Some examples of the 10 criteria set out by UNESCO include stipulating that the monument represents "a masterpiece of human creative genius" or "major stages of earth's history", or exhibits "an important interchange of human values".
The 13 World Heritage Sites in the Netherlands
Ready to check out some of the most beautiful, intricate and advanced feats of Dutch engineering, sculpture and architecture, as well as experience the stunning natural wonder that is the Wadden Sea? Take a good look at this list and make sure to tick at least one of these sights off!
Most of the World Heritage monuments in the Netherlands are connected to the country’s waters, and how they were battled, controlled and used throughout history. Other sites focus more on striking examples of architecture from a certain time period.
Schokland and surroundings
Schokland (added to the list in 1995) is an elevated area near Emmeloord, that used to be an island in the Zuider Zee, a bay of the North Sea. The area has withstood flooding and tides as the sea engulfed its surroundings, making it an island in the 15th century. After a few centuries of habitation, the sea eventually forced the land to be evacuated.
The draining of the Zuider Zee in the 1940s reclaimed the land around Schokland, making it accessible once again. The area has historic vestiges of human habitation, and represents the tumultuous relationship the Netherlands has with the sea.
Archaeological finds have shown that people have been living on Schokland for more than 12.000 years. Today, Schokland is a popular archaeological site and museum and, in 1995, it was the first site in the Netherlands to be designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.
New Dutch Water Line (Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie)
The New Dutch Water Line is a series of defences designed to protect and fortify towns and cities located in low-lying areas of the Netherlands and is made up of 96 forts and 100 military locks, dikes and canals, and runs 220 kilometres through four provinces. It protected the western regions of the Netherlands from enemies by flooding large areas of land, but the forts were carefully designed so they would only flood around 30 centimetres, meaning the water was too shallow for boats to pass through.
This site is one of the newest additions to UNESCO's list, as the New Dutch Water Line was only granted World Heritage Status in 2021. It is, however, an extension of the Defense Line of Amsterdam (Stelling van Amsterdam) - a 135-kilometre ring of fortifications around Amsterdam - which received World Heritage Status back in 1996.
Mill network Kinderdijk-Elshout
The mill network at the Kinderdijk area is a group of 19 windmills that were built to keep excess water out of the polders (low-lying tracks of land that have been separated from water: flood plains or marshes). It is the largest concentration of old-style windmills in the Netherlands and has been designated a World Heritage Site since 1997.
The site is a legacy of the intricate constructions made to control, drain and handle the local waters from the Middle Ages to the present. Beside the famous windmills, the area contains dykes, reservoirs and pumping stations.
Ir. D.F. Wouda Steam Pumping Station
The Wouda Pumping Station in the province of Friesland (added to the list in 1998) is the largest steam pumping station ever built. It was opened in 1920 by Queen Wilhelmina and was built to pump excess water out of Friesland.
Beemster Polder
The Beemster Polder is the first polder in the Netherlands to be reclaimed. It was reclaimed from a lake through the use of windmills and was dried from 1609 to 1612, to create food and space for the ever growing cities. The area is laid out according to Classical and Renaissance grid planning.
The tight grid system of fields, canals, roads, dykes and settlements has been preserved largely intact and, because of this, as well as its historical significance, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1999. Beemster Polder’s waters are still actively managed to make sure the residential areas aren’t flooded.
Rietveld Schröder house
The Rietveld Schröder House (added to the list in 2000) was designed by the famous architect Gerrit Thomas Rietveld. It represents the Modern Movement in architecture, with its typical layout following the ideals of De Stijl (The Style), a famous Dutch art and design movement following a principle also known as neoplasticism. The house is one of the best-known examples of De Stijl architecture and possibly the only true representation of the style.
The Rietveld Schröder House was built in Utrecht in 1924 for its resident, Truus Schröder-Schräder. It is a small and sober family house, yet it has its own kind of extravagance with a flexible spatial arrangement, and a three-dimensional, asymmetrical composition. It used primary colours, straight surfaces. A system of sliding and revolving panels makes the building ever changing and dynamic.
Wadden Sea
The only natural site on this list, the Wadden Sea is an intertidal zone that stretches from Den Helder in the Netherlands, past the river estuaries in the north of Germany to its northern border at Skallingen in Denmark.
The Wadden Sea contains the largest unbroken system of mudflats (wadden) in the world. The Dutch Wadden contains its own, special ecosystem that’s heavily influenced by the tides. The surroundings are constantly in transition between sea and land, with salt marshes, dunes and beaches. Rare and interesting species of flora and fauna can be found in the surroundings, which are accustomed to a life half lived on land, and half in the water. Seals, porpoises and special birds are abundant.
Numerous dykes and causeways have been built to control the flooding in the area, making it the most human-altered habitat on the planet.
Canal ring of Amsterdam
The Canal Ring area of Amsterdam was formed in the 17th century, when Dutch cities were created in direct correlation with their canals due to the benefits in transport and defence. The network of canals runs through and around the old port town. Swamplands in the area were drained, and the canals came in their place, in order to extend the urban area. At the time, it was the largest example of urban extension of its kind, and served as an example to many projects to follow.
In 2010, the 17th-century canal ring area, which includes Prinsengracht, Keizersgracht, Herengracht and Jordaan, was listed as a UNESCO Heritage Site.
Van Nelle factory
The Van Nelle Factory is a huge factory on the Schie in Rotterdam. It was commissioned by the co-owner of the Van Nelle Company, on behalf of the owners. Designed by the architect Leendert van der Vlugt alongside J.G. Wiebenga, a civil engineer, in the early 1900s, it is considered a prime example of the International Style based on constructivist architecture and, on its completion, was described as “the most beautiful spectacle of the modern age” and “a poem in steel and glass”.
The factory was originally used for processing coffee, tea and tobacco and then for producing chewing gum, cigarettes, instant pudding and rice. It now houses office spaces, meeting rooms and conference rooms.
Lower Germanic Limes (Neder-Germaanse Limes)
The 2.000-year-old ruins of the Lower Germanic Limes mark the borders of the former Roman Empire. The 400-kilometre-long border runs along the Rhine river, from Cologne, through Nijmegen and Utrecht, to Katwijk, and was designed to protect the Roman Empire against northern Germanic tribes way back in the 1st century.
Historic Area of Willemstad, Inner City and Harbour
Willemstad is the capital city of Curaçao, an island in the Caribbean Sea that is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It used to be the capital of the Netherlands Antilles until its dissolution in 2010.
The city is beautiful, with unique architecture and four historic quarters that make up its city centre. It is also the home of the Curaçao synagogue, the oldest synagogue in the Americas. Due to its beauty, unique architecture and large natural harbour called the Schottegat, it was designated a World Heritage Site in 1997.
Colonies of Benevolence (Koloniën van Weldadigheid)
Last but not least, these 200-year-old settlements in Drenthe were established in the early 19th century in an attempt to combat poverty among the Dutch population. Families who settled in the Colonies of Benevolence were provided with a piece of land to farm and some cattle, and all children were forced to go to school and receive a proper education. The initiative was revolutionary, and while they weren’t particularly successful, the colonies are widely regarded as the beginning of the Dutch welfare state.
Requests for World Heritage status
To obtain a World Heritage Status, sites that are deemed worthy must first be requested to be added, and are put on the list of requested monument sites. The RACM (Dutch Governmental Organisation for Archaeology, Culture Landscapes and Monuments) has selected various Dutch monuments to apply for the status of World Heritage Monument, the top 100 of which you can find on an extended list.