Camping Janse Live Cam

History

Zoutelande’s origin stretches back to medieval times, when small fishing families carved out their livelihoods from the windswept dunes and salty air. The name itself—derived from the Dutch words for “salt land”—speaks to its intimate relationship with the sea and the elevated salinity that once made it a prime spot for collecting sea salt. In the 13th century, monastic orders from Middelburg oversaw the initial poldering of coastal marshes here, building simple dikes and drainage channels to reclaim arable land. While those early efforts were rudimentary by modern standards, they set a precedent for the great sea defenses that would come to define Zeeland’s landscape.

By the 16th century, Zoutelande had grown into a modest but vibrant fishing hamlet. Wooden boats would haul in herring, plaice, and sole from the North Sea, and families traded freshly smoked catch at weekly markets in neighboring Domburg and Veere. The church tower, rebuilt in 1495, became both a spiritual beacon and an unofficial daymark for sailors navigating the treacherous shoals off the Zelanda coast. Local lore still recalls the legend of the “Salt Maiden,” a ghostly figure said to protect fishermen from sudden storms—an image that binds the living community to its maritime past.

The next great chapter arrived in the 19th century, as steam-powered pumps and improved windmills revolutionized land reclamation across the Netherlands. Zoutelande’s dunes were reinforced, and a permanent seawall was erected in 1875 to shield the new pastures from storm surges. With safer land came an influx of visitors seeking the therapeutic qualities of sea air. Pension owners erected guesthouses along the dunes, offering morning promenades and salt inhalation treatments to urban visitors from Rotterdam and The Hague.