Vereniging De Hollandsche Molen

Visitors to the Nieuwe Molen ("New Mill") in Veenendaal

De Hollandsche Molen is a Dutch association, comparable to the German association , which is committed to preserving the historic wind and water mills in the country.

history

The association was founded on May 15, 1923 and initially focused its work on the economic preservation of the mills. After the Second World War , the emphasis shifted to the historical and scenic importance of windmills. Today 1,200 mills in the Netherlands are looked after and in many cases are also actively kept in operation.

The association needs enough volunteer staff for this and founded the "Guild of Voluntary Millers" ( Gilde van Vrijwillige Molenaars ) in 1972 . This guild trains the volunteer millers, the De Hollandsche Molen association holds the exams and awards a certificate. With this diploma you can work on all mills in the Netherlands. Even though this certification has no legal and official character, most windmills require this proof from their volunteers.

The Vereniging De Hollandsche Molen developed the practical guidelines for mill environments, such as protection against wind-resistant vegetation or buildings.

The association issues a publication called "Molens" (mills) three times a year, which in the first few years after publication began in 1954 was still called "Molennieuws" (mill news).

Members of the Dutch royal family act as patrons . Until his death on August 12, 2013, this was Friso von Oranien-Nassau , before that, from 1980 until his death in 2002, his father Claus von Amsberg held this position. On August 17, 2014, Princess Beatrix de took over the patronage of the Vereniging De Hollandsche Molen.