The Kinderdijk Windmills · Who Pumps When the Wind Stops

At Kinderdijk nineteen windmills stand in two rows, pumping water out of the low land one level at a time. A third of the Netherlands lies below sea level, and this method kept it habitable for centuries.

The name comes from a legend: after a great flood a baby in a cradle was found floating, with a cat, and was finally spotted by the dike.

The rule of the mills is plain: when the wind rises, work; when it blows hard, take in the sails. The miller says the worst thing here is not strong wind but no wind — if the water cannot be pumped out, the land cannot be held.

Natural Mysteries / Kinderdijk · Netherlands / 1740