PHYSICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE GEOGRAPHY

1. THE NETHERLANDS
   • The Netherlands are renown for their tulips and windmills.

   

   The word Netherlands signifies a flat, low, marshy country. A considerable portion of the surface of the Netherlands and Belgium is more than twenty feet below tide water. Inundation is prevented by dikes or mounds.
   The low land is drained by means of its numerous canals, which are between high banks, and into which the water was once raised by windmills and steam engines and is now raised by modern machinery.
   
   Historical leading occupations in the Netherlands were commerce and dairy-farming.
   The capital city of the Netherlands is Amsterdam.
   
   Dutch is the language spoken by a great majority of people in the Netherlands.
   As of 2020, the population of the Netherlands is over 17 million.
   
   
2. BELGIUM
   • Belgium is noted for its dense population, whose historical employments were chiefly in agriculture and manufactures.
   • Belgium has three official languages - Dutch, French, and German.
   • As of 2020, the population of Belgium is over 11 million.
   • The capital city of Belgium is Brussels.

   

HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY

1. the Netherlands and Belgium, at the beginning of the Christian era, were subject to Rome. In the 8th century, they formed part of the dominions of Charlemagne; and afterwards, of Austria and Spain.
2. The Netherlands became independent and very prosperous in the 17th century, and her foreign possessions comprised Sumatra, Java, and several other Asiatic islands, besides Dutch Guiana.
3. Both countries were afterward incorporated with France. In 1811, they were joined together as the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
4. They have been separate entities since 1831.

MAPWORK

1. By what is the Netherlands bounded on the north and west?
2. Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, is one of five most important commercial cities in Europe. It is built on wooden piles driven into swampy ground. Where is Amsterdam situated?
3. Rotterdam, another large city of the Netherlands, is, like Amsterdam, intersected by numerous canals. Where is Rotterdam?
4. By what is the Netherlands bounded on the east?
5. By what is the Netherlands bounded on the south?
6. What sea or zee is in the Netherlands?
7. What are some of the rivers flowing through the Netherlands?
8. Does the Rhine empty through one or several mouths?
9. What is a river flowing through Belgium?
10. Brussels, the capital of Belgium, is celebrated for lace and carpets, printing, publishing, and trade. Where is it?
11. Antwerp (meaning added, because it was built on successive deposits from the river) commands the commerce of Belgium. Where is it situated?