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- ISSN: 2468-2187
- E-ISSN: 2468-2195
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De schutte
Een vergeten en vrijwel verdwenen voorziening in het Zeeuwse dorp, in het bijzonder op Walcheren
- Amsterdam University Press
- Source: Tijdschrift voor Historische Geografie, Volume 10, Issue 2, May 2025, p. 140 - 149
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- 01 May 2025
Abstract
Abstract
The (cattle) pen. A forgotten and almost disappeared facility in the Zeeland village, especially on the isle of Walcheren
In almost every village and town across Zeeland, including most cities, a facility known as the (cattle) pen (de schutte) was once used to confine animals that wandered unattended. A dedicated warden (de schutter) was responsible for overseeing this task. Laws governing the management of stray livestock, distinct from those applied in urban areas, have existed since 1256. On the island of Walcheren, the local waterboard took on the primary responsibility for overseeing the wardens from the 16th century onward. Due to the extensive border between farmland and pasture, and the absence of modern fencing like barbed wire, it was a difficult and nearly impossible task for the wardens to keep livestock where they belonged. In the 19th century, however, this system began to change as new municipal governments appointed rural constables and police officers. Consequently, all (cattle) pens were dismantled, with the last one remaining in the city of Zierikzee on Schouwen-Duiveland.
© Aad de Klerk