Talk:Middelburg

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I am not sure about the dates mentioned in the article for the founding of the abbey or the granting of city rights to Middelburg.

--Martin Wisse 11:08, 11 Sep 2004 (UTC)

I cannot believe there is no mention of the slave trade. This stinks of bias. There is of course the description of how the Germans bombed Middelburg but there is no mention of the atrocities committed by the Dutch in their effort to profit from the slave trade...Hans in Holland.

The article needs better references. For instance for archeological evidence for the existence of an early 9th, or possibly late 8th, century walled settlement (Dutch) on the site of today's abbey: Heeringen, R.M. van; Henderikx, P.A. Vroeg Middeleeuwse Ringwalburgen in Zeeland. Goes, De Koperen Tuin. 1995. ISBN:90-72138-41-4. (Dutch) The early date for the founding of the abbey is unfamiliar to me but also reported in another online encyclopedia, in connection with the more familiar 1125 date. The following sentence is misleading: "Hundreds of thousands of African slaves were transported from Middelburg to North and South America, thus enriching local traders." Middelburg was certainly involved in slave trade, but no slaves were ever traded in Middelburg. Look here (Dutch, the archive of the province of Zeeland) for a short history of Middelburg's involvement in the slave trade. "Hundreds of thousands" is certainly exaggerated: 180.000 is the theoretical upper bound, if Middelburg is held responsible for all slaves sold by companies and individual merchants from the province of Zeeland, which is certainly not the case since the town of Vlissingen (note that slave trade isn't mentioned there) was certainly more important in the slave trade. "Tens of thousands" is closer to the truth. The section on "Zuid" is just silly. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 145.18.192.124 (talk) 14:24, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

I think the person who wrote the above was correct. Is it okay if I have just removed that sentence about the slave trade? Fiffififf D. Dünngus (talk) 19:40, 20 May 2008 (UTC)