Ridderkerk: Tidal Nature and History

Ridderkerk is home to the 50-hectare Crezéepolder tidal nature reserve between Ridderkerk and Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht. The Crezéepolder is a rare freshwater tidal area in the Netherlands and northwestern Europe.

Nature

In the Crezéepolder, visitors may walk on the paths in and around the area between sunrise and sunset. An unpaved hiking trail runs around the entire Crezéepolder. The area has two birdwatching hides and two viewpoints on the De Noord river.

The Ridderkerkse Griend, an old osier plantation with narrow paths and bridges, lies on the northwestern side of the Crezéepolder. The Ridderkerkse Griend provides a habitat for beavers, kingfishers and woodpeckers; in spring, the special yellow flag iris blooms there. Also in spring, almost 100 pairs of avocets breed in the Crezéepolder.

De Gorzen has a 22-metre-high hill and an observation tower at the highest point of the park. The Bezoekerscentrum de IJsvogel is the starting point for excursions and guided tours in the Waalbos area.

Museums and Windmills

The Museum Ridderkerk Oudheidkamer is located in a former village school dating from 1840. The Oudheidkamer has several permanent exhibitions; one of them presents the history of Ridderkerk and displays numerous typically Ridderkerk objects. Around eight to ten times a year, the museum mounts temporary exhibitions on various themes.

The Museumschool in Rijsoord is currently closed for renovation. The Rijsoordse Molen is a grain windmill designed as a ground-sailer and a Rijksmonument dating from 1822. As an operational mill, it is in use and grinds wheat, spelt and rye into fine flour.

The mill shop at the Rijsoordse Molen is open every Saturday from 10:00 to 16:00. Visitors are welcome at the Rijsoordse Molen to learn more about how the mill works while the sails are turning and the millstones are occasionally grinding.

Memorial Sites

A monument for those who fell and died in Ridderkerk and elsewhere during the Second World War stands in the Vredehof cemetery. Vredehof is a park-like cemetery with a special collection of trees from North America and Asia. Every year on 4 May, a two-minute silence is observed at the war memorial in Rusthof cemetery as part of the Dutch Dodenherdenking.

History

The Singelkerk was rebuilt after the Saint Elizabeth's flood of 1421 and dedicated to Saint George in 1452. The Singel surrounding the Singelkerk was laid out in 1620 and gave the church its name. The Vlasroterij on Pruimendijk is one of the few remaining flax retting facilities in the Netherlands.

General Winkelman signed the capitulation of the Netherlands on 15 May 1940 in the Schoolmaster's House and the Lower School in Rijsoord. The capitulation is commemorated every year on 15 May at the war memorial near the Schoolmaster's House and the Lower School. The classroom where the capitulation took place has been preserved and is now part of the Capitulatielokaal Museum.

Huys ten Donck is a historic country house on an estate dating from 1746. Gebouw U is a Rijksmonument and one of the last reminders of the Industrial Revolution in Ridderkerk.

Construction of Kasteelruïne Te Woude began in 1372 but was never completed after flooding in the Riederwaard halted the work. The ruins of Kasteelruïne Te Woude were stabilised and partially restored in 1969.

To the main travel overview: Ridderkerk.