After the dark Middle Ages there was an enormous increase in population in Europe and new grounds were developed. Because of its strategically profitable position, two successive castles were built...Show moreAfter the dark Middle Ages there was an enormous increase in population in Europe and new grounds were developed. Because of its strategically profitable position, two successive castles were built at Kuinre, inhabited by the Lords of Kuinre. Both castles were swallowed by the Zuiderzee. After the Noordoostpolder fell dry, the remains of the castles were multiple times archaeologically researched. The first castle was dated between the second half of the 12th and the 14th century. The second one was dated between the 14th century and 1531. Between 1531 and 1535 the second castle was pulled down and the re-usable material shipped to Genemuiden. An image of the environment is sketched in this essay. The first sample was taken from a ditch, which had been open during the last phase of the first castle and shows a variety of habitats around the first castle. On the peat grew heath, and along the coast salt marshes developed. On these salt marshes low growing species of Chenopodio-Oxalidetum fontanae (Association of the Many-seeded Goosefoot and Yellow Wood-sorrel) determined the vegetation. Closer to the castle it was Scirpetum tabernaemontani (Association of Grey Club-rush), with its communities of Rush, that defined the vegetation. It’s an indication for a brackish environment. The peat-areas around the sand dune on which the castle was situated were covered with heath. Al these species show an increase in wetness in the soil, caused by the expanding Zuiderzee. The ground salted up, en several salt-intolerant species disappeared. Camp sheeting at the moat shows some human interference. Salt marshes developed along the coast, with their own vegetation. The other samples were derived from moats around the second castle, and show the development of the vegetation around this castle through different phases. In the first phase, which took place from the end of the 14th till the beginning of the 15th century, the pioneering species Chenopodietum rubri (Association of Goose-foots and Pale persicaria) determined the vegetation. The heath consisted of Erico-Sphagnetum magellanici (Association of Cross-leaved Heath and Peat Moss). In and around the moats the species of Typho-Phragmitetum (Reed-association) were growing. It concerns here the sub-association in which Typha angustifolia dominates. The third sample, taken from moat 1b, sketches an image of the changes in the vegetation during the second and third phase. In the 15th century the species of the Reed-association kept covering the banks of the moats, protecting them as camp sheeting. Cladietum marisci (Green Fen Sedge-association) appears in the direct surroundings of the castle. The third sample was the first one with remains of Sphagnum in it, which showed changing heath vegetation caused by this area getting wetter and swampier as well. These moors were covered with Sphagno palustris-Ericetum (Marsh Heath). The brackish water environment speeded up the process. In the last sample the vegetation around the castle consisted of species of Chenopodietum rubri. The peat was covered with Marsh Heath. The plants of Scirpetum tabernaemontani determined the remaining vegetation along the moats, which were filled up during this phase. The fact that the area continuously kept getting wetter stipulated the vegetation, and caused for some species to disappear. The second was castle was built at only 800 meters away from the first one, and it didn’t take long for the expanding Zuiderzee to also threaten this castle. Is the second sample still showing a closed-off moat system, in the successive phase the area is already getting, and that the vegetation altered along in this process. There were also signs of the coast moving towards the second castle during this phase. The high number of Eriophorum vaginatum shows an increase in the formation of peat, another confirmation for these developments. At the end, the inhabitants of this castle were also forced to leave it, and loose the battle that they’ve fought for ages against the sea.Show less