Muiden

Muiden (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈmœy̯də(n)]) is a city and former municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It lies at the mouth of the Vecht and is in an area called the Vechtstreek. Since 2016, Muiden has been part of the new municipality of Gooise Meren.

History

The first known reference to Muiden is from 953 when Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, granted the settlement and its toll rights to Cathedral of Saint Martin, Utrecht. It was called Amuda, meaning "mouth of the (river) A". "A" was the old name for the Vecht river.

In 1122 Muiden was, together with Utrecht, granted some city rights by Emperor Henry V. After the lands around Muiden were given to Count Floris V, he began building Muider Castle at the mouth of the Vecht river. Muiden once again received city rights in 1296.

The first defensive works date from the first half of the 15th century. In 1590 the walls are replaced with earthen mounds with bastions after a design by Adriaen Anthonisz. Muiden was the northern end of the Dutch Water Line.

IJmuiden

IJmuiden (Dutch pronunciation: [ˌɛi̯ˈmœy̯də(n)]) is a port city in the Dutch province of North Holland and is the main town in the municipality of Velsen. It is located at the mouth of the North Sea Canal to Amsterdam, and lies approximately 17 kilometres (11 mi) north of Haarlem.

The internal capitalization in the city's spelling is because IJ is a digraph in Dutch, and is therefore sometimes considered to be a ligature, rendering it a single letter.

The port of IJmuiden is a deepwater port suited to fully laden Panamax ships, and fourth port of the Netherlands.

History

In the Roman era, this Velsen district was already inhabited, and archaeological finds at the impoldered lake of Wijkermeer indicate there was a North Sea port of some regional importance built here. Present day IJmuiden includes four harbors: the vissershaven (Ship's code IJM), a fishing dock (visafslag), the haringhaven, the IJmondhaven and the Seaport Marina IJmuiden, a harbour for pleasure craft. IJmuiden became the largest fishing port of the Netherlands after the island of Urk became closed in by the Afsluitdijk. The town suffered heavy damage and demolition during World War II, because of its maritime importance.