Masters of the Wind: How Windmills Built the Netherlands

Our thinking was if it’s good enough for the wunderkind Rembrandt, it’s good enough for us. So, on our recent trip to the Netherlands we based ourselves in the delightful university town of Leiden. As luck would have it, we had a view of a working, 18th Century windmill right outside our hotel window. An uncommon occurrence for a city-center hotel … but that’s the Netherlands for you. These slow-turning giants are scattered all over the countryside and are the undisputed Dutch icon. And why is that? 

Thanks to very flat land, few trees, and close proximity to the stormy North Sea, the Netherlands is one of the most consistently windy places in Europe. With such a readily available source of free power, it only took a bit of ingenuity to make the windmill the industrial powerhouse of the Dutch Golden Age. 

It’s estimated that there are 1,200 historic mills spread across the flat countryside today. This sounds impressive but what’s more amazing is that at their peak in the 19th Century there were approximately 12,000 windmills in the country. 

Early in its history the most critical role of the Dutch windmill was land reclamation. Because so much of the low-country landscape is actually below sea level, dikes were built around marshes and lakes. The windmills pumped water off these polders to create valuable food and income-producing farmland. But water management was just the beginning. 

With a virtually free source of energy, it was only a matter of time before savvy business people were building mini wind-powered factories: grinding grain, sawing timber, making paint pigments, and even processing paper, cocoa, and spices. 

It’s hard to imagine today’s peaceful, grass-carpeted landscape once humming with 12,000 active windmills, but leave it to the down-to-earth Dutch to take full advantage of the technology. The canvas sails even doubled as a long distance communication system. Sails stopped in certain positions meant different things: sails stopped at “one o’clock”t meant a celebration, eleven o’clock signaled a death or funeral, and certain positions warned locals of impending Nazi raids during WWII. 

And as might be expected with such a widespread technology, many windmill-related idioms became a part of the language. A few of my favorites are:

“Met molentjes lopen”

“To walk with little mills”

Meaning: To be acting crazy

“Wie het eerst komt, die het eerst maalt”

“Who comes first, grinds first”

Meaning: First come, first served

“Dat geeft geen meel in de zak”

“That puts no flour in the bag”

Meaning: The effort is useless

Wind technology is deeply rooted in Dutch history and culture, and this tradition of harnessing the breeze continues today. Jump on any train in any direction and you’re guaranteed to see sleek, white, state-of-the-art turbines slowly spinning on the horizon. These iconic windmills, old and new, leave little doubt that the Dutch, in the past, present, and future, are masters of the wind.

As I watched that 18th-century mill spin outside my window in Leiden, it was easy to see why these structures are so beloved. They are more than just beautiful photo ops; they are monuments to Dutch resilience and ingenuity. Whether it’s a historic wooden mill or a towering modern turbine, the Dutch spirit remains the same: always looking for a way to turn a stiff breeze into progress. 

Happy Trails,

James & Terri

Photo Credits: 2. Dmytro Balkhovitin 9. Hardscarf  10. Tutku Çetinel