Cities in the Netherlands
North Sea Region
The Story of Callantsoog
Known in the Middle Ages as the village of Callingen on the island Oge (Callingen, the family name derived from the first name Kalle), the village of over 300 homes was destroyed by the infamous All Saints Flood of 1570. An independent municipality until 1989, it now is part of Zijpe, together with Burgerbrug, Burgervlotbrug, Groote Keeten, Oudesluis, Petten, Schagerbrug (the site of Zijpe's town hall), Sint Maartensbrug, Sint Maartens-vlotbrug and 't Zand. It had 187 inhabitants in 1840; the entire Zijpe municipality now has 11,400. Just south of the village is one of the most important bird sanctuaries in the Netherlands. The 1500 acre Zwanenwater houses Europe's largest colony of spoonbills.