Origins and early development of
Holland and
Zeeland granting privileges in 1255 to the Spaarndam
dijkgraaf and hoogheemraden, an organisation that would evolve into the
Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland. The methodical organisation of surface water household management emerged as lowlands were drained for agriculture. Dikes and water control structures were built and maintained by those directly benefiting from them, mostly farmers and landowners. As the structures got more extensive and complex, councils were formed by people with a common interest in controlling the water levels of their land. The first water councils were formed in the 12th century, often controlling a single polder or dike. As these collaborative groups became better organised, the
counts of Holland began granting charters to the boards. In 1255 a cooperating group of water boards in the
Old Rhine area was appointed by
Count William II of
Holland and
Zeeland to become central coordinator of all water course works in the area under the name "High Water Council", in Dutch
Hoogheemraadschap. Early works were the building of draining canals around the city of Leiden. From 1408 on, with the first at Zoeterwoude,
wind-operated machines (windmills) are being installed along the Old Rhine, to pump water from the lowlands into the river and drainage canals. Water councils were also granted the right to constitute
bylaws. The ever-present threat of loss of life, land, animals and goods required short lines of communication between authorities and the people who did design, build and maintain the infrastructure. The threat of flooding in a
heerlijkheid was dealt with by authorities organised around a certain water household system and water boards were chaired by the local nobility. Water boards were set up to maintain integrity of water drainage and defences around local
polders, to maintain waterways inside polders and to control various water levels in and outside local polders. The mandate of these water boards (which remains largely unchanged) was maintenance of dikes, dunes and waterways (and roads too, in several municipalities), control of water level and quality of all surface water (including punishment of polluters). The original water boards varied much in organisation, power and area they managed. The differences were often caused by different circumstances, whether they had to defend a sea dike against a storm surge or keep water level in a polder within bounds.
Hoogheemraadschappen were coordinating bodies, responsible for protecting the land against the sea and for regulating water levels of various canals and lakes into which water was pumped from
polders and
waterschappen. Delft, date 1645, the year this house has been bought for board administration and meetings. Dikes were maintained by individuals who benefited from their existence. Every farmer was designated a part of a dike to maintain, with reviews by the water board directors. The old rule was "Whom the water harms stops the water" (Dutch:
Wie het water deert, die het water keert). This meant that those living at the dike had to pay and care for it. Those people could go bankrupt from having to repair a breached dike. Those living further inland often refused to pay for or assist upkeep of dikes, even though they were just as much affected by floods. This system led to haphazard maintenance and it is believed that many floods would be prevented or mitigated if dikes had been maintained within another governing and financing system. Punishments meted out by water boards were fines for misdemeanors such as emptying waste in the nearest canal; according to various historical documents, the death penalty was used more than once for serious offenders who threatened dike safety or water quality.
Later development In the 17th century there were many of these independent local bodies levying their own taxes and administering justice. This early form of local government played a role in the development of a political system in the Netherlands that was decentralised and dependent on communal cooperation. Widespread experience with decentralized government was a factor in the formation of the
Dutch Republic in the 16th and 17th centuries. The mandate of
Rijkswaterstaat (English: Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management), established in 1798 under French rule, was to centralise water control in the Netherlands. Local water boards refused to give up their autonomy however, so Rijkswaterstaat ended up working alongside the local water boards. Today Rijkswaterstaat has responsibility for major water control structures and other infrastructure like bike- and motorways. By 1850 there were about 3,500 water boards in the country. In modern times water boards merged as they dealt with joint (and sometimes conflicting) interests. Mergers eventually reduced the number to 25 water boards in 2011. The tasks of water boards remain basically unchanged. They belong to the historically grown structure of governing bodies and are one of the oldest democratic institutions in the Netherlands. Dutch water boards have their own
coat of arms, a colourful reminder of their importance in Dutch governing. The historic buildings that used to house the water boards, called
gemeenlandshuis or
waterschaphuis, can be found at the heart of many Dutch towns. ==Nomenclature==