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  • UNESCO

From an island to a sea to a field

March 1, 2019 | Michael Turtle | 10 Comments

WORLD HERITAGE SITE

Schokland, The Netherlands

Driving along a road near the town of Ens in the north of the Netherlands, looking closely out the window at the right time, I can see a bit of land that’s slightly higher than the area around it.

It could just be a low hill, I suppose. Probably not the sort of thing that you would think about stopping to visit. There are low hills all around the world.

Don’t be fooled, though. This is no ordinary bit of land.

It is a symbol of the landscape here in the Netherlands – a history of thousands of years of endless battles between humans and nature to make this country inhabitable.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

This is Schokland. These days it is part of the fields of green that stretch out in every direction – but once it was an island, surrounded by sea, waves crashing on its shore.

It became an island after separating from the mainland in the 15th century. It was still inhabited, though.

The residents of the island were able to grow crops and the location was perfect for fishermen. Schokland grew into a small community with houses, public buildings, a church, and everything else you might expect.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

While the war the Dutch have been fighting against water has been never-ending, eventually the residents of Schokland lost an important battle. The sea was rising here and this small island community’s land was disappearing at a relatively fast rate.

There was an important fire beacon on the island that was critical for maritime activity so a lot of money was spent building defences around the land to protect it from the sea. Barriers of clay, manure, reeds and seagrass were all tried at some point.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

In the end, nothing could hold back the water. After centuries of defences, Schokland was abandoned in 1859 as the waves stopped crashing on the shore and instead flowed right over the top.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

History of Schokland

The history of Schokland goes back thousands of years and archaeological sites have been found here from the Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age periods.

There is evidence that this small patch of territory has been someone’s home as far back as 6,000 years ago. The Dutch weren’t going to let a rising sea break this legacy for too long.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

In the 1940s – about 80 years after Schokland was evacuated – an operation was put into place to reclaim the Zuider Zee.

Much like the Beemster Polder, which I have written about previously, this sophisticated plan cleared all the water.

Huge swathes of land became usable for residential and agricultural purposes. The island of Schokland not only re-emerged from underneath the sea, but became connected to everything around it.

A battle had finally been won – probably for good.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

Visiting Schokland, The Netherlands

It is possible to visit Schokland these days and almost all of the ‘island’ is accessible to the public. There is a small museum, which tells the story of the loss and reclamation. It also gives you an insight into the way of life in the centuries before the evacuation.

Other than the museum, the best way to see Shokland is to walk around the edge of the island – along the old shoreline.

It is a deceptively large area, though, and is actually about 5 kilometres wide. It takes me about an hour to leisurely walk a circular route of just half the area.

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

Schokland World Heritage Site, The Netherlands

Along the way are interesting bits of information on large boards, explaining a bit about the natural elements of the site and also some of the cultural history.

There are a few places along the walk where you’ll be able to see the foundations of old buildings, which seem a little out of place in such a vast and open area.

However, they are a reminder of why this space is so important and why it has been included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For more info click here. You can see all the UNESCO World Heritage Sites I’ve visited here.
Netherlands Travel Guide

WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE NETHERLANDS?

See my Netherlands Travel Guide

To help you plan your trip to the Netherlands:

  • What to expect in the historic centre of Amsterdam
  • The best art museums in Amsterdam
  • Explore the countryside of Van Gogh
  • The incredible factory that’s now a World Heritage Site
  • See the engineering genius of the Dutch firsthand
  • How the Dutch protected their capital by controlling water
  • For architecture fans, this house will blow your mind!
  • How a simple rabbit took over the world
  • Visit the best windmills in the Netherlands
  • How you can stay the night on a boat in Rotterdam’s port.

Let someone else do the work for you:

You may also want to consider taking a tour of the Netherlands, rather than organising everything on your own. It’s also a nice way to have company if you are travelling solo.

I am a ‘Wanderer’ with G Adventures and they have great tours of the Netherlands.

You could consider:

  • Berlin to London on a shoestring (6 days)
  • Budapest to London on a shoestring (12 days)
  • European Trail (26 days)

When I travel internationally, I always get insurance. It’s not worth the risk, in case there’s a medical emergency or another serious incident. I recommend you should use World Nomads for your trip.

Reader Interactions

    Comments Cancel reply

  1. Lissa |

    May 29, 2015 at 4:42 pm

    Reply

    Schokland sounds like a terrifying place to live. You never know if your home could be washed away into the ocean. At first I thought they must have gotten too much rain, but once I saw it was the ocean, it’s almost like a swamp.
    http://askmelissaanything.blogspot.com/

    • Michael Turtle |

      June 13, 2015 at 1:36 pm

      Reply

      Yeah, imagine living with that threat hanging over you – oh, the ocean might just rise and wash away your home. I guess it happened slowly in some respects, but I imagine when the barriers broke, it would come flooding in. Hard to think of it being an ocean when you look at it today, though!

  2. Chloë |

    May 30, 2015 at 8:32 pm

    Reply

    Cool blog and photos! We recently went here too. Working on a blog for our website now.

    • Michael Turtle |

      June 13, 2015 at 1:50 pm

      Reply

      That’s great to hear you went here as well. What did you think of it? You’ll have to share your blog when you write about it!

  3. JB & Renee |

    June 8, 2015 at 3:36 am

    Reply

    This is cool! I enjoy visiting UNESCO world heritage sites as well. What a fun goal to set for yourself to visit all UNESCO sites. Best of luck to you on your quest. 🙂

    • Michael Turtle |

      June 13, 2015 at 2:01 pm

      Reply

      Thanks for the wishes – yeah, it’s a fun goal and I always enjoy seeing these new places that I might not have visited otherwise. Sometimes they are visually stunning and sometimes they’re just interesting because of the history and you can learn more about the world.

  4. Mary @ Green Global Travel |

    August 1, 2015 at 11:30 pm

    Reply

    This is such a unique history! I love the foundations and boards explaining the natural and cultural elements of the area. This seems like a very interesting location, well-deserving of the World Heritage Site listing. Thanks for the post!

    • Michael Turtle |

      August 26, 2015 at 8:03 pm

      Reply

      It’s lucky they have the boards explaining everything – it’s necessary to appreciate the importance. Otherwise you might just think it’s a big field on first glance!! 🙂

  5. Handpan workshop les |

    September 25, 2019 at 7:21 pm

    Reply

    People always think we Dutch get washed away by the ocean whenever the sea level rises 😉 Luckily you’ve shown them otherwise. Really cool you visited the ‘not so obvious places’. That is real Holland 🙂

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This is the website of travel writer, Michael Turtle. After working in broadcast journalism for a decade in Australia, Michael left Sydney to travel the world indefinitely and write about the places, people and experiences he discovers. This isn't a diary - these are real stories from the world.

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