'Ofter gheen water op en hadde gheweest'(1) - Narratives of Resilience on the Dutch Coast in the Seventeenth Century

Inundations and floods were part of the everyday experiences of early modern coastal societies. While much scholarly research has focused on the immediate reactions to the seemingly extraordinary inundations, this article argues, that an investigation of the long-term perspective of flood accounts, beyond the much studied discourses of ministers, magistrates and engineers might reveal a different, but perhaps more typical response to these disasters. The discourse of resilience and stoical attention to business as usual adds an additional dimension to modern society's scripts of disaster management.