Holland - The land of windmills

History
It is not known for certain when the first mills came into being but by 1274 water mills, driven by rivers and streams, had becomefamiliar sight.In 1414 the earliest known drainage mills were invented and by 1450 many could be found in South Holland. The mills did not originate in Holland but were said to have been introduced to Europe by the Middle East during the times of the Crusades. 

The development of the mills, however, are most certainly attributable to Holland as it is unrivaled in the diversity of types of mills. The advent of technology, however, brought a quick end to the mill's usefulness. First the steam engines, the internal combustion and finally the electric motor, all gradually took over the jobs previously undertaken by the wind or the water. 

The mills were no longer profitable and were either destroyed or used for storage.By 1923 only three thousand out of 10 thousand mills remained which further declined to just over the one thousand remaining today. 

Various types 

The Dutch countryside contains two distinctive types of mills, the water mill and the windmill.The water mill can be found in the Eastern and Southern provinces of Twente, Oost-Veluwe, theAchterhoek, Oost-Brabant, and Limburg. These are the places where there was sufficient flow of water to drive the wheel of the mill.These mills were usually used as corn mills but they also produced paper, oil, and sawed timber.There are approximately 70 of these types left in Holland. The windmill is divided in two categories, the industrial mills and the drainage mills. The industrial mills were named according to their use, sawmill, etc., but have succumbed to modern technology (there are still a few left). The drainage mills keep the land behind the dykes free of surplus water thereby creating "polders" (reclaimed land). These mills are still working in some of the older polders. They are driven by catching the wind in their sails which in turn begins the millstones.There are approximately 975 windmills left and can be found dispersed throughout 12 provinces, with the majority residing in South Holland. 

The maintenance 

Some mill societies have been created to preserve the remaining thousand mills. The Dutch Windmill Society was founded in 1923. Its primary purpose was to maintain and operate the mills but it also ended up renovating and providing technical advice to others who wished to do the same. Another society is called the Guild of Voluntary Millers. Since the profession of miller has all but disappeared, the members of this guild keep the mills going as they had in the old days to prevent them from standing still and being left for deterioration. 

Speak a language 

The mills speak a language which can be read from the position of the sails. There are four positions; the celebration, mourning, brief resting, and longer time resting positions. In each position the sails will be slightly tilted one way or another so that the towns people will know what is occurring in the miller's life.Certain resting positions were also used to signal messages to confidants, such as letting the millwright know hisservices were required. During World War II, messages were relayed by prearranged signals used to warn people in hiding for the raidings.Although the number of mills has dropped, the image of the mill has and always will remain an integral part of Dutch society. Families, streets, places, and products frequently have the word mill in their names. Likewise references to the mill occur in Dutch-language proverbs.An irrational person is said to have "had a bang on his head from the windmill". 

The history of the windmills is preserved in six special windmill museums located throughout the Netherlands. De Valk Windmill Museum in Leiden, located between The Hague and Amsterdam, is situated in a mill built in 1743.It has been left in as much of its original state as possible including the original furniture of the last miller who resided there, Willem van Rhijn. 

A variety of mills are also featured at the Dutch Open Air Museum in Arnhem. Among the old houses, old factories, and farms stand 7thw`e proud windmills that have played such a significant role in the history of the country. Other windmill museums are located at Nieuw-Vossemeer in the province Noord Brabant, in Vijfhuizen near Heemstede, in Koogaan de Zaan, and in Schermerhorn.

Nineteen windmills can also be found at Kinderdijk near Rotterdam. When visiting the Netherlands, visitors may notice a "Blue Ribbon" attached to the mills. This occurs on the first Saturday of every month and means that these mills can be visited, often free of charge or for a minimal sum towards the upkeep. However, on a day when a mill is working visitors will most likely be more than welcome because the millers are proud of their mill and always pleased to show people around.