Katwijk (), also spelled Katwyk, is a coastal municipality and town in the province of
South Holland
South Holland ( nl, Zuid-Holland ) is a province of the Netherlands with a population of over 3.7 million as of October 2021 and a population density of about , making it the country's most populous province and one of the world's most densely ...
, which is situated in the mid-western part of 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 ...
.
The Oude Rijn ("Old Rhine") river flows through the town and into the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
.
Katwijk is located on the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
, northwest of
Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
and 16 km north of
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
. It shares its borders with the municipalities of
Noordwijk
Noordwijk () is a town and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water and had a population of in .
On 1 January 2019, the former municipality of Noordwij ...
,
Teylingen
Teylingen () is a municipality in the Western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. It was created on 1 January 2006, through the amalgamation of Sassenheim, Voorhout and Warmond. It is named after Teylingen Castle, located in Voorhout. In ...
,
Oegstgeest
Oegstgeest () is a town and municipality in the province of South Holland in the western Netherlands. Its population was in .
Etymology
The portion ''geest'' in the name refers to the geest lands, which were excavated in the seventeenth cent ...
,
Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
, and
Wassenaar
Wassenaar (; population: in ) is a municipality and town located in the province of South Holland, on the western coast of the Netherlands.
An affluent suburb of The Hague, Wassenaar lies north of that city on the N44/A44 highway near the Nort ...
.
In August 2020, Katwijk had a population of 65.929 and covers an area of , of which is water.
Katwijk is by far the largest town in 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 H ...
("Dune and Bulb Region").
Districts
The town consists of a number of districts, including namesakes Katwijk aan den Rijn and Katwijk aan Zee. On 1 January 2005 the various districts had the following populations:
:*
Katwijk aan den Rijn
Katwijk aan den Rijn (Katwijk on the Rhine) is a town in the municipality of Katwijk in the province of South Holland, in The Netherlands, with approximately 6020 inhabitants. Katwijk aan den Rijn lies between Katwijk aan Zee, Valkenburg and Rijn ...
(5,916)
:*
Katwijk aan Zee
Katwijk aan Zee (literally, ''Katwijk-upon-Sea'') is a seaside resort located on the North Sea at the mouth of the Oude Rijn. It is situated in the municipality of Katwijk and the province of South Holland.
History
The Origin till the Gol ...
Rijnsburg
Rijnsburg () is a village in the eastern part of the municipality of Katwijk, in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The name means Rhine's wikt:Special:Search/burg, Burg in Dutch.
History
The history starts way before the ...
(15,450)
:* Valkenburg (3,904)
Lying on the coast, Katwijk aan Zee is (and has always been) the larger town. Katwijk aan den Rijn lies just slightly inland. Rijnsburg is situated east of Katwijk aan den Rijn whereas Valkenburg finds itself to the south. Katwijk-Noord is situated north of Katwijk aan Zee.
Although consisting of historically separate towns (except Katwijk-Noord) that still today maintain separate identities, the towns have more or less grown together and merged into a single conurbation. The creation of the municipality of Katwijk is a recognition of that fact. The town hall of the current municipality of Katwijk is located in Katwijk aan den Rijn, near the boundary of Katwijk aan Zee. All these districts lie along the Oude Rijn.
History
The name "Katwijk" probably has its origins in the name of a Germanic tribe called the
Chatten
The Chatti (also Chatthi or Catti) were an ancient Germanic tribe
whose homeland was near the upper Weser (''Visurgis''). They lived in central and northern Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, along the upper reaches of that river and in the valle ...
(Chatti). The Dutch word "''wijk''" means "area", so the name probably meant something like "the Chatti area".
In Romans times, Katwijk was a place of strategic importance. It was located at the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
's northern border, at the mouth of the Rhine river, which in Roman times was larger in this area than it is today. There was a good deal of traffic along the Rhine. Katwijk was also a jumping-off point for the voyage to Britain.
Built during the reign of
Emperor Claudius
Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Drusus and Antonia Minor a ...
(41-54), the town's name was ''
Lugdunum Batavorum
Brittenburg was a Roman ruin site west of Leiden between Katwijk aan Zee and Noordwijk aan Zee, presumably identical to the even older Celtic Lugdunum fortress. The site is first mentioned in 1401, was uncovered more completely by storm erosion ...
''. The town's name was later associated with the name of the city of Leiden, but this is now thought to be incorrect.
In 1231, the first reference to ''Catwijck'' appeared in records.
The history of the modern municipality of Katwijk is essentially the history of its constituent parts, which for each village extends back to Roman times. However, Katwijk aan Zee, Katwijk aan den Rijn and Valkenburg were part of the same
heerlijkheid
A ''heerlijkheid'' (a Dutch word; pl. ''heerlijkheden''; also called ''heerschap''; Latin: ''Dominium'') was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas in the Dutch-speaking Low Countries before 1800. ...
called "Beide de Katwijken en 't Zand" (or something similar). They have been administratively joined for centuries despite their differing characters. Katwijk aan Zee was a fishing town and Katwijk aan den Rijn had an agricultural character.
During World War II, Katwijk aan Zee was heavily damaged. On 1 May 1942 beach access was no longer permitted and large scale evacuation took place. From October 1943 houses were demolished as part of the construction 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 ...
.
On 1 January 2006,
Rijnsburg
Rijnsburg () is a village in the eastern part of the municipality of Katwijk, in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The name means Rhine's wikt:Special:Search/burg, Burg in Dutch.
History
The history starts way before the ...
and Valkenburg were also merged into the municipality, it's called nowadays Katwijk.
Public transportation
Katwijk is a larger town in the Netherlands without a railway station, and the largest without any railway connection. The nearest railway stations are Voorhout and Leiden. Katwijk is connected by bus with
Noordwijk
Noordwijk () is a town and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water and had a population of in .
On 1 January 2019, the former municipality of Noordwij ...
,
Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
,
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
and
Lisse
Lisse () is a town and municipality in the province of South Holland in the Western Netherlands. The municipality, which lies within the Duin- en Bollenstreek, covers an area of of which is water. Its population was in . Located within the muni ...
. The public transport by bus is served by
Arriva
Arriva plc is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Sunderland, England.N206 to Leiden Centraal. During the day, this bus departs every 15 minutes in every direction.
* Bus 431 - Travels from Katwijk Boulevard-South via Vuurbaak, Boulevard, Tramstraat and Zeeweg to the N206 to Leiden, where it ends at the railway station. During the day, this bus departs every 15 minutes (every 10 minutes during morning rush hour).
* Bus 35 - Local bus service, running from Duinvallei to Unmanned Valley
* Bus 38 - Travels from Katwijk Raadhuis via Kon. Julianalaan and Zanderij through Valkenburg to Leiden Centraal, once an hour.
* Bus 90 - Travels from
Lisse
Lisse () is a town and municipality in the province of South Holland in the Western Netherlands. The municipality, which lies within the Duin- en Bollenstreek, covers an area of of which is water. Its population was in . Located within the muni ...
,
Noordwijkerhout
Noordwijkerhout () is a town and former municipality in the western part of the Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The town is currently part of the municipality of Noordwijk and lies in the bulb-growing region (the Duin- en Bollenstree ...
,
Noordwijk
Noordwijk () is a town and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water and had a population of in .
On 1 January 2019, the former municipality of Noordwij ...
, Katwijk, Rijnsburg, Oegstgeest to Leiden Centraal, twice an hour. Buses on this route have been converted to allow bicycles to be brought onto the bus. Bus 90 took over the route from bus 37 (Katwijk to Leiden and back)
* Q-liner 385 - Q-liner 385 travels from
Sassenheim railway station
Sassenheim is a railway station in Sassenheim, Netherlands and is situated on the Schiphollijn (Weesp - Leiden). Construction began in 2009 and the station was opened on 9 December 2011, while train services started on 11 December 2011. The statio ...
, via Katwijk to The Hague Central railway station.
Additionally, Rijnsburg and the far northeastern part of Katwijk-Noord are served by bus 20 and 21, running between Noordwijk and Leiden. Peak hour buses connect industrial zones with surrounding municipalities.
Notable people
*
Charley Toorop
Charley Toorop (24 March 1891 – 5 November 1955) was a Dutch painter and lithographer. Her full name was Annie Caroline Pontifex Fernhout-Toorop.
Life
Charley Toorop was born in Katwijk. She was the daughter of Jan Toorop and Annie Hall. ...
(1891 in Katwijk – 1955) a Dutch painter and lithographer
*
Esther Ouwehand
Esther Ouwehand (born 10 June 1976) is a Dutch politician and former marketing manager serving as leader of the Party for the Animals ( nl, Partij voor de Dieren, PvdD) and its parliamentary group in the House of Representatives since 2019. She ...
(born 1976 in Katwijk) a politician, parliamentarian for the
Party for the Animals
The Party for the Animals ( nl, Partij voor de Dieren; PvdD) is a List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands. Among its main goals are animal rights and animal welfare.
Since 2019, the PvdD's political lead ...
Sport
* Willem Driebergen (1892 in Katwijk aan Zee – 1965) a Dutch fencer, competed in the individual and team épée events at the
1928
Events January
* January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA.
* January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...
and
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...
*
Cees de Vreugd
Cees de Vreugd, also known as "Kees de Vreugd" (9 March 1952 – 7 October 1998) was a butcher, strongman (strength athlete), strongman and powerlifting, powerlifter from Katwijk, Netherlands. He finished third at the World's Strongest Man game ...
, (1952 in Katwijk – 1998) a butcher, strongman and powerlifter
*
Jan Siemerink
Johannes Martinus ("Jan") Siemerink (born 14 April 1970) is a retired tennis player from the Netherlands. The former Dutch Davis Cup captain reached a career-high ATP ranking of 14.
Career Tennis
As a junior player, Siemerink was the Dutch 18- ...
(born 1970 in Rijnsburg) a retired tennis player
*
Petra Grimbergen
Petra de Boer-Grimbergen (born 4 July 1970) is a former female road and track racing cyclist and long track speed skating, speed skater from the Netherlands. She competed in the Cycling at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Women's road race, individua ...
(born 1970 in Rijnsburg) a female road and track racing cyclist, competed at the
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
*
Jeffrey Talan
Jeffrey Dennis Talan (born 29 September 1971) is a Dutch professional football coach and former player who is the assistant coach of Almere City. He gained 8 caps for the Netherlands national football team, in which he scored once.
Club career D ...
(born 1971 in Katwijk) a former professional Dutch international footballer with over 250 club caps
*
Marcus van Teijlingen
Marcus van Teijlingen (born 20 March 1973 in Rijnsburg) is a Dutch dance instructor and professional Latin-American dancer. His regular dance partner was Nathalie Kip. He has been working full-time as a dance instructor in Groningen since 2004.
...
(born 1973 in Rijnsburg) a Dutch dance instructor and professional Latin-American dancer
*
Dirk Kuyt
Dirk Kuijt (anglicised to Kuyt, ; born 22 July 1980) is a Dutch former professional footballer and was the head coach of Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag. Originally starting out as a striker, he played much of his career as a winger.
Kuyt beg ...
(born 1980 in Katwijk) a Dutch former professional footballer with 636 club caps
*
Petra Hogewoning
Petra Marieka Jacoba Hogewoning (; born 26 March 1986) is a Dutch retired football defender. She played for clubs in the Netherlands, Russia, the United States and Germany, as well as for the Netherlands women's national football team.
Club c ...
(born 1986 in Rijnsburg) a Dutch retired football defender
* Nick Driebergen (born 1987 in Rijnsburg) a Dutch former backstroke swimmer, competed at the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
* Jaap van Duijn (born 1990 in Katwijk) a Dutch football striker
*
Dirk van Duijvenbode
Dirk van Duijvenbode (born 30 June 1992) is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is known for his energetic walk-on, combined with hardstyle music. More recently, he has become known for ...
(born 1992 in Katwijk aan Zee) a Dutch
Professional Darts Corporation
The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) is a professional darts organisation in the United Kingdom, established in 1992 when a group of leading players split from the British Darts Organisation (BDO) to form what was initially called the World ...
player
*
Arno Kamminga
Arno Kamminga (born 22 October 1995) is a Dutch swimmer. He won silver medals in the 100 metre breaststroke and 200 metre breaststroke events at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
He competed in the men's 50 metre breaststroke event at the 2017 World ...
(born 1995 in Katwijk) a Dutch breaststroke swimmer, competed at the
2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
Popular Culture
*The fictional operator 'Iana' from the game
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
''Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege'' is an online tactical shooter video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on December 1, 2015; the game was ...
Katwijk is a seaside resort with a wide sandy beach. Its attractiveness is mainly due to its laid-back atmosphere. The boulevard along the shore is not spoiled by large hotels or apartment blocks and has not given in to an excessive commercialisation. Although most buildings lining the boulevard are tourist apartments and pensions, most are just three floors high (and none more than five) and offer a distinctive 'feel' of the 1950s. Besides the beach, there are a few museums in Katwijk, like the old fisherman's museum Katwijks Museum and the
Spinoza
Baruch (de) Spinoza (born Bento de Espinosa; later as an author and a correspondent ''Benedictus de Spinoza'', anglicized to ''Benedict de Spinoza''; 24 November 1632 – 21 February 1677) was a Dutch philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin, b ...
narrow-gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...
railway museum where a scenic
steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...
driven train ride can be taken around Lake Valkenburg. Katwijk has many hotels and three camping places, mostly situated in the
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, f ...
s.
Twin towns
Miscellaneous
*Katwijk was the landing point for the
TAT-14
TAT-14 was the 14th consortium transatlantic telecommunications cable system. In operation from 2001 to 2020, it used wavelength division multiplexing. The cable system was built from multiple pairs of fibres—one fibre in each pair was used fo ...
international telecommunications cable.
*Just north of the Katwijk-Noord district, European space research center ESTEC is located in the municipality of Noordwijk (although several kilometers from the village of Noordwijk).
Image gallery
File:Katwijk overzicht vanuit de vuurbaak.jpg, View from the lighthouse
File:Boulevard Katwijk aan Zee 2.jpg, South boulevard
File:Prins Hendrikkanaal (haven) Katwijk.jpg, Prins Hendrikkade
File:Katwijk - Cycling on the boulevard on a sunny day.jpg, Boulevard near the towncenter.
File:Katwijk aan Zee, Koninginneweg, Netherlands - panoramio (1).jpg, Koninginneweg
File:Afbraak, evacuatie en wederopbouw, Netherlands - Katwijk.jpg, Monument in remembrance of the partial demolition and evacuation of Katwijk during World War II.
Image:Tram met museum op achtergrond.jpg, Steam tram at tramstop Valkenburgse Meer, with narrow gauge museum at the background
Image:Turfmarkt Katwijk.jpg, ''Old Rhine'' with Turfmarkt square at the background