Tijdschrift voor Historische Geografie - Volume 7, Issue 2, 2022

Historical land use and landscape management in the Schiermonnikoog National Park

The interest in heritage management is increasing within the Schiermonnikoog National Park. The landscape management organization Natuurmonumenten strives to include heritage conservation in landscape management. So far, there has been a lack of knowledge about the historical land use and heritage in the dunes and the salt marshes. A historical-geographical analysis contributes to our knowledge. The analysis shows that land use has been diverse: agriculture and livestock, hunting and fishing, infrastructure and settlements, and water management. This is also reflected in the number, type and location of relics that can be recognized in the landscape today. It can be concluded that the cultural landscape up to 1970 can be characterized as a self-sufficient landscape. This is due to the diversity of land use and the coherence between different functions, which makes the cultural landscape more than just the result of an agrarian-maritime culture. From the 1970s, a switch took place to a rural-recreational culture on the island. The present landscape can be characterized as an experience landscape. Over the centuries, the dunes and salt marshes have been used extensively to intensively. From the field of management, more intensive management of the dunes and salt marshes suites the history of the island, which is in line with the arcadian image of nature.

Climate-proof Kley

Historical landscape features and adaptations to the water and agricultural system of the Klei-Oldambt

Climate change is noticeable not only world-wide but also locally. This forces us to adapt to these changing circumstances by taking adaptation measures. Within this process the historical features of the landscapes are under pressure since there are barely any means to protect them. This can change if these historical features of the landscape are the starting point of climate adaptation projects.

Berkenrijs on Voorne: from imperial coppice to caravan park

Berkenrijs means ‘birch coppice’, which was formerly used for the periodic harvesting of branches and twigs. On Voorne, ‘Berkenrijs’ is a field name that appears in records and on maps from the Middle Ages onwards. Now there are still street names: Berkenrijs, Berkenrijspad and Berkenrijsweg, all near the old Limiet between the former lordships of Rockanje and Oostvoorne. There is no longer any birch wood to be found here, but there is a single row of alders. If the land had remained the property of large landowners, coppices along the inner dune fringe would have often turned into standing wood, such as on the Voorne estates of Mildenburg and Kranenhout. After the old imperial estate Berkenrijs was given an agricultural purpose, probably not until the 20th century, it even ended up as a caravan park. In the protected village landscape established by the state (Ontginningen Voornes Duin, 2017), Berkenrijs appears to be a blind spot.

Did the use of the word ‘rabat’ in forestry originate in the Netherlands or Germany?

‘Rabatten’ are common historical relics in Dutch forests. These earth banks with ditches in between for drainage were used to grow trees in wet areas. In the recently published article Wat betekent ‘rabat’ en sinds wanneer leggen we bossen op rabatten? (What does ‘rabat’ mean and since when do we use ‘rabatten’ in forestry?)Mulder & Toorians (2021) provide an explanation for the origin of the word ‘rabat’ and its use in forestry. This originally French term has been used in Dutch garden architecture since the 17th century to indicate the outer planting beds in gardens. According to the authors the word ‘rabat’ subsequently was used in Dutch forestry. They conclude that the forestry meaning of ‘rabat’ is typically Dutch. However, a closer look at the historical German forestry literature seems to contradict this conclusion.