Woerden
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Woerden | |
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| Country | Netherlands |
| Province | Utrecht |
| Coordinates | |
| Area | 92.89 km² |
| - Land | 89.53 km² |
| - Water | 3.36 km² |
| Population (2006) | 47,896 |
| - Density | 536/km² |
Woerden is a municipality and a city in the central Netherlands. Due to its central location between Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag and Utrecht, and the fact that it has excellent rail and road connections to those cities, it is a popular town for commuters who work in those cities.
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[edit] Population centres
[edit] General history of Woerden
Woerden received city rights from Albert I, Duke of Bavaria in 1372, Woerden was nevertheless a tiny place which gave shelter to about 500 citizens. Woerden is situated on the river Oude Rijn. The river Oude Rijn used to cascade through the city center of Woerden, but in 1960 the old river was diverged around the city center. The city has a rich cheese history; for years of Gouda cheese for domestic and international use has been produced in this region. Woerden still has his authentic (since 1885) cheese market at its city center market place.
During construction work on a new underground parking facility in the city center of Woerden numerous old Roman buildings and the remains of a Roman cargo ship were found, as Woerden was a castellum (Castellum Laurum) in the limes of the Roman empire and thus was part of the defense lines of the northern border of the Roman Empire. During field research, a lot became known about the Roman time in Woerden: the location of the castellum, the zone of defense waters with the entrance road and the remains of a Roman cargo ship (site in Dutch).
After the Roman period, the place was called Wyrda, referring to Wierd, meaning that the place was on a higher place in the area. In 1410 John III, Duke of Bavaria-Straubing had the castle of Woerden constructed. In 1510 the city hall was built. Both these buildings still exist, although the castle was extensively altered and renovated through the years. Due to its strategic location on the border between the County of Holland and the Bishopric of Utrecht, various wars have been fought in and around Woerden by the various lords and ladies of these realms. In later history, the town saw occupation by the Spanish (1575, 1576) and the French (1672, 1673 and particularly disastrous in 1813).
Preacher Jan de Bakker, was the first preacher in the Northern Netherlands conficted to death as a direct result of his religious perception. This perception did not align with the dominant Roman Catholic one, and in 1525 he was burned at the stake in The Hague. The religious harms have been initially limited in woerden: the Lutheran duke Erik van Brunswijk, who had woerden around 1570 in tenant farming, tolerated the Lutheran conceptions in the city.
[edit] Notable people born in Woerden
- Jan de Bakker, also known as Jan van Woerden (*1499 †1525) – Protestant martyr
- Peter Prijdekker (*1948) – freestyle swimmer
- Simone Angel (*1971) – TV host and singer
[edit] External links
- Official Website
- Map
- Companies in Woerden (in Dutch)
- Jona Lendering: Laurium (Woerden) Roman Woerden
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Abcoude | Amersfoort | Baarn | Breukelen | Bunnik | Bunschoten | De Bilt | De Ronde Venen | Eemnes | Houten | IJsselstein | Leusden | Loenen | Lopik | Maarssen | Montfoort | Nieuwegein | Oudewater | Renswoude | Rhenen | Soest | Utrecht | Utrechtse Heuvelrug | Veenendaal | Vianen | Wijk bij Duurstede | Woerden | Woudenberg | Zeist |
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| Netherlands | Provinces | Municipalities | map | |
Railway Leiden Centraal to Woerden (line 14), with stations (with municipalities bolded), and official station abbreviations:
All trains continue to Utrecht (city) on a stretch joined with line 50. edit |
