"City gate"

At the end of the bridge (‘Kleiwegbrug’) once stood the northern city gate (‘Kleiwegpoort’). The gate build in the 16th century, was demolished in 1843. Nearly all windmills stood outside the city walls until the war against the Spanish occupation (the Eighty Years’ War) started and the decision was taken to take all buildings outside of the city walls down. This meant that the mills were to be reconstructed inside of the walls, to avoid the Spanish army (ab)using them.

It was in this time that a new mill was constructed near the ‘Kleiwegpoort’ named “de Cleyweg” / “de Noord”. This was a so-called Post mill, ‘standerd mill’ in Dutch, the oldest type of flourmill/windmill in Holland.

This mill was replaced (before 1832) by a ‘stellingmolen’, made of stone and with a gallery to enable operating the mill. This type of windmill is a flourmill as well. The North was not to last long and was taken down in 1863. The round shape of the current building still corresponds with the floor plan of the old mill (picture 1).

Wind mill ‘The North  (the second, replaced mill)’ right behind the city gate ‘Kleiwegpoort’. Drawing A.D. 1840 by Gijsbertus Johannes Versluy (picture 2).