History of Holland > Holland history > Lodovico Guicciardini description of the Low Countries > Guicciardini book page 6-I

Guicciardini book page 6-I

selfe againe in twaine. The one of the which namely, that on the right hand, runneth a small space towards the East, and after towardes the North, & is called of the Latines Fossa drusiana, but of the comon sort New Ysel, bicause Drusus Nero, seeing no great distance to be betweene this right branch of the Rhine & he River Yssel, which ariseth in Westphalia, cutte a large Fosse neere to Arnem, all the waie betweene Arnem and Doesburg, into the which he received parte of the water of this right branch of the Rhine, the which conveying by this Fosse to Doesburg, hee there joyned with the River Ysel, to convey ther by the easlier the Romain armie out of the Rhin, into the Septentrionall Sea. This Fosse beeyng joyned with Ysel, at Campen entereth into the Gulfe of Zuiderzee: And you shall understande that the sayd River Ysel, before it meeteth with these waters of the Rhine, is called olde Yssel,but after their meeting, they are both named Newe Yssel: bicause of the great increase of their waters. And thus the Rhine, which before that time had but two branches, is now devided into three namely, the Wael, which wee have already described: this heere now described called Yssel, & the third which nowe shall be described called Leck.

The rightbranch of the River of Rhine: after the great losse of his waters received into Fossa Drusiana, as before is declared, pursueth his course

Guicciardini - description of the Low Countries (Holland and Belgium) - printed in the year 1593 - Next page 6-II -->