, Karel Maarten; 10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), nicknamed the Bold (German: ''der Kühne''; Dutch: ''de Stoute''; french: le Téméraire), was Duke of Burgundy from 1467 to 1477. ...

and the Eighty Years' War), poverty was prevalent. Its population lived from

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...

, animal husbandry and

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient ...

harvesting.

Recent history

In the 17th and 18th centuries, Lisse was, like

, home to many estates of rich merchants and nobility. The forests and gardens of Keukenhof, Meerenburg, Wildlust, Zandvliet, Overduin en Akervoorde, Wassergeest, Grotenhof, Ter Specke, Dubbelhoven, Rosendaal, Veenenburg en Berkhout, Middelburg, Ter Beek and Uytermeer estates all added to the town's beauty and glory. Yet in the following centuries, every one of these estates (except Keukenhof) was removed to make way for the cultivation of bulb flowers. The sandy soil in Lisse's surroundings were highly suitable for its growth provided the soil was fertilised. The nearby dunes were excavated and forests cut down progressively over time for more fields for the flower business. This brought employment and prosperity to this area.

Floriculture centre

In the 20th century, the bulb flower business continued to boom, resulting in the establishment of auction and trading houses, large-scale cultivators and

cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-contro ...

s. Today, Lisse exports bulbflowers in large quantities to over a hundred countries worldwide. Located at the centre of the "Dune and Bulb Region" (

), Holland's flower-growing region, Lisse is also a major tourist attraction. During the spring when the fields around Lisse are in a colourful bloom, hundreds of thousands of local and foreign tourists visit the area. The only remaining estate that was not removed for flower cultivation ( Keukenhof) became world-famous for its flower displays.

Tourism and attractions

The most popular attraction in Lisse is Keukenhof, open only during spring when the

tulip Tulips (''Tulipa'') are a genus of spring-blooming perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes (having bulbs as storage organs). The flowers are usually large, showy and brightly coloured, generally red, pink, yellow, or white (usually in warm ...

s are flowering. Also each spring a

flower parade A flower parade is a parade in which the floats, vehicles, boats, participants, animals and other things are decorated or covered in flowers. Often there are other elements like marching bands and people in costumes. Flower parades are held in ...

called the Bollenstreek ''

Bloemencorso ''Bloemencorso'' (a Dutch word) means " flower parade", "flower pageant" or "flower procession". In a parade of this kind the floats (''praalwagens''), cars and (in some cases) boats are magnificently decorated or covered in flowers. This custom ...

'' is held through the main streets of Lisse. In August the fantasy festival Castlefest is held in the gardens of Castle Keukenhof. Other places of interest are the museums: *Huys Dever, a restored castle tower from the 14th century *Castle Keukenhof, part of the Keukenhof estate but open year-round *Museum De Zwarte Tulp (Black Tulip Museum), exhibiting the history of the Dutch bulb-growing region Lisse,_kerk_2007-04-18_13.41.JPG, Sint-Agathakerk Halfweg, veld met rode tulpen IMG 8991 2021-04-27 12.37.jpg, A field of tulips in Lisse Molenlisse.jpg, Windmill in Lisse De Keukenhof, Lisse.jpg, Castle Keukenhof

Sports

Lisse is the home of

FC Lisse FC Lisse is a Dutch football club from Lisse which was founded in 1981. It currently plays in the Tweede Divisie. History The history of FC Lisse is linked to its Catholic religion, the first version of a football club being formed in 1911 by a ...

, a football team currently playing in the Zaterdag

Topklasse The Derde Divisie (; en, Third Division), formerly known as Topklasse (; en, Top Class), is the fourth tier of football in the Netherlands, which had its inaugural season as a third tier in 2010–11 and as a fourth tier in 2016–17. The league ...

. On 3 May 2008 FC Lisse sealed the championship of the 2007/2008 season in the Hoofdklasse A.

Notable people born in Lisse

* Abraham Rademaker (1677–1735), a Dutch painter and printmaker *

Joseph Smit Joseph Smit (18 July 1836 – 4 November 1929) was a Dutch zoological illustrator. L.B. Holthuis, Leiden, (1958, 1995) ''Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie, 1820 - 1958''. page 47reprint manuscript, PDF Background Smit was born in Lisse. H ...

(1836–1929), a Dutch zoological illustrator *

Wander Johannes de Haas Wander Johannes de Haas (2 March 1878 – 26 April 1960) was a Dutch physicist and mathematician. He is best known for the Shubnikov–de Haas effect, the De Haas–Van Alphen effect and the Einstein–de Haas effect. Personal life Wander de H ...

(1878–1960), a Dutch physicist and mathematician, known for the

Einstein–de Haas effect The Einstein–de Haas effect is a physical phenomenon in which a change in the magnetic moment of a free body causes this body to rotate. The effect is a consequence of the conservation of angular momentum. It is strong enough to be observable in ...

* Jacob Veldhuyzen van Zanten (1927–1977), a Dutch aircraft captain, died in the

Tenerife airport disaster The Tenerife airport disaster occurred on March 27, 1977, when two Boeing 747 passenger jets collided on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport (now Tenerife North Airport) on the Spanish island of Tenerife. The collision occurred when KLM Flight 4 ...

Egbert van 't Oever Egbert van 't Oever (15 July 1927 – 5 October 2001) was a Dutch speed skater. He competed at the 1952 Winter Olympics and the 1956 Winter Olympics. Biography Van 't Oever coached Yvonne van Gennip at the 1988 Olympic Games in Calgary wher ...

(1927–2001), a Dutch speed skater, competed in the

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

and 1956 Winter Olympics * Adrianus Johannes Simonis (1931–2020), cardinal and

Archbishop of Utrecht List of bishops and archbishops of the diocese and archdioceses of Utrecht. Medieval diocese from 695 to 1580 Founders of the Utrecht diocese * * * * * Bishops * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ...

1983 to 2007 * Jenny Arean (born 1942), a Dutch singer, actress and comedian *

Harry Mens Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...

(born 1947), a Dutch real estate broker and television presenter * Bram Moolenaar (born 1961), a Dutch computer programmer, author of Vim, a text editor * Marco Vermey (born 1965) a Dutch former professional racing cyclist, rode in the 1994 Tour de France * Hans Kroes (born 1965), a Dutch freestyle and backstroke swimmer, competed in the

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

and

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

Gert-Jan Segers Gert Jan Maarten "Gert-Jan" Segers (born 9 July 1969) is a Dutch politician serving as Leader of the Christian Union since 2015. He has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2012 and parliamentary leader since 2015. Early career A ...

(born 1969), a Dutch political scientist and politician *

Bastiaan Ragas Bastiaan Johannes Ragas (born 30 June 1971) is a Dutch singer and actor. Born in Lisse, he was the youngest of three brothers. Ragas learnt piano and guitar at school. He also participated and traveled with the international musical group Up Wi ...

(born 1971), a Dutch actor and singer IMDb Database
retrieved 28 January 2020

References

External links

*
Official website

Keukenhof
{{Authority control Municipalities of South Holland Populated places in South Holland