Middag-Humsterland
Unspoilt landscape with a rich history
In the green Westerkwartier lies the oldest cultural landscape of the Netherlands: the National Landscape Middag-Humsterland. Where the sea used to flow between the islands of Middag and Humsterland and people lived on residential mounds from the Iron Age onwards. Nowadays, when you visit the unspoilt landscape, the winding roads, the vast landscape, the meandering ditches and the still-preserved wierden betray its rich history.
High and dry
Even before the common era, sandbanks under the Wadden Islands developed into salt marshes with salt marsh grass. An ideal place for the first inhabitants and their sheep and cows. The only disadvantage was that the salt marshes were often flooded with seawater. To still be able to live in places that were regularly flooded, they built wide mounds around the era. On these, the inhabitants could live high and dry. As the sea left more and more layers of silt on the hills, higher and higher mounds were formed. These mound villages are perhaps the most characteristic part of Groningen.
Through gullies and gullies
A number of large intrusions by the sea created the Lauwerszee in the year 800. The water that flowed inland from the Lauwerszee via side channels cut through the land of Middag-Humsterland. The salt water gushed here through gullies and channels. This is how the two peninsulas Middag and Humsterland were formed. Between 1200 and 1700, the gullies that separated the two islands from the mainland slowly disappeared. Nowadays, the curved shapes of the ditches and roads remind you of the now silted mudflats between the islands.
Traces of the past
The fact that Middag-Humsterland is the oldest cultural landscape in the Netherlands is still clearly visible. The winding ditches and roads, the vast landscape and, of course, the various mound villages. These villages have remained part of contemporary life in many places. Winding cobbled paths lead you to the centre of the past. Often still the beating heart with shops and a village pub. And even though nothing remains of the first churches in Middag-Humsterland, which were built of wood, reeds and loam. A sturdy medieval church often still stands in the centre of the village.
Back in time
A residential mound in the Middag-Humsterland mound landscape that is definitely worth visiting is Niehove. Formerly the capital of Humsterland. Seen from above, Niehove is like a spider's web. All roads lead to the centre of the village. Walking along the narrow church paths, you imagine yourself back in time. Because as you stand here among the red-brick houses, so it was here centuries ago. Besides the mound villages, there is much more to discover in Middag-Humsterland. The wonderful landscape allows you to cycle, walk and look around for miles across vast meadows with historic farms, stately borgen and robust churches.
