Sommelsdijk is a village on the island Goeree-Overflakkee

Goeree-Overflakkee

Goeree-Overflakkee is the southernmost delta island of the province of South Holland, Netherlands. It is separated from Voorne-Putten and Hoeksche Waard by the Haringvliet, from the mainland of North Brabant by the Volkerak, and from Schouwen-Duiveland by Lake Grevelingen.From west to east, it...

, South Holland

South Holland

South Holland is a province situated on the North Sea in the western part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is The Hague and its largest city is Rotterdam.South Holland is one of the most densely populated and industrialised areas in the world...

, the Netherlands. Together with Nieuwe-Tonge, Middelharnis

Middelharnis

Middelharnis is a municipality and a village in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 86.79 km² ....

, and Stad aan 't Haringvliet

Stad aan 't Haringvliet

Stad aan 't Haringvliet is a town in the Dutch province of South Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Middelharnis, and lies about 12 km southeast of Hellevoetsluis. The name means City on the Haringvliet...

, it is part of the municipality of Middelharnis

Middelharnis

Middelharnis is a municipality and a village in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 86.79 km² ....

. Other places nearby are Melissant

Melissant

Melissant is a village in the Dutch province of South Holland. It is located on the island Goeree-Overflakkee, in the municipality of Dirksland.Melissant was a separate municipality from 1817 until 1966, when it became part of Dirksland....

, Ouddorp, and Dirksland

Dirksland

Dirksland is a town and municipality on Goeree-Overflakkee Island in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality had a population of 8,269 in 2004, and covers an area of 74.15 km² of which 18.59 km² is water.The municipality of Dirksland also includes...

. Sommelsdijk has (1 January 2006) 7383 inhabitants which makes it the largest settlement on the island.

In the past, Sommelsdijk was the only place on Goeree-Overflakee Island that was part of the province Zeeland

Zeeland

Zeeland , also called Zealand in English, is the westernmost province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the south-west of the country, consists of a number of islands and a strip bordering Belgium. Its capital is Middelburg. With a population of about 380,000, its area is about...

. In 1805 it was transferred to Holland, and remained such by the amendment of the Dutch Constitution

Constitution of the Netherlands

The Constitution of the Netherlands is the fundamental law of the European territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The present constitution is generally seen as directly derived from the one issued in 1815, constituting a constitutional monarchy. A revision in 1848 instituted a system of...

 of 1814.

Early March 1941 during the Second World War, nearly two hundred young men from Sommelsdijk were incarcerated for one month because of insulting the German army and the Dutch police.

Sommelsdijk was a separate municipality until 1966, when it became part of Middelharnis.

Attractions

The centre of Sommelsdijk is protected by the Dutch Monument Law. Its Reformed Church used to be the largest church on the island but not much remains of the original building because of several fires and other damage.

Next to the church is the Streekmuseum Sommelsdijk (Local Museum Sommelsdijk). The front street has several monumental buildings form the 17th and 18th century. On the western dike is a raised windmill.

Born in Sommelsdijk

• Theo van den Doel (31 May 1952), Dutch politician (VVD)
• Arie Luyendijk (21 September 1953), winner of the Indy 500 (1990, 1997)

External links

• Municipality Middelharnis official website Map of the former municipality, around 1868.