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Today in 1570: The All Saints Day Flood
In 1530 and 1532, several towns in the Netherlands were destroyed by storms on the North Sea (also in England and Denmark, although less so). In 1570, another North Sea storm led to sea levels 4.15m over Amsterdam’s waterline. Several islands in Zeeland were permanently destroyed, and approximately 20,000 people died.
The All Saints Day Flood of 1170 began the development of the Zuiderzee, the inland sea that is one of the most prominent features of Dutch geography. Before the 13th Century, the Zuiderzee was a freshwater lake, sometimes called Lake Flevo.
The creation of the Zuiderzee was crucial in the development of Amsterdam as a trading capital. In the 20th Century, the Dutch turned back the geological clock and re-created the freshwater lake, now known as the IJsselmeer.
Finally, one other flood on this day is remembered by this name. In 1436, a storm tide destroyed several towns along the coastline now shared by Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands
