Beerta () is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

and former municipality with a population of 2,205 in the municipality of Oldambt in the province of Groningen 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 20th century, Beerta was a communist stronghold. In 1933, the municipal council was dismissed by the government, and was ruled by a until 1935. Between 1982 and 1990, Beerta was the only municipality with a communist mayor.

Etymology

Beerta means "place with houses" (English: neigh''boor''hood; Frisian: '' buorren'') The name was sometimes explained as relating to the 12th century which was lost in a flood, however the monastery has been excavated in Hesel, East Frisia, Germany in 1988.

History

The Dollart is a bay in the Wadden Sea which was gradually expanding in size. Around 1600, it peaked at around . Beerta was located on higher ground, and became a peninsula in the bay. The village dates from the 11th century. The expanding Dollart implied that parts of Beerta were moved to higher ground. The Saint Bartholomew Church dates from between 1506 and 1508, and was partially constructed using material of a 1462 church. The poldering of the Dollart resulted in a large areas of cultivated land, and in the mid-19th century, Beerta became a prosperous village with an elite of rich farmers. In 1840, it was home to 3,189 people. The disparity in wealth resulted in the emergence of communists. In 1919, the first communists were elected to the municipal council. Beerta was a separate municipality until 1990, when it merged with Finsterwolde and Nieuweschans to form a new municipality that was initially also called Beerta, but was renamed

Reiderland Reiderland () is a former municipality in the province Groningen in the northeastern Netherlands, which was founded in 1990 during a large municipal reorganisation. The former municipalities Finsterwolde and Bad Nieuweschans were abolished and add ...

one year later. In 2010, Reiderland merged into the new municipality of Oldambt.

Communism

In 1919, the first communists were elected to the municipal council. Beerta became a

Communist Party of the Netherlands The Communist Party of the Netherlands ( nl, Communistische Partij Nederland, , CPN) was a Dutch communist party. The party was founded in 1909 as the Social-Democratic Party (SDP) and merged with the Pacifist Socialist Party, the Political Part ...

(CPN) stronghold, and in 1933, it became the largest party. In December 1933, the States General of the Netherlands dissolved the municipal council claiming an ungovernable situation, and appointed a to rule the municipality. The CPN won again in the 1935 election, however the Social Democratic Workers' Party defected and formed a majority coalition with the other parties. Beerta would continue to be ruled by a coalition which excluded the CPN until 1966 when the communist party won the elections with an absolute majority. In 1982, Hanneke Jagersma of the CPN became the mayor of Beerta. She was the first and only communist mayor in the Netherlands. In 1989, the CPN abandoned its Marxist–Leninist roots and merged into

GroenLinks GroenLinks (, ) is a green political party in the Netherlands. It was formed on 1 March 1989 from the merger of four left-wing parties: the Communist Party of the Netherlands, the Pacifist Socialist Party, the Political Party of Radicals and t ...

, however Jagersma did not join the new party. In 1990, Beerta was merged into

and Jagersma was no longer mayor.

Geography

Beerta is situated in the municipality of Oldambt and the (historical) region of Oldambt in the east of the province of Groningen in the northeast of the

. To the southwest of Beerta is

Winschoten Winschoten (; gos, Winschoot) is a city with a population of 18,518 in the municipality of Oldambt in the northeast of the Netherlands. It is the largest city in the region of Oldambt in the province of Groningen which has 38,213 inhabitants. ...

, to the west is

Blauwestad Blauwestad () is a village in the municipality of Oldambt in the Netherlands. It is situated on the east bank of the Oldambtmeer in the east of the province of Groningen. History After the Oldambtmeer was created in 2005, the village of Blauw ...

, to the north is Finsterwolde, to the east is Bad Nieuweschans, to the southeast is Bellingwolde, and to the south is Blijham. North of Beerta is the Dollart, which is part of the Wadden Sea, to the west is the

Oldambtmeer Oldambtmeer (; en, Oldambt Lake) is an artificial lake of more than 800 hectares (ha) in the municipality of Oldambt in the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sover ...

, and to the southeast are the rivers Westerwoldse Aa and Pekel Aa. The former municipality of Beerta included the settlements Drieborg, Nieuw-Beerta, Nieuwe Statenzijl, Oudezijl, Oude Statenzijl, Ulsda, and Winschoterzijl.

Notable people

Hans Hateboer Hans Hateboer (born 9 January 1994) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Atalanta and the Netherlands national team. A Groningen youth product, Hateboer spent three-and-a-half Eredivisie seasons with the club ...

(born 1994), footballer *

Jurrie Koolhof Jurjen Jacob (Jurrie) Koolhof (10 January 1960 – 28 January 2019) was a Dutch international football striker and manager. As a player, Koolhof had a long and productive career, with 190 league goals. He played for a number of clubs in the Ne ...

(1960–2019), football striker and manager * Harry Powers (1893–1932), American serial killer * Marcus Slingenberg (1881–1941), politician and former minister of Social Affairs

Gallery

File:Beestenboel, Beerta (2019) 01.jpg, Residential house with a pet shop File:Exterieur OVERZICHT VOORGEVEL - Beerta - 20260839 - RCE.jpg, Farm File:Beersterplas - panoramio.jpg, Beersterplas File:Garage in ambachtelijk-traditionele stijl 1927 - 1.jpg, Carriage house

References

External links

* {{Authority control Former municipalities of Groningen (province) Oldambt (municipality) Populated places in Groningen (province)