Editing Schiedam (section)

== History ==

Schiedam was founded around the year 1230. The river [[Schie]] was [[dam]]med by the [[House of Wassenaer|Lord of Wassenaer]] and the Amtlord Dirk Bokel of the [[Amt (country subdivision)|Amt]] [[Oud- en Nieuw-Mathenesse|Mathenesse]], this was to protect the existing [[polder]]land against the seawater from the [[North Sea]]. In 1247, Lady [[Adelaide of Holland]] married [[John I, Count of Hainaut]]. As a [[dowry]] she received from him the eastern part of the dam together with the adjacent polder. The dam attracted many trade activities because goods for and from the hinterland ([[Delft]], and further away [[Leiden]] and [[Haarlem]]) had to be [[Transshipment|transhipped]]. A small town developed swiftly around the dam and its activities. In 1275, Schiedam received [[town privileges]] from Lady Adelaide, this in her capacity as sister of [[William II of Holland|William II]], the reigning [[Count of Holland]] and [[King of the Romans]]. She ordered the building of [[Te Riviere Castle]] near the Schie, which is known today as "Castle Mathenesse" ([[Dutch language|Dutch]]: "Huis te Riviere" or "Slot Mathenesse"). Remnants of a [[Keep|donjon]], which were once part of the castle, are still visible today in the centre of Schiedam and near the town office.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}}

As a young settlement Schiedam soon received competition from surrounding towns and cities: in 1340, Rotterdam and Delft also were allowed to establish a connection between the Schie and the [[Meuse (river)|Meuse]]. From the 15th century onwards the town flourished as a place of pilgrimage due to the devotion afforded to [[Lidwina|Saint Lidwina]], one of the most famous Dutch saints who lived her life in Schiedam. The town subsequently gained significance by fishing for [[herring]]. In 1428 a great fire swept through Schiedam, destroying large parts of the then wooden town.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}}

In 1575 the world's first known commercial [[distillery]] started operations in Schiedam.<ref>{{ cite book | last1 = Doxat | first1 = John | year = 1972 | chapter = Bols | title = The World of Drinks and Drinking: An International Distillation | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=vY4UAQAAIAAJ | publication-place = New York | publisher = Drake Publishers | page = 35 | isbn = 9780877492542 | access-date = 11 December 2023 | quote = [...] the oldest gin house in the world - presumably the world's oldest commercial distillers - Bols Boord & Son was founded in 1575, at Schiedam [...]. }}</ref> The 18th century was Schiedam's Golden Age, when the gin industry flourished. The standstill in drink imports from France made the boom in Schiedam's distilleries possible. From dozens of distilleries Schiedam jenever was exported throughout the world. The gin industry gave the town its nickname "Black Nazareth". This industry is now largely gone. Five windmills in the town, called ''De Noord'', ''Walvisch'', ''Drie Koornbloemen'', ''Nieuwe Palmboom'' and ''Vrijheid'' − are the highest traditional-style windmills in the world because they had to stick out above the high warehouses, and many storehouses are relics of this past. In one of the former factories at the Lange Haven the National Jenever Museum operates.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}}

On 10 August 1856, the first major train accident in the Netherlands happened near [[Schiedam Centrum railway station]], causing 3 deaths. On 4 May 1976 the [[1976 Schiedam train accident]] also took place near the station, which caused 24 deaths.<ref name="dvhn">{{cite news | url=http://www.archiefleeuwardercourant.nl/vw/article.do?id=DVHN-20040501-DW01006004&vw=org&lm=treinramp%2Cschiedam | title=Eerste treinramp met doden ook bij Schiedam | work=Dagblad van het Noorden | date=May 1, 2004 | access-date=December 2, 2011|language=nl}}</ref>

At the end of the 19th and throughout the 20th century, the [[shipbuilding]] industry boomed in Schiedam, with large companies like [[Wilton-Fijenoord]] and others. In 1941, the ancient municipalities [[Kethel en Spaland]] were merged with Schiedam, which made large expansions of the town possible with residential areas in the north.  At the end of the 20th century, the shipbuilding industry largely disappeared and today, Schiedam is mainly a [[commuter town|commuter]]-area in the Rotterdam metropolitan area.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}}