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Newes from Holland, true, strange, and wonderfull (London, 1624).
This news pamphlet was produced by the leading London publisher of news, Nathaniel Butter, and was based on translations of two recent Dutch pamphlets.
The striking title-page claims to show the effects of the great flood of Holland in January 1624. The first part of the pamphlet describes how the melting of heavy winter snows had burst through a network of dams and dikes, ensuring that some meadows in the vicinity of Utrecht were under 20 feet of water. The second part tells the tale of a man who found a three-year old boy dressed in green under a hedge near Utrecht. The child spoke to warn of the imminent end of the world, and then vanished into thin air.
This pamphlet reminds us that news was rarely dispassionate or factual. All events were likely to be reported and interpreted through the religious and ideological anxieties of the day.
Citation:
Newes from Holland, true, strange, and wonderfull (London, 1624).
Marsh's Library Exhibits,
accessed December 6, 2025,
https://www.marshlibrary.ie/digi/items/show/465
