Zwolle is a
municipality and the capital city of the province of
Overijssel,
Netherlands. It has a population around 125,000.
History
Historical population |
Year |
Pop. |
±% p.a. |
1404 |
3,500 |
— |
1525 |
4,500 |
+0.21% |
1599 |
6,500 |
+0.50% |
1628 |
7,700 |
+0.59% |
1670 |
10,932 |
+0.84% |
1675 |
6,963 |
−8.63% |
1680 |
9,388 |
+6.16% |
1682 |
7,800 |
−8.85% |
1748 |
11,931 |
+0.65% |
1795 |
12,220 |
+0.05% |
Source: Lourens & Lucassen 1997, pp. 83-84 |
Archaeological findings indicate that the area surrounding Zwolle has been inhabited for a long time. A
woodhenge that was found in the
Zwolle-Zuid suburb in 1993 was dated to the
Bronze Age period.
[6][7] During the Roman era, the area was inhabited by
Salian Franks.
The modern
city was founded around 800 A.D. by
Frisian merchants and troops of
Charlemagne.
[8] The name
Zwolle is derived from the word
Suolle, which means "hill" (cf. the
English cognate verb "to swell"). This refers to an incline in the landscape between the four
rivers surrounding the city,
IJssel,
Vecht, Aa and
Zwarte Water. The hill was the only piece of land that would remain dry during the frequent
floodings of the rivers. Zwolle was established on that incline.
A document mentions the existence of a
parish church dedicated to
St Michael. That church, the
Grote or
Sint Michaëlskerk (
big or
Saint Michael Church), was renovated in the first half of the 15th century and exists to this day. The church contains a richly carved
pulpit, the work of
Adam Straes van Weilborch (about 1620), some good carving and an exquisite
organ (1721).
On August 31, 1230, the bishop of
Utrecht granted Zwolle
city rights. Zwolle became a member of the
Hanseatic league in 1294, and in 1361 joined the war between the Hanseatic League and
Valdemar IV of Denmark. In the 1370
Treaty of Stralsund that ended the war, Zwolle was awarded a
vitte, a trade colony, in
Scania, then part of
Denmark. Zwolle's golden age came in the 15th century. Between 1402 and 1450, the city's
Gross Regional Product multiplied by about six.
[9]
In July 1324 and October 1361, regional
noblemen set fire to Zwolle. In the 1324 fire, only nine buildings escaped the flames.
[10]
Map of Zwolle by
Joan Blaeu in Blaeu's "Toonneel der Steden", 1652
Zwolle was also, with
Deventer, one of the centers of the
Brethren of the Common Life, a
monastic movement. Three miles from Zwolle, on a slight eminence called the Agnietenberg, (hill of St Agnes), once stood the Augustinian convent in which
Thomas à Kempis spent the greatest part of his life and died (in 1471).
[11]
At least as early as 1911, Zwolle had a considerable trade by river, a large fish market, and the most important cattle market in the Netherlands after
Rotterdam. The more important industries comprised
cotton manufactures, iron works, boat-building, dyeing and bleaching, tanning, rope-making, and salt-making.
[11]
In
World War II, Zwolle was single-handedly liberated from the Germans by Canadian soldier
Léo Major. He was made an honorary citizen of Zwolle in 2005 and a street is named for him.
In 2004, Zwolle's
De Librije restaurant was honored with 3 stars by
Michelin Guide; as of 2007, with the demotion of
Parkheuvel from 3 to 1 star, it is one of only two restaurants so honored in the entire country.
Blauwvingers
Citizens of Zwolle are colloquially known as
Blauwvingers (Bluefingers). This dates back to 1682, when the St Michael's church tower collapsed. The authorities were strapped for cash and saw no option but to sell the
church bells to neighbouring city
Kampen. To make sure that Kampen would not make too much profit from the deal, the local authorities asked a high price for the church bells. Kampen accepted, yet after the arrival of the bells it became clear, they were too damaged to be played. In revenge, Kampen paid in copper coins of four
duiten (the equivalent of two-and-a-half
cents). Zwolle distrusted Kampen and wanted to be sure they truly paid the entire price. After the rigorous counting of this vast amount of money, their fingers had turned blue from the copper.
[12][13]
Climate
[hide]Climate data for Zwolle |
Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
Year |
Average high °C (°F) |
3
(37) |
2
(36) |
8
(46) |
12
(53) |
16
(61) |
19
(66) |
20
(68) |
20
(68) |
18
(64) |
13
(56) |
8
(46) |
6
(42) |
12.1
(53.6) |
Average low °C (°F) |
0
(32) |
−2
(29) |
2
(35) |
4
(40) |
8
(47) |
12
(53) |
14
(57) |
14
(57) |
11
(52) |
8
(47) |
3
(38) |
2
(36) |
6.3
(43.6) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) |
56
(2.2) |
38
(1.5) |
36
(1.4) |
30
(1.2) |
48
(1.9) |
56
(2.2) |
104
(4.1) |
89
(3.5) |
80
(3) |
61
(2.4) |
36
(1.4) |
53
(2.1) |
687
(26.9) |
Source: Weatherbase [14] |
Buildings
Besides the
Grote or
Sint Michaëlskerk (the latter which houses a majestic
Baroque organ built by
Arp Schnitger), there are several other historic monuments in Zwolle. The Roman Catholic
Onze Lieve Vrouwe ten Hemelopneming-
basilica (Our Lady Ascension) dates back to 1399. The church tower, called
Peperbus (pepperbox), is one of the tallest and most famous church towers in the Netherlands. The modernized
town hall was originally built in 1448.
[11]
Mention should also be made of the
Sassenpoort (one of the old city gates), the city walls, the
Mosterdmakerstoren (
mustard makers' tower)(the complex where local mustard used to be made), a guild-house (1571), the former provincial government offices, a
Dominican monastery, and on the Melkmarkt, two museums; the
Stedelijk Museum Zwolle of antiquities and natural history, and the
Vrouwenhuis.
Museum de Fundatie, the fine art museum of the province of Overijssel, is hosted in the former Justice Hall on Blijmarkt Square.
In the western part of the city, west of the railway station, there is a quarter of
Art Nouveau buildings, concentrated mostly on Koningin Wilhelminastraat, Prinses Julianastraat, and Prins Hendrikstraat. These three-store living houses were built in 1900s by various Dutch architects. Eleven of the buildings are protected by the Dutch government (
rijksmonumenten).
The
Broerenkerk church was part of the
Dominican monastery founded in 1465. The monastery was closed in 1580 and the monks were expelled. From 1640 until 1982 the church was used for Protestant services. After a restoration in 1983-1988 it has been used for cultural events and it is now a bookstore.
[15][16]
-
-
Peperbus from the Eekwal. The house in front really is that crooked.
-
-
-
-
-
Notable residents
- See also People from Zwolle
- Arts, culture, entertainment and the media
- Hein Boele (born November 24, 1939), actor, Dutch voice of Elmo
- Jonnie Boer (born 1965), chef with three Michelin stars
- Gerard ter Borch (1617–1681), painter
- Tooske Breugem (born 1974), television host actress
- Herman Brood (November 5, 1946–July 11, 2001), painter/rock star
- Eef Brouwers (born 1939), journalist and former head of the Netherlands Government Information Service
- A. den Doolaard (February 7, 1901–June 26, 1994), author
- Rhijnvis Feith (1753–1824), author
- Bennie den Haan (born February 3, 1970), actor
- Eli Heimans (1861–1914), author
- Marnix Kappers (born 1943), actor
- Master I. A. M. of Zwolle (c. 1440-1490), engraver
- Ton Koopman (born 1944), a conductor, organist, and harpsichordist
- Yuri Landman (born 1973), experimental musical instrument builder, comic book artist
- Leonard van Munster (born 1972), artist
- Robbie Muntz (born 1963), television and radio maker
- Opgezwolle, rap crew
- Everhardus Johannes Potgieter (1808–1875), author
- Joan Remmelts (August 12, 1905–December 19, 1987), actor
- Danny Rook (born October 6, 1971), television host
- Emmy van Swoll (August 6, 1897–May 27, 1990), actor
- Bert Tigchelaar (1946–2004), journalist, news correspondent in Berlin
- Jan Vayne (Jan Veenje) (born 1966), pianist
- Charlotte Wessels, singer of Delain
- Michael Minsky (1918–1988), singer and conductor
- Religion
- Politics
- Sports
- Jeroen Dubbeldam (born 1973), 2000 Olympic Equestrian champion
- Harry Duiven Jr. (born 1987), heavyweight boxer
- Marten Eikelboom (born 1973), hockey player
- Martin Haar (born 1952), former football defender
- Ron Jans (born September 29, 1958), soccer trainer
- Jo van Marle (1925–1995) president of the Royal Dutch Football Association from 1980 to 1993, treasurer of UEFA from 1984 to 1995
- Eric Pierik (born 1959), field hockey player
- Johannes Smeekens (born 1987), Olympic speedskater
- Peter Wessels (born 1978), tennis player.
- Science
Educational institutions
Zwolle is home to several universities and colleges:
Transport
Zwolle railway station with
ICMmtrain
Road transport
Zwolle is a hub in the national highway network, and gateway to northern Netherlands. This is reflected in the high traffic volumes in and around the city. The
A28 serves Zwolle with 4 exits, and runs from Utrecht to Groningen. It is being widened to 8 lanes across the
IJssel River and 6 lanes from Zwolle to Meppel in 2010 and 2011. The motorway initially opened between 1964 and 1970.
[17] Another motorway, the
A50, interchanges with A28 just west of the city, offering a route for southbound traffic to
Apeldoorn and
Eindhoven.
The
N35 highway starts in Zwolle, where it forms the eastern section of the ring road of Zwolle, it runs as a non-motorway to
Almelo and continues to
Enschede as
A35 motorway. The ringroad is mainly a 4-lane road, with numerous traffic lights. It forms a full ring, and also exists out of the
N337 highway that runs to
Deventer. Other sections of the ring road are not numbered. Parts of the ring road were widened to six lanes in 2010. Other numbered highways running from Zwolle are
N331 to
Hasselt,
N758 to
Nieuwleusen,
N340 to
Ommen and
N764 to
Kampen.
Bridges
Due to nearby rivers, there are several major bridges in and around Zwolle. The most important bridge is the IJssel Bridge where the A28 motorway runs across. It was completed in 1970 and carries over 115,000 vehicles per day. Adjacent to this bridge is the older IJssel Bridge, which opened in 1930 and was destroyed twice during
World War II. A third IJssel Bridge is the railway bridge (called Hanze boog) which carries the railway line from Zwolle to
Amersfoort, and from 2012, to
Lelystad. There are several bridges across the
Zwarte Water River, including two 4-lane bridges, a 2-lane bridge, and a bus/bicycle bridge. There is also a bridge across the
Vecht, which carries A28 motorway. Another local bridge is adjacent to this bridge. A third bridge carries rail traffic to
Leeuwarden and
Groningen. Numerous local bridges exist around the historic city center.
Rail transport
The first train in Zwolle arrived on June 6, 1864. Today the city has
rail connections in eight directions (viz.
Kampen,
Leeuwarden,
Groningen,
Emmen,
Enschede,
Arnhem/
Nijmegen,
Lelystad/
Amsterdam, and
Amersfoort).
The
rail connection with
Amsterdam via
Lelystad – the
Hanzelijn – is operational since December 2012.
Water transport
Zwolle is located on or near three
rivers (
Zwarte Water,
Vecht, and
IJssel), several
canals (the now disused Willemsvaart, Nieuwe Vecht and Overijssels Kanaal and the modern Zwolle-IJssel Kanaal). There are some water-related industries in Zwolle, mainly in the Voorst industrial area.
International relations
Twin towns — Sister cities
Zwolle is currently
twinned with:
In the past, Zwolle had partnerships with:
Source: Wiki