In 1937, G.H. Rots described in a series of articles how things were done in Aalten in former times. Among other things, he wrote about the customs when a farmer moved:
“On the rare occasion that a farmer moved, this took place on ‘Saint Peter’s Day,’ February 22nd. All belongings were loaded onto the neighbors’ wagons, and the entire procession moved from the old house to the new or different farmstead. The neighbor women had already gone ahead to the new home, had cleaned it, and had lit the fire. In the local dialect, this was called ‘vuur beün’ (preparing the fire).”
When the new residents arrived, the coffee had already been brewed, and the newcomers could immediately refresh themselves with a nice cup of coffee. The neighbors helped that day; one person would put something here, another there—it was a scene of immense activity. To top it all off, the ‘housewarming meal’ followed later, where there was certainly no shortage of spirited drinks.”
A moving procession
Source
‘From Aalten’s verleden’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 12 & 19 November 1937 (via Delpher: part IV)
An Easter bonfire is a type of bonfire lit during Easter in parts of Europe. For this purpose, wood is collected and placed in a large pile, which is sometimes dozens of meters high. As darkness falls, the entire stack is set ablaze.
The spectacle often attracts many spectators and is usually a true community event. Originally, it was a Germanic festival dedicated to Ostara, the goddess of spring. After Christianization, the tradition was given a Christian interpretation.
Easter bonfire, illustration from 1934 by Piet te Lintum
Easter Bonfire in Aalten
G.H. Rots described the Aalten Easter bonfire tradition in 1937 as follows:
“Every spring as Easter approached, the boys from a ‘rot‘ (= district/neighborhood) gathered to discuss plans for the ‘Easter fire.’ They appointed a board, in which the treasurer in particular played a significant role.
They went from house to house to ask if people had anything left for the Easter fire. Those who had no wood usually offered a small contribution in hard cash, forming a ‘fund.’ The treasurer had to manage this fund, which could sometimes amount to thirty cents. It occasionally happened that the treasurer used the fund, or part of it, for his own purposes. Then there was trouble brewing. Sometimes heavy fighting broke out, and mutual quarrels were the order of the day.
But the end of the story was always: there was an Easter fire. Every district had such a fire, and it was all about who had the largest one. It was not uncommon for one group of boys to head out late at night to hijack wood from another group and supplement their own supply with it.
The fire was lit on Easter Sunday. In the middle was a pole, above which a tar barrel was hung, causing the fire to flare up high. And so, one could see several fires burning around Aalten, a spectacle that had numerous onlookers.”
Palm Sunday
“Egg throwing was still frequently done by small children in the morning. If they wanted them to be a beautiful brown color, they were boiled in chicory porridge. On Palm Sunday, one could see the children walking with beautifully decorated pine branches, so-called ‘palmpaschen,’ while the children sang Palm Sunday songs, including this one:
Eikorij, eikorij, When it is one more Sunday, we get an Easter egg. One egg is no egg. Two eggs is an Easter egg.
These types of songs were sometimes supplemented in other municipalities. These songs are mentioned in folkloric contributions regarding Easter customs.”
Aaltensche Courant, 6 April 1907Aaltensche Courant, 9 April 1935Dagblad Tubantia, 15 April 1960Dagblad Tubantia, 12 April 1966De Graafschapbode, 15 April 1930
In the east of the Netherlands, the concept of naoberschap is widely known. This phenomenon, also referred to as neighborly duty or neighborly aid, refers to the tradition in which neighbors support one another during both joyful and sorrowful events.
In 1874, J. ter Gouw, with the cooperation of E.F. Avenarius, a teacher in Lintelo, and Is. de Waal, a former minister in Aalten, described the customs and duties of the naoberschap as they were common in Aalten at that time.1 The article is presented below.
N.B. In the original article, naoberschap is spelled with oa. Because we are Oud Aalten and the article concerns Aalten, we have chosen to adapt this term to the WALD spelling, thus using ao.2
“Although these customs are still in vogue in the municipality of Aalten, they nevertheless belong to the olden days. They are remnants of ancestral morals, mere fragments that still live on there, but which may also disappear after only a few years.“
New Construction
‘Foezel’ as thanks for the (naober) help
When building a new home, the future resident visits eight or twelve of the nearest neighbors and asks them if they wish to be his “naober.” This is usually accepted, as a refusal is considered an insult, and terminating the naoberschap also signifies the breaking off of all mutual social interaction.
Mutual obligations rest upon the naobers. For instance, every naober is obliged to help erect the wooden frames and the roof free of charge when a house is being built. In the evening, the naober youth then place the May trees (a few pines) in front of the house, for which the owner must treat them.
This is followed by a so-called “rigtemaal” (topping out meal) for the naobers, who also take this opportunity to give the new building a name, by which name the resident is subsequently called, and often better known than by his family name.
Before the new home is occupied, the naober women, or their daughters or servants, arrive with baskets full of peat and wood to “aan te bueten” the fire, which is to say: to light it. And if the new resident is among the needy, his more affluent naobers often bring him such a large quantity of fuel that he can provide for his hearth for several months.
J. ter Gouw
Marriage
When a young man or young woman is to enter into marriage, the other young people from the naoberschap go to the residents with whom the newlyweds will take up residence, before the second marriage banns take place, and ask the bridegroom or the bride if they may “make it beautiful.” This beautification consists of planting four tall pine trees in front of the door, which are interconnected with arches, wound with palm, and adorned with small flags of colored paper; while in the center a crown is hung, wound with cut paper and decorated with gilded eggs. Inside this crown hangs a wooden dove, as the symbol of love, which is neatly covered with gold paper.
These wedding crowns are held in high honor and preserved for as long as possible. At many farms, one can still see the crowns that were hung at their grandfathers’ weddings.
The fetching of the bridegroom or the bride to bring them to their destined home is also performed by the naober youth. The wagon is decorated with greenery and often drawn by four horses; the girls from the naoberschap take their places upon it, and while singing or rather shouting out: “To Austria we wish to sail, almost across the heath, etc.”, they set off on their way.
If it is a bridegroom fetching his bride, he sits at the front of the wagon smoking a long Gouda pipe — if possible a steel pipe, decorated by his naober girls with red, white, and blue silk ribbon. Now, that is of course long out of fashion; bridegrooms now smoke cigars or do not smoke at all. But in the time of pipes, a bridegroom had to smoke. I have seen some who actually belonged to the non-smokers, and yet sat with the bridegroom’s pipe between their teeth during the ‘bride’s tears’ and at the wedding, and had to pack and light it every now and then.
Upon arriving at the bride’s home, a bouquet of colored and gilded paper is fastened to the left side of his hat, so that many would take him for a coachman with a cockade on his hat. The bride receives a similar bouquet on the left side of her chest.
Achterhoek peasant wedding; they dance the ‘Driekusman‘
Once some bread and coffee have been consumed, the bride is led to the wagon by a naober boy and the bridegroom by a naober girl, while the other naober boys fetch the “bride’s cow” from the stable and lead it behind the wagon. If the bride’s parents are well-to-do people, the naober boys take the liberty of also bringing some sausage, bacon, meat, chickens, and more of that nature for the newlyweds.
Often, the bride’s cupboard, well-stocked with rolls of linen, napkins, and table linens, along with eight or twelve chairs, a spinning wheel, and a reel, has already been brought to the future home the day before.
When the bridal wagon has arrived there, the naober youth spend not only the evening but also a large part of the night drinking “foesel” (gin) and shouting out all kinds of songs, for one cannot call it singing, and finally return to their homes to pay for the frequent use of that “plague drink,” as some call it, with headaches and listlessness the following day.
Sometimes the wedding or “broedlagt” follows weeks, even months later, or is combined with the ‘kinderbier’ (child-beer) of the first offspring.
J. ter Gouw
Death
In the event of a death, the obligations of the naobers are even more numerous. As soon as someone dies in a household, one of the nearest naobers is notified, if none are present, and he immediately goes around the entire naoberschap; thereafter, the naobers go together to the house of the deceased to “verhennekleeden” the dead, which is: to remove their clothes and shroud them in the burial garment.
The next day, the passing of the deceased is tolled, and the naobers must announce the death to the family, even up to a distance of five hours away. In the evening, two or three naobers bring the coffin and place the body inside. If the deceased died of a contagious disease, or if the unpleasant odor already indicates decomposition, he is given a glass of “plague drink.” But this is then also the only gin used in a house of mourning.
Funeral of Gerhard Aalbers, 1954. Departure from ‘t Slat in IJzerlo. From right to left: 1 gravedigger Rensink; 2 Gerrit Hengeveld of de Smit; 3 Herman Lammers of Lurvink; 4 Bernard Nijman of de Scheel; 5 ?; 6 Johan Lammers of ‘t Nije Loo; 7 Johan Kraaijenbrink of de Wikker; 8 Hendrik van Eerden; 9 mother Betje; 10 Annie; 13 Derk H.; 12 ?; 14 Derk W.; 15 ?
From the time of death until the funeral, the naobers manage everything. They must take the grain required for the funeral meal to the mill and provide everything else that is needed. The naober women must sift the flour and bake bread, and because of this, there is a bustle in the house of mourning that is bothersome to the relatives, who would prefer to be alone with their beloved dead. One can form an idea of that bustle when one knows that more than a hundred households may be invited to a funeral or ‘groeve’.
(This was the case with one of my farmers, who was quite well-to-do but still had only a small farm, when there was a ‘groeve’ at the house upon the death of his elderly mother. On that occasion, four mud of rye were baked, yielding 75 loaves of bread, and since the bread was intended for four people, they had counted on three hundred eaters. Furthermore, the following was purchased: one full Leiden cheese and one nearly full, together 33 old pounds; twelve old pounds of coffee, and 1.25 old pounds of white sugar lumps. A barrel of beer was ordered from the brewer, which they expected would not be sufficient. The bell-ringers drank three guilders’ worth of gin.)
On the day of the funeral, at ten o’clock in the morning, the body is placed on “den deel” (the threshing floor), and the coffin is opened far enough so that the face of the dead is visible. The naober women now pour coffee and present bread to the guests, while that naober woman whose husband must drive the body to the cemetery has the privilege of serving the immediate family, and thus every naober woman has her specific task according to her rank and status.
After all the guests, which include the naobers and the residents of het rot (the district), have satisfied themselves with bread and coffee, everyone goes to the threshing floor to see the deceased for the last time. If a minister is present, he gives a speech by the open coffin; he seeks to comfort the bereaved, reminds everyone of the memento mori, and concludes with an appropriate prayer.
Now the coffin is placed on the back of a wagon, and the two closest relatives of the deceased sit at the foot of the coffin, followed by the next two, and so on until all seats are occupied. The women have a black rain cloak or ‘folie’ hanging over their heads and know how to indicate their relationship to the deceased very precisely by covering themselves entirely or partially with it.
The procession to the grave forms a long, sometimes endless line, as not only the relatives but also the naobers and those belonging to the ‘rot’ follow the body, and moreover, as soon as the funeral procession approaches the village, many from there also join in; so that not infrequently one hundred and fifty men, women, and children take part in that procession.
Funeral procession of Gerhard Aalbers from ‘t Slat in IJzerlo
From the moment the procession comes into view of the village until it has left the cemetery again, all the bells are tolled, and from the grave, they go to the brewer, where a few drink tea, but most drink beer, and the latter in very generous amounts. From the brewer, they return to the house of mourning; here bread and coffee are consumed once more, and the ceremony is concluded.
But the next day, a small after-reflection follows. Already at the crack of dawn, the poor stand at the door (fifty or a hundred sometimes) to be able to carry away “a morsel” from the house of mourning. They are given the not very carefully sifted bran from the consumed rye and the leftover bread.
In the afternoon, the naober women come to the house of mourning once more; they again consume coffee and a sandwich, and thereafter each gathers her borrowed cups, saucers, knives, etc., and departs with the customary: “I wish you the best.”
Lintelo, E.F. Avenarius
In the village
What has been communicated by my friend Avenarius, and to which I have added a few remarks, specifically concerns the naoberschap among the country folk. In the center of the municipality, one has the same theme but with some variation.
Upon moving into a home, an offer soon comes from the naobers who belong to the house (according to a choice once made) to “aan te bueten a fire,” i.e., to light it. This being accepted and the hour determined, the naobers send daughters or maidens (servants) with fuel — “kluwen” or dredged peat from one, wood from the other — and everything is piled up at the empty hearth, as if it were to be set ablaze immediately. If one wishes to make it truly beautiful, a wreath of colored paper is placed over everything. After this “fire-lighting,” a glass of “foesel” (gin) is immediately expected, and if there is something to go with it, all the better; thereafter the naobers themselves are “geneugd” (invited), and consequently, the heads of the families are received for “a cup of coffee” with “kluntje” (sugar lump), currant bread, and finally “foesel with sugar” (gin with sugar).
Also after the conclusion of a wedding and funeral, the naobers are invited in the same manner, and then Jew and Christian, Roman Catholic and non-Roman Catholic, rich and poor, sit together in brotherly friendship; and such an evening leaves pleasant memories behind, while one feels newly inclined to perform for one another all the services that the duties of naoberschap prescribe.
Within the town, funerals are generally not arranged on such a large scale as we have just heard; yet the gathering is sometimes so numerous that the minister, who leads in prayer before the refreshments are consumed, must sometimes place himself between two spacious rooms in order to be heard in both. It even happens that a third room is necessary, where the guests must then make do with a few sounds from a distance.
The Klepperklumpkes van ’t Walfort was a folkloristic dance group from Aalten. The group was founded on 10 May 1954 with the objective of preserving Gelderland’s regional folklore for future generations. Members of the group were dressed in authentic Gelderland (Achterhoek) traditional costume, as it was worn around 1900.
The dance repertoire consisted of approximately 35 traditional dances, mostly from the Achterhoek and Twente regions, which also date back to that era. The most well-known dances include the Driekesman, Pot met bonen (Pot of beans), and the Hôksebarger, performed, of course, in polished wooden clogs.
A Welcome Guest
The Klepperklumpkes was an active association. Over the past decades, they performed in various institutions, at street markets, and in many countries. They were a welcome guest at festivals in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, England, France, Austria, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland, among others. They even performed in China.
During their peak years, the Klepperklumpkes organised a large international festival in Aalten every four years, featuring many foreign guests. These guests were hosted by local families, providing many with a unique introduction to the international dancers and their respective folklore.
In their final years, the dance group rehearsed in the hall of café Setz.
After nearly 70 years, the Klepperklumpkes disbanded in 2022. In their final years, the number of activities had gradually declined; many members were getting older, physical stamina was decreasing, and there was a lack of new members joining.
In 1937, G.H. Rots described in a series of articles how things were in Aalten in former times. Regarding New Year’s Eve and Day, he wrote:
“Towards the end of the year, one could see two men walking with a large ‘arm basket’, going from house to house in the village. They were the night watchmen selling almanacs. Not a single household was without an almanac, especially the Zutphen almanac. By offering and selling the almanacs, the night watchmen simultaneously provided the residents with the opportunity to give an unsolicited contribution for the guarding of their property at night. Depending on the financial means of the residents, the aforementioned literature was paid for above the asking price.”
New Year’s Eve
“Then came New Year’s Eve. The cafés had permission to stay open until one o’clock in the morning. The transition from the old to the new year was then celebrated in these establishments, mainly by the local youth. Once the clock had struck twelve, the night watchmen began to deliver their New Year’s wishes. They started with the municipal secretary. A song was sung during this process. The rounds were made to several notables and café owners. It goes without saying that the night watchmen were followed by a large group of curious onlookers, who diligently sang along… and there were free drinks.”
And now the song that the Night Watch and their followers sang on New Year’s Eve:
The old year has now passed by, The new has now arrived. So I wish you with a joyful heart, And you, and all the pious: A new spirit in the new year And a pious life together, So let us praise God here.
How many began the previous year In good health with us, Who have indeed through death Spun out their thread of life. They live in eternity, Life is still prepared for us, So let us now praise God.
It is God who brought forth the light, Who makes the sun and moon rise, To show us the passage of day and night, And month and year. Let us for the past year With thanks to the Supreme Blesser, Praise the God of ages.
The first two stanzas were original creations. The third is from the Evangelical Hymns no. 159 verse 1. Verse 3 of that hymn was also occasionally sung.
One can imagine that these New Year’s greetings on New Year’s Night took quite some time, and the solemnity of it likely faded, especially towards the end of the rounds, particularly as the sound of spirits played the leading role. But for the elderly, the memory of this event is not lost. Especially when reading these articles, the old incidents are recalled and discussed once more, and many look back with nostalgia to the days of yore, remembering, during sleepless nights or when watching over the sick or injured in the quiet of the living room, the monotonous step of the man who traversed Aalten’s streets: “Hark, there is the night watchman!”
“On New Year’s Day, the youth were active again. They and the poorer folk went from house to house to wish people a Happy New Year. One can understand that the population was glad when noon arrived, as it was no longer applicable after that. The downside of all this was that King Alcohol swayed his scepter on those days. In the numerous cafés and taverns, many sacrifices were made to that monarch. Gin was cheap. There were several gin distilleries or ‘branderijen’ in Aalten. Four of these distilleries can still be named. It is no wonder, then, that the use of strong spirits was prevalent on almost all occasions.”
Carbide Shooting
In parts of the eastern Netherlands, including Aalten, it is a tradition to shoot carbide on New Year’s Eve. A small amount of carbide (calcium carbide) is placed in a milk churn, paint tin, or modified gas cylinder, water or saliva is added, and the churn is sealed with a (plastic) ball. Ethyne gas forms, and after waiting about 30 seconds, the gas is ignited through a small touch-hole (or with a spark plug). The gas explodes with a booming bang, launching the ball out of the churn, where it can land dozens of meters away.
The history of carbide shooting is not well known. The tradition may date back to Germanic Yule festivals. In the 19th century, it was customary in both rural and urban areas to make noise on special days. Carbide shooting likely evolved from this practice.
Before acetylene gas was available in cylinders, most village blacksmiths used carbide for welding. It was therefore easy to obtain.
New Year’s Eve, a day like any other. Yet, around four o’clock in the afternoon, many become restless. It is about to happen. There is no other day in the year when we check the clock so often. Outside, in the twilight, we smell the frying of ‘oliebollen’ in the thin winter air. Among children between the ages of four and twelve, a certain tension can be sensed. Tomorrow is the day. Then they will go ‘winning the New Year’.
Winning the New Year in exchange for a treat is a very old custom whose origins are difficult to trace. In our region, it occurs in the former Lordship of Bredevoort, but not in the Roman Catholic enclave of Lichtenvoorde-Groenlo. It possibly relates to religion and the practices surrounding it.
Long before the Reformation, November 11 was an important day: Saint Martin’s Day. According to legend, he gave half of his red cloak to a beggar. He was the patron saint of Utrecht, among other places. The city’s coat of arms is a red-and-white divided shield—red from his cloak and white from his undergarment after he cut part of his cloak away with his sword. This gesture strongly appealed to the popular imagination. As a folk saint, he was venerated and depicted as a rider on a white horse. This was true not only in neighboring Germany but also in the south of our country, in North Holland, Groningen, and Friesland. On his feast day, a mock Saint on a white horse would lead a lantern procession through villages and towns, distributing treats. In Bocholt, just across the border, there was a large lantern procession through a completely darkened city in 1988 and later years. A fairy-tale sight. Upon arriving at the Market, he stood there on a white horse in front of the beautiful town hall, bathed in spotlights. A martial figure. All the children were allowed to walk past him and receive a bag of sweets.
It is not inconceivable that after the Reformation, people wanted to move away from the veneration of saints. A ‘Sint’ was out of fashion. At a meeting of the Zutphen classis in 1668, much was discussed. They wanted to abolish bird shooting, goose pulling, ‘boksebier’, and other irregularities. These were called superstition, or ‘popish insolence’. It is possible that a shift occurred from November 11 to January 1 so as not to forget the children and the needy. Perhaps also because New Year’s Day moved several times on the calendar. Such shifts happened frequently. Moreover, Saint Martin himself had already replaced an old Germanic autumn festival with thank-offerings for the harvest to Wodan.
When shifting the date, other special days had to be taken into account. Saint Nicholas was not an option. This may be how they arrived at January 1. It is an assumption, but not an unlikely one. At that time, they were also troubled by Saint Nicholas; Calvinist ministers wished to do away with it thoroughly. They did not succeed. Bird shooting also continued.
Originally, in the countryside, laborers went to the farmer and his wife—their employers—to wish them a Happy New Year. Belief in omens was strong. If the person delivering the wish was a woman or girl, one was assured of a fertile year with many heifer calves. It seemed almost a competition to be the first to deliver the good wishes. It still is to some extent. There was a firm belief that the wished-for luck would return to the one who spoke the wish first. This was duly rewarded.
In times of great poverty, which were frequent, it could happen that food items were given. It is known that during times of potato shortages, people gave a few potatoes. These were then taken home in a knotted red handkerchief. In the last century, children went out in groups in the neighborhood to ‘win the New Year’. After speaking the good wishes, red handkerchiefs were spread out on the chairs in the kitchen, and all sorts of treats appeared: peanuts, a ‘pöfferken’, ‘opzettertjes’, meringues, figs, an ‘oliebol’ or currant bun, and an apple. Over the years, many customs have disappeared, but ‘winning the New Year’ has remained in our border region.
It has, however, adapted to the times. No red handkerchiefs spread out on chairs with rush mats. Between 1950 and 1980, plastic conquered the world. The red handkerchiefs have made way for well-filled plastic bags, sometimes prepared by businessmen or charitable institutions.
Nowadays, fireworks play an important role on New Year’s Eve. Twenty-five years ago, New Year’s Day was more important. It had to happen on the first day of the new year. Excitement for the children. First to the neighbors. What abundance when they saw thirty or more bags lying on the kitchen counter there. After speaking the good wishes, hands went up almost automatically to take the ‘toete’ (bag).
The older boys would grab their bikes and rush from one house to the next. Formerly with a shoebox under the luggage strap, later with a plastic bag on the handlebars. They were told to look people in the eye and speak politely, but they didn’t allow themselves much time to talk. It was as if they sensed it might be the last time. Once home, the harvest was sorted and placed in portions. Eating until you were sick was something you did on the way. Mother would also start rummaging through it. Cookies went into a tin and sweets into a jar. You could snack on it for a month. It seemed as if that variety symbolized a great number of wishes.
In our time, the fun ends when children are in the first year of secondary school. At most, they shout as they cycle past: ‘Happy New Year, do you have the bags ready?’
Sources
‘From Aalten’s Past’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 19 November 1937 (via Delpher, part IV & part VI)
In former times, November was the season for slaughtering. At that time, slaughtering did not yet take place at slaughterhouses, but simply on the farmer’s yard. It was usually outsourced to a ‘home slaughterer’, a butcher who performed the slaughter at the client’s home. Regarding home slaughtering in Aalten and the customs surrounding it, G.H. Rots wrote the following in 1937:
“The busiest and most significant days of the year were when slaughtering had to take place. When November arrived in the land, the slaughtering period began. The ‘wieme’ (drying rack) was empty, and in every household, people thought about slaughtering one or more pigs or a ‘small beast’. The home slaughterers had their hands full.
If the slaughtering had taken place in the morning, the ‘fat-praisers’ would arrive around half past eleven. The neighbors would then judge whether the ‘kidneys were well-covered in fat’. The thickness of the bacon was estimated, and finally the lady of the house appeared with the ‘bottle’, for teetotalers were unknown in those days. On slaughter days, people made sure they had something ‘in the bottle’. The slaughterers received their first ‘drink’ in the morning, the fat-praisers in the afternoon, and in the evening came the great celebration: the slaughter visit.”
Drika Wijnveen-Stapelkamp and home slaughterer Bertus ter Maat
How the slaughtering process worked
In the 1950s and 1960s, it was still permitted to perform home slaughtering yourself. A large boiler pot with plenty of water was brought to a boil. The pig was killed using a captive bolt pistol, which fired a pin into its head. The pig became unconscious. The animal’s throat was then slit, and the blood was collected in a special flat pan.
The pig was cleaned and doused with boiling water so that the hair could be removed more easily, a process known as ‘scraping’ the pig. The animal was then hung from a ‘ladder’ and cut open.
The entrails were collected in a large tub. The intestines were cleaned. First, they were rinsed with water and then scraped clean so they could be used to make sausage. The intestines were tied shut with sausage pins and hung from the ceiling.
Every part of the pig was used. The head meat was used to make ‘head cheese’ or brawn. The sausages and hams were hung from the ceiling to dry. Slaughtering and processing a pig took a week of work but provided meat for personal use for an entire year. One way to prevent meat from spoiling was salting. The meat was placed in a tub of salt, and the salt was rubbed thoroughly into the meat. Meat could also be preserved in canning jars. This allowed the meat to be kept for many months.
A well-known home slaughterer in Aalten and the surrounding area was Bertus ter Maat. The above interview with the then 77-year-old Aalten resident was filmed in 1991 by FilmAalten.
Slaughter visit
Regarding the slaughter visit, Rots wrote: “Those slaughter visits were the social evenings for the population. Neighbors would gather and enjoy each other’s company. It began with a cup of coffee and a rusk. Then the bottle appeared on the table. On those evenings, the events of the time were discussed. One person knew this, another had heard that, and a third had ‘recently read the newspaper’, and thus knew for certain. And the women told each other the secrets of the civil registry and related matters. Meanwhile, the hostess would invite them again: ‘Have another drink’. ‘The pigs turned out well’. And finally, when it was time to go home, everyone was in the merriest of moods.
One should not imagine that all the pigs that had been fattened were intended for personal use, as you can understand. At least one pig had to be sold, and from the other that was kept, the hams or gammons were also sold, because keeping the hams yourself ‘was just for the sake of using them up’; no, they had to be turned into cash. And if a heifer or ‘bull’ was slaughtered, the nagelhout (smoked beef) was certainly sold. There were several buyers who salted and smoked these finer meats and sent them to the larger towns. The money the pigs brought in was often intended for the payment of hay, mortgage interest, etc., or at least for extraordinary expenses.”
Sources
‘From Aalten’s Past’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 5 November 1937 (via Delpher)
Photo: collection Leo van der Linde, with thanks to Anton Stapelkamp
For centuries, the bells of the Oude Sint Helenakerk in Aalten have tolled to inform the population of deaths, the so-called ‘overluiden’.
It frequently occurs that the bells of the Oude Helenakerk are tolled at various times in the morning. In the past, this happened more often than it does today. In former times, almost everyone knew what this signified. Based on the time and the number of strokes, people could deduce in which rural district someone had died, as well as whether it was a child, a woman, or a man, and whether the deceased was married or unmarried.
The custom of tolling the bells when a death has occurred is called ‘overluiden’. For many centuries, the sound of bells has emanated from the monumental tower of the church on weekdays. Many people pause for a moment and think: memento mori.
The bells of the Oude Helenakerk on the Market Square in Aalten are still used for this solemn moment, always in consultation with the next of kin. The ‘overluiden’ can be performed for all deceased persons, not just for members of the Protestant Congregation.
Meaning
If the bells are tolled at 9:30 AM, it concerns a resident of the rural district of Lintelo. If it occurs at 9:45 AM, someone from de Haart has passed away. At 10:00 AM, the bells toll for a death in Dale or IJzerlo, and at 10:15 AM for someone from the Aaltense Heurne. If it concerns someone from Barlo, the time is 10:30 AM. Often the bells toll at 11:00 AM, which signifies the ‘overluiden’ of a deceased person from the village of Aalten.
For a man or widower, the clapper bell is struck three times before and after the tolling. For a woman or widow, the clapper bell is struck twice three times before and after the tolling. For an unmarried person or a child, this occurs three times twice before and after the tolling.
Aalten has a large number of farms with their own names. In the 1967 address book of the municipality of Aalten, about 480 are mentioned. Almost all of these names are unique. To avoid confusion, it was logical to give a farm a name that did not yet exist. However, one finds, for example, the Oude Loo and the Nieuwe Loo, Groot Kampe and Klein Kampe, even ‘t Paske, Groot Paske, Klein Paske and Nieuw Paske. These are often farms that previously formed a single homestead but were split into parts during division among children. Names with “Olde” or “Oude” then point to the original house.
When one examines those names, an interesting discovery is made. They can be divided into different groups. For instance, there is a group of names from which one can deduce what the vegetation around the yard used to be like and in what kind of environment the farm was established. Another group points to the trade that was practiced there in the past alongside agriculture and livestock farming. Many farmers, and especially the small-scale ones, had enough time to do something on the side to earn a bit extra, which was often necessary.
The practice of giving names to farms is very old. In the verpondingskohier (tax register) of 1647/50, the persons who had to pay the ‘verponding’ (a land tax) are recorded under Aalten, as well as under Bredevoort. But under the rural districts, the names of the farms are mentioned, followed by the names of the residents. Thus, we have a list of homesteads that existed at that time. Many of the current names already appear in it.
One must possess a very great imagination to be able to picture what the Aalten landscape looked like centuries ago. Nine-tenths of the land consisted of heath, forest, and swamp. The cultivable area was small and was only used for growing vegetables and a few cereal crops. Most farms were small: ‘stedekes’. Division of the common lands, artificial fertilizer, and better drainage put an end to the ‘prange’ and ‘marode’ (hardship and misery) of the farmer.
The following names require an explanation: Bokkel, called Buclo in 1284, beech forest. The Walfort was previously called the Waldenvort, a ford (through the Slinge) near the Wald (the forest). Similarly, Walvoort on the Haart, with a ford through the Keizersbeek.
’t Olde Brusse, Lintelo
The name Voorst (from forestis) was used for a forest in which hunting was not allowed; it was the private hunting ground of the king or the lord. The site of the Snoeijenbos was cleared in the forest. Brusse is formed from: Brusch, brushwood, ‘t Hagt and the Heegt: forest of low wood, perhaps consisting of hawthorn bushes.
The Slehegge may recall the blackthorn, ‘t Heggeltje: a small ‘hagt’. The Hakstege was located on a narrow path (stege) through the ‘hagt’. The Rieste owes its name to the brushwood (rijshout). The Heisterkamp was established on a site where much brushwood grew.
In 1386, the name Varenvelde appears, and later also the Verrevelt, which is now the Vervelde. The Veernhof also originated in a field full of ferns. The Tente owes its name to the ‘tente’, the common tansy. The Greute recalls the ‘gruit’, the bog myrtle, with which beer was fermented and which grew on marshy ground, as did the reed, which is found in the name the Riete. Waste uncultivated land, ‘vage’, is found in Vaags.
One should not have a grand conception of these heights. An elevation of half a meter was already called a ‘bult’, a ‘horst’, or a ‘heuvel’. These heights offered no protection whatsoever against the damp environment. The houses were very damp.
Names like De Bulte, Bultink and De Heuvel speak for themselves. De Brink (brinc) was a grass-covered elevation. De Bree (from bride) is considered a field on the ‘es’ (open field). Drenthel (originally Drenthelo): forest on an elevation. Haartman and Haartelink: a ‘haart’ is a high-lying heathland. Hengeveld (heng, slope), Hillen (hil, hill), Hoopman, the Klinke (hilly heathland with puddles and pools here and there).
De Horst (an elevation covered with low wood), Leemhorst, Seinhorst, Stokhorst and Winkelhorst. Leeland (lee, hill, also a place of judgment), the Limbarg (loam mountain?). De Pol: a small sand hill that stood out like an island above the surroundings. Pikpolle (pec, poverty): a meager hut on a ‘pol’.
Tammel (in 1384 Tanbulen): pine forest on a ‘bult’? Hondorp: village, mound, elevation the size of a ‘hont’, a unit of area. The Westendorp also points to an elevation. Wierkamp: ‘wier’, ‘wierde’, elevation protruding above a wet environment.
Farms located in or near a swamp
The largest part of the municipality of Aalten used to be swamp. Only the Bocholt–Vragender ridge protruded above the marshes. These ‘broeken’ (marshlands) were created because the small rivers the Slinge, the Zilverbeekje, and the Keizersbeek could not sufficiently drain the water. That is why so many farms have a swamp name, such as Goorhuis, Goorman, Goorzicht, Moorveld, the Stroete (marshy wasteland), Veenemaat, Groot and Klein Veenhuis, ‘t Veentje, Wijnveen (‘winne’ farm, farm in the peat), Hagenbroek (a marshland with hawthorn bushes), Kortenbroek (a marshland with short grass and therefore infertile land), the Woerd (woert, low-lying land).
Bolandsweide (bol, soft, marshy, mud). The Nonhof (in 1281 den Honhof) and the Hennepe (in 1284 Honepe), both names formed from “hoen” and “huun”. Luiten, popularly Luten, was low-lying poor land, ‘lute’, while Maris represented much the same: swamp. Glieuwe: ‘gliede’, black shiny soil, peat. Somsenhuus: ‘somp’, marshy land. Pietenpol (in 1640 Pytenpoel): ‘pitte’, pit, hollow, thus a pool in a low place, De Put (hollow, pool. ‘t Slaa: ‘slade’, heath pool, swamp. Te Sligte (in 1384 Schlichte): flat swamp. Mager: poor, meager land. The Navis possessed a damp meadow; ‘nate’, wet and ‘vis’, Wisch, ‘wiese’, meadow. Near Amerongen, the medieval residential tower the Matewisch still stands.
Pietenpol, Haart
Camp names
Stapelkamp, Heurne
A number of names end in -kamp. Originally, the ‘kampen’ were small pieces of land that had been cleared of brushwood and trees in the forests, thus reclaimed forest. Later, the word ‘kamp’ acquired the meaning of field.
Only a few names recall the reclamation of wastelands. Nijland, Nijveld, Nijhof, Nieuwkamp, Nieuwe Weide. The Bijvanck, what was ‘caught’ or taken additionally. Te Brake also points to reclamation, the ‘breaking’ of the wasteland. Ruwhof: ‘rude’, ‘rode’, reclaimed land.
Farms that recall passes, gates, tolls, etc.
A ‘pas’ is a passage in a ‘landweer’ (defensive earthwork), a wooded bank. The resident of the nearby farm had to ‘oppassen’ (watch out), supervise the persons entering. Such a farm sometimes bore the name “Pasop”. Along the Romienendiek, for example, lie the Paske, the Pasop and the Paskerhut: the residents had to keep an eye on the persons who entered the ‘marke’ (common land) through the Wolboom and the Zwarte Veen. On the border with the Varsseveld area near the Varsseveldseweg, there is also a Pas. On the Varsseveld side, the Loerdijk and the Kijkuit are located here. The ‘marken’ were well protected.
Among those who also had to take the ‘marke’ under their care was the resident of the Markerink, formerly called March-ward-inck. A ‘werde’ was a watch post, a place where one had to supervise the intruding unsavory elements. A similar activity was expected of the Ligterink, which in 1435 was called Licht-werd-inck: the watching apparently felt rather light there. The duty of keeping watch also lay with the Kuier and the Kuierman: ‘koeren’, ‘kuren’ meant “looking out”.
Did the ‘schutte’, who had to seize (schutten) the livestock from another ‘marke’ that had intruded into their own ‘marke’, live on the Schuttenkamp, and did such a person also live on the Man-schot-weide? Recalling the tolls are Slotboom, the Stokkert, ‘t Bonte Hek, Klaphekke, ‘t Tolhuis, Tolkamp and Tolder (toll collector).
Memories of the church
De Pater, ‘t Klooster (named after the Schaer monastery), Kerkhof (a farm of the church), Kerkkamp, Neerhof (den Heerhof, inhabited by the monks), De Kloeze, hermit, perhaps also Klaus. Kosters custerie: the proceeds of this property were for the sexton.
Beestman (herdsman), the Scheper (shepherd), Sweenen (swineherd), Fukker (breeder), Peerdeboer (horse farmer), ‘t Villeken (where dead animals were skinned and the hides were tanned), Baten (‘beten’, the tanning of hides). The Brasse (brewery), Pakkebier (‘backe’, also brewery), Schenk (public house, tavern) and Slikkertap (a tap in the ‘slik’, swamp).
Brethouwer (should we interpret ‘bret’ here in the sense of board, thus someone who made boards?), the Klumper and Klompenhouwer (‘houwen’ is chopping or carving), Kolstee (place where charcoal was burned), Kuiper (cooper), Draaijer (turner), Kappers, Kleuver (recalling the chopping and splitting of wood), the Smid and ‘t Smees (formerly Smedeserve). Papiermolen, the Olde Mölle, ‘t Olde Mulder, the Görter (groat-maker, hulling miller), Te Roele (in 1640 ten Rule – ‘rullen’, hulling of grain, hulling mill).
Bouwhuis Wever, ‘t Klooster
Den Blauwen (blue-dyeing of linen), the Wever (weaver), Bouwhuis Wever, Weversborg, the Pellewever (weaver who wove finer goods, such as damask and table linen), Schreurs, Snieder and Snijdershuis (tailors). Kremer (peddler) and Klodde (ragman). Speelman (someone who cheered up the parties with a musical instrument) and the Piepert (piper, flute player). Krieger (inhabited by a soldier? In 1640, a soldaetencamp also occurred in Barlo).
Farm names ending in -ink etc.
About forty farm names end in -ink. These largely point to the possession, to the estate of a certain person. They are mainly composed of a personal name + -ink. Lists of proper names that occurred in the Middle Ages have been compiled from all possible archival documents, and based on these lists, a number of farm names can be explained.
Hoenink, Huinink and Hunink were located in a ‘hoen’, a ‘huun’, a swamp. Another explanation that we must take into account, according to the CBG Center for Family History, is that names like Hoenink and Huinink go back to the Germanic personal name Huno.
However, there are a number of names that cannot be traced back to personal names. They clearly refer to something else. These are: Bekink (located near a brook), Bultink (located on a ‘bult’), Doornink (located in or near a thorn forest), Eekink (located on a site with oaks), Essink (located on an ‘Es’), Heijink (located on the heath), Kempink (located near or in a ‘kamp’), Haartelink (located on a ‘Haart’). Rengelink can indicate a “rinc”, which was a place of judgment. On the Borninckhof, the Haartse Wetering originates, so there are springs there. On the former Richterink, the judge held his proceedings.
There was a time when the meaning of the suffix -ink was no longer understood. People then began to form names with “stedeke” and “goet”. Thus we find, for example, Heijnengoet, Goossenstedeke, etc. In later usage, the words ‘stedeken’ and ‘goet’ were omitted. Freriksgoet became Freriks, Rutgerstedeken became Rutgers. Here again many farm names formed from personal names: Freers, Freriks, Bullens (from Bullo), Ebbers (from Ebbo), Goosen (Goosen, Goos), Heinen (Hein), Lammers (Lammo), Lievers (Lieven), Lindert (Lindert), Lubbers (Lubbert), Reinders (Reinder), Rutgers (Rutger), Wiggers and Wiechers (from Wigger), Wubbels (from Wubbel), Wolters (Wolter) and Rikkert (Rico).
In addition to the farms classified in the groups above, there are a few others that deserve special mention: the Tuunte was surrounded by a ‘tuun’, a woven fence, as were the Vreman and the Vreveld. The Zigtvrede had some preferential rights in the annual distribution of the ‘marke’ lands. One of these farms was called Seegvreden in 1640, named after the ‘seege’, the goat. The Hegge was surrounded by a hedge. The Sonderen also had rights; a part of the common land could be used for private use. That part was separated (afgezonderd) from the ‘marke’. The Meijnen was also part of the common ‘marke’.
The Haverland and the Haverkamp had the duty to supply oats (haver) to the lord or church, etc. On the Hemelmaat, justice was administered; a ‘hegemael’, a ‘heimael’, was a space surrounded by a hedge where a ‘mael’, a court session, was held. The Akkermaat owes its name to a meadow that could be mown in one day, and the Maandag to the piece of land that could be plowed in one day with the shared livestock. A former name would therefore have been: Mendag. The Hogewind should actually have been called the Hogewend, because this was the high end of the land where the plow was turned (gewend).
The Grotenhuis provides information about the size of the house and the Nieuwenhuis (in 1640 Nijenhuis) points to a then newly built dwelling, just like Nijboer. The Lankhof and Scheel indicate the shape of the land: long and crooked. The Korten (in 1640 Kortenstedeken) had only a short piece of land. The Heurne had the shape of a horn, a tapering piece of land, as did the Timp and the Timpert. Sad was the state of the Prange, the Marode and the Drommelder, which three names can all be translated as misery.
The Smol was “small and insignificant”. Could the Huikert have been a hay meadow or is it a distortion of the popular name Huik for Hugo? The Botervat: butter meadow? The Westendorp, the Oosterbosch, the Oosterhoeve and the Oosterman derive their names from the cardinal directions towards which they are oriented. Agriculture is indicated by: Bouwlust, Bouwhuis and the Bovelt (building field). Is the Hillo (Heiligelo?) a memory of paganism or was it a ‘lo’ on a ‘hil’ (hill)? The Leste Stuver was formerly an inn near Bredevoort where traveling people could squander their last penny.
Boerkoel, G.A.W., The names of the Aalten farms, published in the Oostgelders Tijdschrift voor Genealogie en Boerderijonderzoek (1984, no. 2, p. 1), edited and supplemented by Remco Neerhof (Oud Aalten). Some farm names occur multiple times in the municipality of Aalten; the added hyperlink in those cases usually refers to the oldest known farm.
Several excerpts from the Java-bode, December 22, 1956
Christmas: A Christian holiday, yet many customs originate from paganism. In modified forms, they have withstood the test of time.
Already several days before Christmas, a festive mood awakens in people, reaching its peak during the Christmas days. It is no coincidence that the Christmas tree, holly, and mistletoe are popular then, and that Christmas bread, Christmas wreaths, and other Christmas pastries enhance the festive joy. It is seldom considered that such items and customs originate from ancient paganism.
In the past, our ancestors celebrated the Yule feast around this time, the festival of fertility, in honor of the return of the light. The shortest day had passed, and the days began to lengthen again. Sacrificial meals were held, and sacrificial fires blazed high in the sacred forests. Christmas is a Christian holiday, but all those customs emerged from pagan soil and have, more or less modified, remained and been adopted by modern man.
It is difficult to link Christmas customs to a specific day, as what occurs here on Christmas Day takes place elsewhere on December 26th or even on Epiphany. Some customs, such as eating certain types of cookies and pastries, are in vogue throughout that entire period between Christmas and Epiphany. In general, it can be said that in the rural Netherlands, Christmas Day is the holy day, a day of reflection and meditation, while Boxing Day is used more as a day for going out or visiting.
Achterhoek
Among the elderly in the Achterhoek, the superstition still lives that on Christmas Eve “Derk met de bèèr” rides around, destroying everything left lying outside. In many places, all agricultural tools are still stored in the barn and the yard is cleaned…
In many families in the Achterhoek, something extra is eaten on Christmas Eve, and this custom is reminiscent of the old name “dikkevretsavond” (gluttony evening). In farming families, pancakes fried with sausage are often served. A mocking rhyme that points to an extra treat goes: “Kasaventjen, Kasaventjen, dan gaat ‘t er bie ons op. Dan slacht mien va ‘nen pekkelhering en ik, ik kriege de kop”.
In Aalten, people eat “pilleweggeskes” on Christmas Eve, small spherical “weggen” (loaves) on which two dough pills are placed in a cross shape. Children still know an old begging song: “Pilleweggen-aovend, offert geld, Geft de kleine kinder wat, Geft de groten ‘ne schop vör ‘t gat!”
The aforementioned two dough pills in a cross shape did not originally belong on this Christmas pastry. They were placed there when the common people no longer understood the name “pilleweg.” A “pil” is a godchild or baptized child, and the “pillegift” in the form of a “pillewegge” was a baptismal gift. It was also a reminder of the pagan bread offering made to ward off the demons of the childbed. Anise, caraway, and cinnamon drove the gods away with their strong scent.
The fact that “pillewegen” are given as gifts on Christmas Eve likely finds its origin in the veneration of Mary as a woman in labor. The custom of eating walnuts on Christmas Eve in the cozy domestic family circle (in Aalten, for example) is still in vogue.
In 1937, G.H. Rots described in a series of articles in the Aaltensche Courant how life used to be in Aalten in former times. Regarding the historical belief in witches, he wrote:
“According to popular belief, witches held gatherings at night, and in the Aalter Esch there was a specific spot where these nocturnal assemblies took place. That piece of land, located approximately halfway between the Linde and the Lichtenvoordsche road, was called the ‘heksenbeddestêe’. It was a piece of no man’s land to which no one laid claim.”
Anyone reading about what transpired in this field is stunned by the stories of witches and ghosts that circulated in earlier times. It reached such an extent that even educated people believed in witchcraft, and the authorities of those days intervened in this ‘evil,’ punishing those found guilty of sorcery.
To determine whether an accused person was innocent or guilty, the so-called water trial was applied: the victim was thrown into the water. If they floated, they were deemed a witch; if they sank, then what? Then they were not a witch, but they usually drowned. It was believed that those who could perform witchcraft could transform themselves into animals. Illnesses among livestock or even among people were often attributed to witches. If the milk had a blue tint, or if a clump of hair was found in a calf’s or cow’s stomach, it was all blamed on the witches.
There were even people who believed themselves capable of witchcraft, claiming they had regular audiences with the devil. Witches were said to ride through the air on broomsticks and gather at the ‘beddestae’ in the Aaltenschen Esch to celebrate their nightly festivals. It should be said to the credit of the spiritual leaders of those days that they, at least, did not believe in it and repeatedly pointed out the absurdity of witchcraft to the population.
However, what is once deeply rooted is not easily dislodged, and so it took years, even centuries, before the superstition vanished. The authorities, primarily at the urging of the clergy, engaged in the suppression of witchcraft. They employed methods that were terrifying. If it was believed that someone could perform witchcraft or claimed to do so, the most severe measures were taken. Often the victims paid with their lives; even stakes were erected for burning.
Shivers down the spine
The old night watchmen could tell eerie stories of what they had experienced at night. The listener of these tales would feel ‘the shivers down their spine.’ For instance, it was told that ‘behind the hedges in the Heuksken,’ a woman dressed in white wandered every night. And then there was that mysterious light in the charnel house at the cemetery. Occasionally, mysterious animals were encountered that made the streets of Aalten unsafe. Furthermore, there were the ‘omens’ of fire. If a fire broke out in the village, one of the night watchmen had sometimes seen a ‘red glow’ above the site of the fire weeks in advance.
Berent Sweenen
Around 1600, a certain Berent Sweenen lived in Barlo. His neighbor, Geerdt Luiten, accused him of witchcraft. Luiten’s cows, pigs, and horses had regularly died of ‘unnatural sickness’ or sorcery. In the stomach of one of the cows he had cut open, ‘toads and snakes’ were found. Furthermore, Berent Sweenen’s sister ‘was also a witch.’ The whole place was hexed, and Luiten had already gone to Lichtenvoorde to complain. Berent Sweenen was summoned before the authorities and had to listen to all these accusations.
Luiten brought forward a new accusation. It was no longer possible to churn butter in his house. The cause: a hex by Sweenen. Another neighbor, Bernt Tolkamp, recounted that he had drunk buttermilk at Sweenen’s and had become ‘dreadfully ill’ from it. Tolkamp’s daughter had also fallen ill, likewise hexed by Sweenen.
More witnesses were called, namely Geerdt Winkelhorstink and Johan Merkerdink. They could only state that Sweenen had long been regarded as a sorcerer. Personally, however, they had not been troubled by him. A certain Herman Olthuys provided further incriminating testimony. Other neighbors recounted that they had hosted Berent Sweenen, who was a tailor, in their homes and that he had told them he could perform witchcraft. Eleven witnesses then took the oath and declared, invoking ‘God and His Holy Gospel,’ that what they had asserted was the truth.
Berent Sweenen, the simple tailor, maintained his innocence, but he stood alone. Eventually, under the weight of all those accusations, he gave in and said that he had understood the art of witchcraft for some 18 to 20 years. His fate was sealed, and given the punishments of those days, his head likely fell under the executioner’s axe. One case among many.
People pondered much. During the long winter evenings by primitive lighting, they saw all sorts of strange things. They heard wondrous tales, and when the old man sat in the corner by the hearth, he was asked to tell stories; then the tales of ghosts and witches would emerge, and at night in their sleep, people heard all kinds of sounds. The mystery of the unknown. That unknown, that mysteriousness, unsettled the people, and the case of Sweenen in Barlo is not unique.
Fourteen years earlier, the Bailiff of Bredevoort had already written to the Lady of the Pledge that witchcraft in Aalten was taking on ever greater proportions. One can conclude from this that the governing officials—the intellectuals of those days—also believed that witches existed. The fight against the ‘evil’ was therefore not conducted by convincing people that ‘witches’ cannot exist, but by the extermination of the individuals who carried out the evil.”
Aleida Voesters
“We wish to share one more case to provide an accurate picture of the dismal conditions in those days. It concerns a woman named Aleida Voesters. She was accused of witchcraft and thrown into prison, but was released when she promised to reform and paid a monetary fine. However, once the population views someone in a negative light, their reputation is ruined.
So it was for this woman. The population would not leave her in peace. The cup overflowed when a certain Wessel Wassink, a tailor by trade, claimed that he had fled from Mrs. Voesters’ house because he had heard devils quarreling there. The rumor reached the authorities again, and they deliberated on how to deal with this woman. The ‘executioner’ told the Bailiff that he knew a way to intervene with forceful measures. The woman was imprisoned again and transported to Bredevoort. She was thrown into the water and… she floated; she did not sink. Proof that she could perform witchcraft. They pushed her down with a long pole, but it seems that the excessive women’s clothing of those days prevented her from sinking.
The woman was then tortured with extreme cruelty. She was to be made an example. She was tied to a ladder and flogged, but the woman maintained that she could not perform witchcraft. Two days later, she was stretched on the rack again. But she did not confess. They tied a rope to her hands and hung her from a beam. At that moment, the pitiable woman let out a sound as if three men’s voices had called out. Immediately thereafter, her neck was broken. Her body was burned on a stake, made of wood that the farmers were expressly required to supply for that purpose. Such were the witch trials.”
Milk Witch
In a legal document from the Court of Bredevoort dating from 1533, we find the following story: The couple Gert and Lise Stapelkamp have a church pew in the Saint Helen’s Church in Aalten, which they claim was originally purchased by Gert’s mother, Sine Stapelkamp. However, the couple Koep and Nale Heinen claim it is their pew. During the service, Nale called Lise a ‘molkentoversche‘ (a witch who hexes cows) three times, after which Lise struck back. A significant disturbance in the church!
Sources
‘From Aalten’s Past’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 26 November 1937 (Delpher)
‘From Aalten’s Past’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 11 March 1938 (Delpher)
In large parts of the country, Carnival is celebrated seven weeks before Easter.In Aalten, this is not so much the case. Carnival is traditionally a Catholic festival, and Aalten has remained predominantly Protestant since the Reformation. Nevertheless, Carnival was also celebrated in Aalten in the past.
Carnival is originally a Christianized pagan folk festival traditionally celebrated only by Catholics. In parts of Gelderland, Carnival is celebrated exuberantly every year, while in many other parts it is not celebrated at all. These regional cultural differences often date back to the Reformation and the Eighty Years’ War (1568-1648). During this conflict, regions emerged that quickly aligned with the Protestant rebels. Other regions held on to the Catholic faith of the legitimate sovereign and Duke of Guelders for a long time.
For instance, the Lordship of Bredevoort was conquered in 1597 by the Calvinist Maurice of Nassau. He subsequently made the entire region from Aalten to Winterswijk Protestant. His half-brother Frederick Henry did not definitively conquer Groenlo from the Catholic sovereign until 1627. In the preceding years, the Catholic faith was able to take deeper root in the society of Groenlo and its surroundings thanks to the Counter-Reformation.
Carnival in Aalten
Nevertheless, Carnival was also celebrated in Aalten in the past. In 1937, G.H. Rots described in a series of articles how things were done in Aalten in earlier times. For example, he dedicated a section to ‘vastenoavond’, or Carnival:
“If we look at the cheerful things again, the first thing people in the village concerned themselves with was ‘vastenoavond’. However, compared to the Carnival festivities in southern parts of the country, it was very modest here. There was music in a few cafés, and a few people also appeared on the streets in jester costumes. Characteristic, however, was the custom of the youth walking around with a so-called ‘foekepot’. This was a tin canister over which a dried piece of pig’s bladder was stretched. In the middle was a small hole, into which a small wooden stick fitted. By pushing this stick up and down, a humming sound was produced, and so on Shrove Tuesday one could hear the dull sound of foeke-foeke-foeke. They sang the following song with it:
Foekepotterij, foekepotterij, give me a penny, then I’ll pass by. I have no money to buy bread, I’ve walked with the foekepot for so long. Foekepotterij, foekepotterij, give me a penny, then I’ll pass by.
The penny was usually given, and the ‘Shrove Tuesday fools’ did good business.”
Aalten even had three Carnival associations: De Slinge-raars, Spuit Elf, and De Olde Mölle.
Carnival society ‘De Olde Mölle’ (The Old Mill), Aalten – Carnival prince Jan, his adjutant and the Council of Eleven.
Nowadays, Carnival in Aalten is only celebrated by the children of the St. Jozefschool, the only remaining Catholic primary school in the village. Other residents of Aalten who wish to celebrate Carnival are forced to go to places such as Groenlo (Grolle), ‘s-Heerenberg (Waskuupstad), or Doetinchem (Leutekum).
Newspaper reports
De Maasbode, 5 February 1913Carnival Mater Amabilis School, Aalten – Dagblad Tubantia, 30 January 1961Dagblad Tubantia, 24 February 1965Dagblad Tubantia, 9 April 1965
Dagblad Tubantia, 12 November 1965Dagblad Tubantia, 18 February 1966
In 1937, G.H. Rots described how life used to be in Aalten in a series of articles. Among other topics, he devoted a section to the traditional farming life of the past.
“The rural districts of Aalten formed an inseparable whole with the village. The villagers needed the farmer, and conversely, the farmers of the rural districts sought contact with the villagers. The roads were far from good, and due to the narrow wheel rims, the sandy paths had much to endure. Water drainage was poorly regulated, and maintenance left much to be desired. And yet those roads had to be used at the cost of much horse and ox flesh. For most farmers formerly kept oxen, which were used as draft animals for the wagons and carts. Progress was made at a slow pace: if I do not arrive today, then tomorrow; slow but steady, for the ox was a strong draft animal. After serving as a draft animal for several years, it was led to the slaughterhouse.”
Primitive
“The entire farming operation was, of course, primitive; there was no chemical fertilizer, resulting in much lower soil yields. Group stables were unknown, and chicken coops did not exist ‘on the farm.’ The chickens spent the nights with the cows in the stable. Some poles had been installed there, and the entire flock of poultry would trot up the ‘chicken rack’ in the evening. And when the days were short, they hardly ever came down. Egg production occurred only in the summer, and even then not in great quantities. The cattle also did not look as flourishing as they do today. One had to feed what one’s own soil produced. Everything was ‘pro rata,’ in proportion, but much less and less productive than nowadays.”
Butter factories did not exist; the milk was soured in cream pots and churned by hand. On some farms, that chore was performed by a dog. The churning dog had to walk in a large wheel, which set it in motion, and via an axle connection, it moved the churning mechanism. The kneaded butter was shaped into ‘welters,’ and then the housewife would take it to the market. In Aalten, the butter market was behind the Town Hall. However, this market did not enjoy a flourishing period, as the shopkeeper was also a willing buyer. With a closed purse, one could then buy groceries, and large suppliers received cash in addition. The eggs also brought in some money, but as mentioned, production was not that large.”
Botermarkt (Buttermarket) – De Graafschapbode, 21 July 1888
‘Koojonges’
“Many small farmers went to work for daily wages, and some also had a weaving room where a bit was earned. Everything, of course, had to be performed by manual labor; machines were unknown. Every farmer (who was not a day laborer) therefore had at least one head farmhand and a ‘cow boy.’ And those ‘cow boys’ usually came from the village.”
It was the custom that boys from working-class families, before learning a trade or craft, first went to ‘the farmer’ for a few years. Working-class families in the village were usually quite blessed with children, and when a boy was 10 or 11 years old, he had to go to ‘the farmer’ for ‘room and board.’ It was then said: “then he will learn decency immediately.” In any case, the boys learned the first principles of the farming business, which served them well in later life.
For full-fledged farmhands and maidservants, the wages were also not very high. Thirty or fifty guilders per year, but they would occasionally receive clothing as well. A few shirts, a few ‘brunten’ (a type of apron), wooden shoes, and some other necessities. That was the entire wage of the maidservant. In the spring they had a holiday, the so-called ‘spinning week.’ Then they would spend a week at home with their mother. The wages of the farmhands were slightly higher, but still very low by modern standards. And do not count on having much free time or short days. We already mentioned that the threshing flail had to be taken up as early as four o’clock in the morning.”
Nutrition
“For their own nutrition, more was enjoyed from the farm than is the case today. In the first place, everyone grew a quantity of buckwheat. Buckwheat flour was suitable for pancakes. And invariably, pancakes were baked every morning, usually with a ‘slice of bacon’ in them. The cooking oil was also a product of their own cultivation. The rapeseed was taken to the oil miller, and a few large jars of rapeseed oil and a number of rapeseed cakes were collected again a few weeks later. The cakes were excellent cattle feed, a treat for freshly calved cows.”
The food was otherwise as simple as possible, yet nutritious. Home-baked bread, for many farmers had their own baking oven and baked their own bread. The only delicacy was ‘rice porridge with brown sugar,’ usually a meal for Sunday evenings or when visitors came. A large bowl full of ‘rice porridge’ was placed in the middle of the table. Every person sitting at the table received a spoon, and then the eating began. Decency required that one dip the spoon shallowly into the firm porridge, so as not to give the impression that one was after the tastiest top layer with brown sugar. If someone was nevertheless so bold, people would soon think: “He is also mowing the sods.” Eating eggs was done only on Easter Sunday. Then sometimes more were consumed than was good for the stomach.”
“When the harvest was in and the potatoes were dug, there was reason for joy; then a domestic party was arranged and they had ‘stubble-end.’ This party was limited to the household members and workers who had assisted with the harvest. That the farming industry had to contend with economic difficulties is evident from the fact that many families sold their farms and sought a new existence in the New World in America. With a few exceptions, none have returned, and they have achieved greater prosperity in their new fatherland.”
Land prices were low here, and especially wild land was not expensive. For a hundred guilders per hectare, one could already buy wild land, for there were plenty of forests and heathlands, and where there are now lush meadows and excellent farmland, there were formerly vast forests, heathlands, and wild land. The rural district of Haart in particular was very heavily forested.”
When chemical fertilizer made its entry into the farming business, a turn for the better occurred. Wild lands were reclaimed, forests were cleared, water drainage was better regulated, and numerous workers found employment in the reclamation and cultivation of wild lands. The livestock population increased, the quality of the cattle improved, agricultural courses gave tips and instructions for effective fertilization, and one new farm after another was built. Old-fashioned stables were changed, and nowadays the building style of a farm is quite different from before.”
The crops were formerly all stored indoors, ‘on the beams’ and ‘on the loft,’ while now ‘stack heaps’ can be seen everywhere, sheltering the harvest. Among the villagers, too, there was a change in economic and social relations, and agriculture was practiced less. Manure piles had to be cleared away, modern industry arrived, and gradually conditions became more modern.”
Moving house
“On the rare occasion that a farmer moved, this took place on ‘Saint Peter’s Day,’ February 22nd. All belongings were loaded onto the neighbors’ wagons, and the entire procession moved from the old house to the new or different farmstead. The neighbor women had already gone ahead to the new home, had cleaned it, and had lit the fire. In the local dialect, this was called ‘vuur beün’ (preparing the fire).”
When the new residents arrived, the coffee was already brewed, and the newcomers could immediately refresh themselves with a nice cup of coffee. The neighbors helped that day; one dropped something here, another there; it was a colossal bustle. As a crowning touch, the ‘moving-in meal’ followed later, which again did not lack for spirited drinks.”
Moving house
Deaths
Funeral
“In the event of a death, the neighbors were immediately notified; the neighbor women laid out the corpse, which was so-called ‘verhaenekleed’ (shrouded). The nearest neighbors then acted as the primary representatives of the residents. The nearest neighbor woman took over the tasks of the housewife, and the neighbor man those of the master of the house. These customs were the same among the villagers, and even now in the rural districts, that old custom is maintained.”
In the past, there was the so-called ‘funeral beer.’ After the funeral, the residents of the rural district went to one or another café in the village. There they rested from the tiring journey and beer was served. Generally, that beer was not of the very best quality in the past, and it was a sort of brown liquid that one was given to drink. In that café, they took leave of one another and everyone went their own way.”
The funeral procession of the local residents consisted of the cart on which the corpse was transported. This was uncovered. Then followed a number of “canvas carts,” high carts with white hoods. If there was a death in the village, one of the neighbors had to go around the ‘rot’ (neighborhood group) in the morning to warn the people that they ‘had to come to load at eleven o’clock.’ It was usually quite busy there at eleven o’clock, for it was the custom that the ‘nearest neighbor’ went around with the ‘bottle.’ The corpse was carried from the house of the deceased to the cemetery by the neighbors, and again gin was involved, for the pallbearers were given a restorative beforehand.”
Visit
“In the month of May, there were many farm visits. Then friends, family, and acquaintances were invited, and the farmsteads swarmed with visitors. The lands were inspected, the livestock criticized; it was more like a small-scale exhibition. These visits were also always held whenever something had been built. The building material had been fetched by the “neighbors” from the brickworks or storage sites, and a party crowned it all. That neighborly help was something traditional and was also indispensable; people supported each other mutually. Together, they performed what one could not manage alone, and especially during family events, neighborly help was indispensable.”
“During the long winter evenings, people often went on neighborhood visits, and the slaughter visits were also a real night out for the residents of the rural districts. The large sod fire (sods were light peats, the top layer of a peat layer) spread a pleasant warmth when one sat close to it, and then the master of the house sat with his chair tilted back before one side of the mantelpiece, and the neighbor before the other. The conversation then concerned the business, the cows, and the pigs. The visitors smoked for free, and when the pipe had to be lit, a glowing coal was taken from the fire with the tongs.”
The home butcher
The depression in the hearth plate, where the actual heart of the fire was located, was called ‘rake’ or ‘vuurrake.’ The ‘blowpipe,’ the tongs, and the fire spoon were the tools that hung beside the fire. Above the fire, a large chimney breast was built out, which served as a smoke catcher. It was also the storage place for everything one wanted to keep dry, including the gunpowder and the powder horn, for every farmer had a gun, a muzzle-loader, which had to be loaded with powder. Poaching was in the farmer’s blood. He would occasionally outsmart a hare or a rabbit.”
Illustration: Piet te Lintum
The architectural style of the old farms was the Saxon type. In very old houses, the living space for humans and animals was not separated. In most, there was a partition wall, sometimes of stone, sometimes of so-called ‘wand,’ a wickerwork of wood, plastered with loam on both sides. The box beds were mostly all installed in the kitchen, and one can imagine the situations that arose as a result.”
When clothes had to be mended or made new, the tailor from the village came to the house to perform those tasks, and in the evening he would clatter back to the village with the pressing iron and the pressing board in his hands. When May arrived, the farmer could earn an extra income by peeling wood. Around the fields were wooded banks on which oak coppice was grown. When this wood had reached a thickness of approx. 5 cm, it was cut, and because it was ‘in sap’ in May, it was peeled, i.e., stripped of its bark. The wood was chopped to a length of about 1 meter, and then it was laid over another piece of wood and beaten until the bark or crust came loose. The bark was dried and taken to tanneries, where it was processed into tannin. The wood that remained was called ‘schelhout’ (peeled wood) and was a very popular fuel.”
Another resource to increase income was the burning of charcoal. Some had acquired skill in this, and these charcoal burners had their customers everywhere. In the autumn, the farmers moved with the cattle to the fields. Entire fields were overgrown with spurrey, a crop sown after the rye. The cattle were put on the ‘tether’: a pole was driven into the ground, to which a wooden pole with an iron bracket was attached, and fastened to the cow chain or rope. The cattle could then graze a certain section, and each time the cattle had to be ‘tethered further.’”
Market
“When it was market day, people went to the market; if there was livestock to be sold, it was transported to the market, for cattle trading only happened at the market. The Aalten cattle market was therefore very well attended. People became informed about the prices of oxen and other cattle; they heard all sorts of news at the market, which in turn provided subject matter for conversation in the domestic circle.”
The annual fairs were the major event in the life of the population. First there was the May market, in the autumn the Fair, and on December 6th the Saint Nicholas market. Then it was a bustle of great importance in the village. In the morning, the married couples went from home to the market. The cattle market was overcrowded, and in the inner market, there was no lack of stalls and sellers of all kinds of household items. Well-known figures were the quacks who sold herbs, which were said to cure most diseases. The tooth-pullers also usually had good business.”
Veemarkt (Cattle Market) Aalten, around 1934
At those annual fairs, there was dance music in most inns. The young people went to the market in the afternoon. The farm girls first strolled past the stalls, bought something to their liking, and finally grouped together. Then the boys appeared, and they tried to find each other to go out this evening. Some had already made appointments beforehand. These ‘had the sods dry already,’ for in the local dialect, if one had someone’s promise to celebrate the annual fair together, it was said: ‘then one had the sods dry.’ When it was nine o’clock in the evening, and there were still girls who received no proposal, then the chance for them was gone and they had to return home alone. Thus the first marriage bonds were often formed, and the first meeting at the annual fair was decisive for their entire lives.”
Source
‘From Aalten’s Past’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 12 & 19 November 1937 (via Delpher: part III & part IV)
Traveling—whether through one’s own country or abroad—is a pastime of all ages and all peoples. Traveling and the writing of travelogues also took place in Overijssel. The Deventer scholar Mr. G. Dumbar wrote extensively about our country in the 18th century, including Gelderland. In the ‘Tegenwoordige Staat van alle Volkeren’ (Gelderland section), he describes towns and villages in the Achterhoek, from which we derive several insights. Starting at Borculo and moving toward Lichtenvoorde, we shall recount how Dumbar viewed the old lands of the County.
Much has changed; the heathlands and peat bogs have largely disappeared. The treacherous sandy tracks have been replaced by excellent paved roads. The impoverished, hut-like farmhouses have been transformed into proper dwellings for both man and livestock. Many forests have likewise vanished, and along with this progression over the last two centuries, numerous noble houses have gone as well. Towns and villages have changed, yet not so much that they have lost the prominence they already held to this day.
Illustration by Piet te Lintum from the article ‘Boerenleven‘
The Lordship of Bredevoort
From Neede, he moves on to the Lordship of Bredevoort, of which we read that it is of great antiquity. In 1245, the Castle of Bredevoort was granted as a fief by Herman, Count of Loon, to Otto of Nassau, Count of Gelre and Zutphen. William, Duke of Jülich and Gelre, pledged the fief in 1388 to Hendrik van Gemen for three thousand French Shields. Jacob van Bronckhorst later held the same right of pledge with the consent of the States of Gelderland. However, having chosen the side of the enemy in 1580, the town, along with the castle and the Lordship of Bredevoort, was given to Prince William I. His descendants still held the Lordship in 1741.
The Town of Bredevoort
As for the town of Bredevoort, conditions in 1741 were better than they are today. At that time, it was home to the Drost and the Richter, as well as two deputies, a Stadtholder, an Advocate-Fiscal, a Landscribe, and a Commander. Furthermore, several officers resided there. All these high-ranking gentlemen spent a great deal of money in the small town, which must have appeared very distinguished at the time. The common man living in the villages of Winterswijk—notably the largest village in all of Gelderland at the time!—Aalten, and Dinxperlo, had to dance to the tune of the Drost of Bredevoort and his clique.
Bredevoort itself was said to be very strong in 1741. The surrounding lands consisted entirely of marshland, where no one dared to venture. Moreover, three companies of infantry were stationed there; where all these people were sheltered remains a mystery to me.
The citizens of Bredevoort made the outsiders from Winterswijk and Aalten feel that they were of a superior class. When it was bitterly cold in winter and the frost was hard, the people of Aalten and Winterswijk were required to come and chop ice for the ice cellars. The mail had to be delivered by the men of Winterswijk and Aalten for nothing. Additionally, a wagonload of twig brooms had to be delivered to Bredevoort every year. If a hunt for thieves, robbers, vagabonds, or wolves was to be held, the people of Aalten and Winterswijk were allowed to beat the bushes and carry the rifles, while enduring the insults of the gentlemen. How the people of Winterswijk and Aalten must have rejoiced when the French in 1795 put an end to this state of affairs.
Meanwhile, we now write 1951, and it must be said: the two Cinderellas, Winterswijk and Aalten, have become fine maidens since 1741 and are in a state of glowing prosperity. It is, however, the irony of history that the stepmother, Bredevoort, is now sometimes treated somewhat stepmotherly herself. When one walks across her uneven cobblestone streets, one cannot help but feel pity for the outgrown lady of two centuries ago.
Aalten Surpassed Bredevoort
Markt Square, Aalten by Jan de Beijer, 1743
When the modern textile industry emerged, Aalten was the favorite. The Driessen family from Bocholt were the founders of Aalten’s rise, establishing themselves here as early as 1826. They attracted other industries. Although there were some dark pages in the previous century, Aalten turned the tables and is now the leader in the former Lordship of Bredevoort. Naturally, the municipality currently faces concerns as great as those of its sister municipalities, but that does not change the fact that Aalten has truly come into its own.
It is, meanwhile, astonishing how much marshland, how many vast heaths, and how many wild forests existed in 1741. If history had not been faithfully recorded and if we did not have more sources at our disposal, one could hardly believe that such conditions existed. Today, one sees prosperous lands and lush pastures that are a delight to the eye.
What we have described here is approximately all that is told of the Achterhoek. It is little. However, one must not forget that in 1741, someone from Amsterdam regarded the region we have described as a kind of jungle, which he preferred to stay as far away from as possible. It is therefore quite understandable that in earlier centuries, the population of East Gelre was much more closely related to Germany in economic and geographical terms than to the Dutch West. The attitude of the Germans has brought about a great change in this regard in recent years.
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