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Medemblik (The Netherlands)

Noord-Holland province

Shipmate Flagchart : http://www.shipmate.nl/flags.htm
adopted 11 Aug 1959; design: Kl. Sierksma.

Medemblik municipality
Medemblik old flag

See also:

Medemblik municipality

Number of inhabitants (1 Jan 2003): 7.895; area: 7,31 km². Settlements: Medemblik (seat).
Medemblik is a city on the former Zuiderzee, the capital of the region of West-Friesland in Noord-Holland province. According to tradition here resided King Redbad of Fryslân (8th century); however Redbad's castle was founded in 1288 by Count Floris V of Holland, probably as a defense against the (West) Frisians. The name is derived from the river Leek
(Medemeleke); it was a member of the Hanseatic league, and had the right to have the Emperor's crown on top of its coat of arms. Medemblik florished notably in the days of the Dutch East India Company (17th century).

The flag of Medemblik: Six diagonal stripes of black and yellow, runnining from hoist-top to fly-bottom, with in the canton a blue castle with open gate. This flag was adopted by municipal resolution on 11 Aug 1959; design: Kl. Sierksma in Muiderberg.
The diagonal stripes are a remote reminder of the Frisian flag, while the blue castle refers to Redbad's castle.
Source: Sierksma's Nederlands Vlaggenboek, 1962 [sie62].
Jarig Bakker, 8 Jul 2003

Medemblik old flag

by Jarig Bakker, 8 Jul 2003

In the Napolitan flagbook of 1667 (That is "Bandiere usate in mare da diverse nazioni sopra i legni da guerra e mercantili", Napoli - manuscript in possession of the John Carter Brown Library, Providence, USA) is a flag with three equally high horizontal stripes of black and yellow. That flag is a banner of arms (see Ralf Hartemink's site), although the stripes on the CoA are vertical.
In the Amsterdams Scheepvaartmuseum is a manuscript with a black-white-black flag for Medemblik, but that is probably a case of mis-reading the Napolitan manuscript.
Source: Sierksma's Nederlands Vlaggenboek, 1962 [sie62].
Jarig Bakker, 8 Jul 2003