Enkhuizen () is a municipality and a city 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 North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland, ) is a province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In November 2019, it had a ...

and the region of West-Frisia.

History

Enkhuizen, like

Hoorn Hoorn () is a city and municipality in the northwest of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the largest town and the traditional capital of the region of West Friesland. Hoorn is located on the Markermeer, 20 kilometers ( ...

and

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 ...

, was one of the harbor-towns of the

VOC VOC, VoC or voc may refer to: Science and technology * Open-circuit voltage (VOC), the voltage between two terminals when there is no external load connected * Variant of concern, a category used during the assessment of a new variant of a virus * ...

, from where overseas trade with the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around t ...

was conducted. It received

city rights Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

in 1355. On June 24, 1572 during the

Eighty Years' War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Refo ...

, in Enkhuizen five

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

from

Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland, about 30 km north of Amsterdam. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination. The ...

were

hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging in ...

: known as the

martyrs of Alkmaar The Martyrs of Alkmaar ( nl, Martelaren van Alkmaar) were a group of 5 Dutch Catholic clerics, secular and religious, who were hanged on 24 June 1572 in the town of Alkmaar by militant Dutch Calvinists during the 16th-century religious wars— ...

. In the mid-17th century, Enkhuizen was at the peak of its power and was one of the most important harbor cities in the Netherlands. However, due to a variety of reasons, notably the

silting Siltation, is water pollution caused by particulate terrestrial clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the increased accumulation (temporary or ...

up of the harbors, Enkhuizen lost its position to Amsterdam.

Tourism

Enkhuizen has one of the largest marinas in the Netherlands.

Zuiderzeemuseum The Zuiderzee Museum, located on Wierdijk in the historic center of Enkhuizen, is a Dutch museum devoted to preserving the cultural heritage and maritime history from the old Zuiderzee region. With the closing of the Afsluitdijk (Barrier Dam) on ...

is located in Enkhuizen. Architecturally, the Drommedaris is the oldest building in Enkhuizen, from 1540. Tourists take boat trips to and from the port to

Medemblik Medemblik () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West-Frisia. It lies immediately south of the polder and former municipality of Wieringermeer. History Medemblik was a prosperous ...

Industry

Industrially, Enkhuizen is home to a number of seed production companies,

Enza Zaden Enza Zaden is a vegetable breeding company from Enkhuizen
Enza Zaden web site - Head Office. in < ...

Syngenta Syngenta AG is a provider of agricultural science and technology, in particular seeds and pesticides with its management headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. It is owned by ChemChina, a Chinese state-owned enterprise. Syngenta was founded in 2 ...

Monsanto The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best known product is Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbicide, developed in th ...

, as well as a

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

s factory. Tourism is a large part of the economy, too.

Population centres

The municipality of Enkhuizen consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Enkhuizen, Oosterdijk, Westeinde.

Local government

The municipal council of Enkhuizen consists of 17 seats, which are divided as follows:

Transport

Enkhuizen station offers direct rail service to

and

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

Heerlen Heerlen (; li, Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg. ...

, with the journey to

Amsterdam Centraal Amsterdam Centraal Station ( nl, italic=no, Station Amsterdam Centraal ; abbreviation: Asd) is the largest railway station in Amsterdam, North Holland, the Netherlands. A major international railway hub, it is used by 192,000 passengers a day, m ...

of around an hour. Furthermore, during summer

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

for pedestrians and cyclists operate between Enkhuizen and

Stavoren Stavoren (; fry, Starum; previously Staveren) is a city in the province of Friesland, Netherlands, on the coast of the IJsselmeer, about 5 km (3.1 mi) south of Hindeloopen, in the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân. Stavoren had a population ...

; between Enkhuizen and

; and between Enkhuizen and

Urk Urk () is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Urk is first mentioned in historical records dating to the 10th century, when it was still an island in the Zuiderzee, an inland sea that would become part ...

. It is also possible to drive or cycle across the

Houtribdijk The Houtribdijk is a dam in the Netherlands, built between 1963 and 1975 as part of the Zuiderzee Works, which connects the cities of Lelystad and Enkhuizen. On the west side of the dike is the Markermeer and on the east is the IJsselmeer. The 2 ...

Lelystad Lelystad () is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdi ...

, passing under a

naviduct A naviduct is a special class of navigable aqueduct, in which the waterway also includes a lock. One example of a naviduct has been built at Enkhuizen on the Houtribdijk in the Netherlands on the instructions of the Rijkswaterstaat. This cost ove ...

near the Krabbersgat lock.

Notable buildings

* Evangelical Lutheran Church (Enkhuizen) *

St Francis Xavier Church, Enkhuizen St Francis Xavier Church (Dutch language, Dutch, ''Sint-Franciscus Xaveriuskerk'') is a Roman Catholic Parish church in Enkhuizen, West Friesland (region), West Friesland, Netherlands. It was founded and is run by the Society of Jesus and is in th ...

Notable residents

Public thought and public service

Lucas Janszoon Waghenaer Lucas Janszoon Waghenaer (–) was a Dutch cartographer and a notable figure of the Golden Age of Netherlandish cartography, known for his pioneering contributions on the subject of nautical cartography. Career Seafaring Waghenaer is one ...

(ca.1534–1606) nautical cartographer * Franciscus Maelson (1538–1601) a Dutch physician and statesman *

Dirck Gerritsz Pomp Dirck Gerritszoon Pomp, alias Dirck China (1544 – c. 1608), was a Dutch sailor of the 16th–17th century, and the first known Dutchman to visit China and Japan. Pomp was born in Enkhuizen in the Burgundian Netherlands. As a youth, he was sent i ...

(1544–ca.1608) a sailor, the first known Dutch visitor to China and Japan * Jan Huyghen van Linschoten (1563–1611), merchant, trader and historian * Joris Carolus (ca.1566-ca.1636) a Dutch cartographer and explorer * Johannes Antonides van der Linden (1609–1664) a Dutch physician, botanist and author *

Hermann Witsius Hermann Witsius (Herman Wits or in Latin Hermannus Witsius; 12 February 1636 – 22 October 1708, aged 72) was a Dutch theologian. Life He was born at Enkhuizen. He studied at the University of Groningen, Leiden, and Utrecht. He was ordained i ...

(1636–1708) a Dutch theologian *

Cornelis Jan Simonsz Cornelis Jan Simonsz ( – ) was a Governor of Dutch Ceylon from 11 May 1703 until 22 November 1707. Simonsz's exact birth day is unknown, but he is known to have been baptized on 14 October 1661 in Enkhuizen. He studied law and married Agnes A ...

(ca.1661–ca.1727) a

Governor of Dutch Ceylon 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 on 12 May 1656. The first governor, Wi ...

1703/1707 *

Jacob Mossel Jacob Mossel (28 November 1704 – 15 May 1761) went from being a common sailor to become Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies from 1750 to 1761. He was of noble birth, born in Enkhuizen. When he was 15 he left as an able-bodied seaman abo ...

(1704– 1761) sailor and

Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies The governor-general of the Dutch East Indies ( nl, gouverneur-generaal van Nederlands Indië) represented Dutch rule in the Dutch East Indies between 1610 and Dutch recognition of the independence of Indonesia in 1949. Occupied by Japanese fo ...

1750/1761 *

Jan Baas J.G.A. "Jan" Baas (born October 24, 1950) is a Dutch politician. He is a member of the Labour Party (PvdA). Baas was an alderman of Beverwijk from 1990 to 1996 and mayor of Wieringen from 1996 to 2004. Since 2004 he has been mayor of Enkhuizen ...

(born 1950) a Dutch politician and Mayor of Enkhuizen *

Gerrit Zalm Gerrit Zalm (born 6 May 1952) is a retired Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and businessman. Zalm studied Economics at the Free University Amsterdam obtaining a Master of Economics degree and worked as a ci ...

(born 1952), banker, former

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

Stef Blok Stephanus Abraham "Stef" Blok (born 10 December 1964) is a Dutch politician serving as Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy in the Third Rutte cabinet from 25 May 2021 till 10 January 2022. He is a member of the People's Party for Fr ...

(born 1964) a Dutch politician and

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

The arts

* Pieter Symonsz Potter (1597–1652) a

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( nl, Gouden Eeuw ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands, roughly spanning the era from 1588 (the birth of the Dutch Republic) to 1672 (the Rampjaar, "Disaster Year"), in which Dutch trade, science, and Dutch art, ...

painter *

Willem Bartsius Willem Bartsius (1612, Enkhuizen – 1657, Enkhuizen), was a Dutch Golden Age painter. Biography According to Houbraken, who mentioned his sister as Paulus Potter's mother, his father was Paulus Bertius, the city secretary of Enkhuizen, and hi ...

(1612–1657) a

painter. *

Jacob Steendam Jacob Jacobsz Steendam (1615 in KniphausenSteendam (Jacob Jacobsz.)
...

(1615– ca.1672) a Dutch poet and minister Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography, Steendam, Jacob
retrieved 20 September 2019 *

Paulus Potter Paulus Potter (; 20 November 1625 (baptised) – 17 January 1654 (buried)) was a Dutch painter who specialized in animals within landscapes, usually with a low vantage point. Before Potter died of tuberculosis at the age of 28 he succeeded in p ...

(1625–1654), painter * Pieter Gallis (1633–1697) a

painter * Dirck Ferreris (1639–1693) a

painter * Jos Lussenburg (1889–1975) a Dutch painter and musician * Matthijs Verschoor (born 1955) a Dutch classical pianist and academic

Science and business

* Jan Verbruggen (1712–1781) a Dutch master gun-founder and an artist * David de Gorter (1717–1783) a Dutch physician, botanist and academic * Gerbrand Bakker (physician), Gerbrand Bakker (1771–1828), physician, professor at the University of Groningen * Harm Bart (born 1942) a Dutch mathematician, economist and academic

Sport

* Corry Vreeken (born 1928) a Dutch chess Women's Grandmaster * Nel Zwier (1936–2001) a Dutch high jumper, competed at the 1960 Summer Olympics * Eljo Kuiler (born 1946) a former diver, competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics * Wijda Mazereeuw (born 1953) a Dutch swimmer, competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics, 1972 & 1976 Summer Olympics

Gallery

File:Enkhuizen, NSstation foto2 2010-06-05 09.12.JPG, Enkhuizen, railway station File:Enkhuizen, de Koepoort foto5 2010-06-05 10.03.JPG, Enkhuizen, gate: de Koepoort File:Enkhuizen, de Drommedaris RM464878 foto4 2015-10-11 10.53.jpg, Enkhuizen, town gate: de Drommedaris File:Dromedaris met de Bocht.jpg, Enkhuizen in winter

References

Citations

Sources

External links

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