De Vlijt formerly known as Hoop van Zegen is a smock mill

Smock mill

The smock mill is a type of windmill that consists of a sloping, horizontally weatherboarded tower, usually with six or eight sides. It is topped with a roof or cap that rotates to bring the sails into the wind...

 in Zuidwolde

Zuidwolde (Drenthe)

Zuidwolde is a village in the Dutch province of Drenthe. It is located in the municipality of De Wolden, about 7 km southwest of Hoogeveen.Zuidwolde was a separate municipality until 1998, when it became part of De Wolden....

, Drenthe

Drenthe

Drenthe is a province of the Netherlands, located in the north-east of the country. The capital city is Assen. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and Germany to the east.-History:Drenthe, unlike many other parts of the Netherlands, has been a...

, which has been convserved. The mill was built in 1878 and is listed as a Rijksmonument

Rijksmonument

A rijksmonument is a National Heritage Site of the Netherlands, listed by the agency Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed acting for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.-History and criteria:...

, number 41099.

History

The first windmill on this site was a post mill

Post mill

The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have...

 that was built in 1731. It burnt down in 1877. To replace it, the drainage mill Zuidplasmolen I was moved to Zoudwolde. It had stood between Moordrecht

Moordrecht

Moordrecht is a town and a former municipality in the province of South Holland, the Netherlands, situated along the river Hollandse IJssel....

 and Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel

Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel

Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel is a town and former municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland...

, Zuid Holland. The move was carried out by millwright

Millwright

A millwright is a craftsman or tradesman engaged with the construction and maintenance of machinery.Early millwrights were specialist carpenters who erected machines used in agriculture, food processing and processing lumber and paper...

 C H Schiller of Dalfsen

Dalfsen

Dalfsen is a municipality and a town in the Salland region of the Dutch province of Overijssel.The present municipality of Dalfsen was created on 1 January 2001 through the merger of the municipalities of Nieuwleusen and Dalfsen....

, Overijssel

Overijssel

Overijssel is a province of the Netherlands in the central eastern part of the country. The region has a NUTS classification of NL21. The province's name means "Lands across river IJssel". The capital city of Overijssel is Zwolle and the largest city is Enschede...

. In 1940, the sails were fitted with steamlined leading edges. This was the work of millwright Bisschop of Dalfsen. The mill stopped working after the Second World War, but a restoration was carried out in 1960, being completed in September.

In 1980-81 a further restoration of the mill was carried out. On 1 April 2001, there was a fire at the mill although prompt attendance by the fire brigade saved the mill. The sailstocks were removed on 5 May 2004. As of November 2009, there are no plans to return the mill to working order.

Description

De Wachter is what the Dutch describe as an "achtkante beltmolen". It is a three storey smock mill on a single storey brick base. There is no stage, a mound of earth throw up against the base provides access for the sails. The smock and cap are thatched. The mill is winded by a tailpole and winch. The four Common sails had a span of 21.8 metre. They had streamlined leading edges. The sails were carried in a cast iron windshaft which was cast by Enthiizen in 1864. The windshaft also carries the brake wheel which has 71 cogs. This drives the wallower (38 cogs) at the top of the upright shaft. At the bottom of the upright shaft, the great spur wheel, which has 110 cogs, drives the 1.5 metre diameter French Burr stones via a lantern pinion stone nut with 35 staves.