Engelsmanplaat
Englishman Plate and the drowning cottage: a history of struggle and survival
In the middle of the Wadden Sea, between Ameland and Schiermonnikoog, lies Engelsmanplaat. This sandbank, which constantly changes shape and size under the influence of wind and water, seems pristine and deserted at first glance. Yet this place has a special history, full of stories about stranded sailors, people in hiding and shipwrecks.
Where does the name Engelsmansplaat come from?
The name ‘Engelsmans Plaat’ first appears on a sea chart from the 17th century. How the sandbank got this name remains a mystery. Various stories circulate. According to one of the oldest versions, an Englishman once built a small house here, with the idea of living permanently on the sandbank. However, that plan proved doomed to fail-the unpredictable Wadden Sea did not allow permanent habitation. Another explanation refers to the Schiermonnikoog shell fisherman Feye Willems Engelsman, whose ship ran aground near the plate in 1708. Whichever version is correct, the name has stuck and forever links the sandbar with its earliest discoverers.
Drowning houses: a last resort
Three different drowning huts have stood on Englishman Plate since 1920. These wooden huts on stilts were meant to provide shelter for shipwrecked sailors who ended up on the sandbar due to currents and treacherous gullies. However, nature proved merciless: the first versions of the cottage were destroyed by storms and changing tides. The current drowning cottage is an iconic relic of that era, although it is no longer used as an emergency shelter.
During World War II, the cottage took on an unexpected role. In 1944, two American pilots and two Dutchmen went into hiding here for 12 days, hidden from the German occupiers. Exposed to the wind and changing tides, they survived on this barren sandbank-an ordeal that must have tested their survival instincts to the limit.
The cape: a beacon in a changing landscape
Next to the drowning house is also a cape, a wooden beacon that used to serve as a landmark for navigation. Before modern navigation existed, such landmarks were crucial for sailors. Today, the cape no longer has a nautical function, but for mudflat walkers and nature lovers, it remains a striking landmark in the vast, empty landscape of Engelsmanplaat.
