The Netherlands and the Countries to the Left Bank of the Rhine

Interesting depiction of the Southern Netherlands – a precursor state to modern Belgium.

This attractive map uses bright hand color to distinguish between the various political components of the Southern, or Austrian, Netherlands shortly after Napoleon’s defeat. The territory was overrun and annexed by the French in the 1790’s, and united with the lands of the previously independent Dutch Republic into the United Kingdom of the Netherlands at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. This was short lived, as in 1830 the southern territories successfully revolted and formed the modern-day state of Belgium.

The map was originally designed by Scottish cartographer John Pinkerton. As part of the Edinburgh School of Cartography (which included the likes of John Cary and John Thomson), Pinkerton was responsible for creating some of the most highly detailed and precise atlas maps of the early 19th century.

Today, his maps are prized for their size, color, and wealth of information. This particular example was included in the American edition of Pinkerton’s Modern Atlas, published in Philadelphia by Thomas Dobson in 1818.