My name is Leendert Geerts and I live in DORDRECHT, THE NETHERLANDS, Dordrecht
is common as the oldest city of HOLLAND.
We have our own home at the Voorstraat, build in 1628 in the old city center
near the Big Church (build on about 1090, the first written story dates from
1182.
Dordrecht is situated on the left bank of the Maas (Meuse) River, at the
point where a long arm of the North Sea cuts deeply into the Dutch coastline.
DORDRECHT is a town with about 119.000 people near ROTTERDAM, funded on an
island surrounded by 4 rivers (DORDTSE KIL, HOLLAND'S DIEP, NIEUWE MERWEDE and
OUDE MAAS) with 1,000 buildings older then 300 years, with idyllic old harbors
and canals, so a wonderful city to work and live in.
In the Encyclopedia Britannica we
can read :
Dordrecht, also called DORT, OR DORDT, gemeente (commune), Zuid-Holland province,
south-western Netherlands, at the divergence of the Merwede, Noord, Oude Maas
(Old Meuse), and Dordtse Kil rivers. Founded in 1008, it was the residence of
the Counts of Holland until 1203 and was first chartered in 1220. It was fortified
in 1271, and, although severely damaged by flood in 1421, it was one of the
most prosperous medieval ports in the Netherlands until it was surpassed by
Rotterdam and Amsterdam.
In 1572 Dordrecht welcomed the "Sea Beggars" (Water geuzen), Netherlands
rebels against Spain, and was the scene of the first assembly of the United
Provinces. It was the seat (1618-1619) of the important Synod of Dort, an international
assembly of the Reformed Church (for which it had declared in 1572). The full
text of the Synod of Dordrecht you can find at
www.earth-history.com.
Many of its medieval houses, courtyards, gates (e.g.,
Groothoofdspoort), quays, and canals
have survived to contrast with spacious modern housing areas. The 14th-century
Grote Kerk (Church of Our Lady) has a
massive tower, finely carved choir stalls, and a notable pulpit.
Dordrecht - In a glance
|
Inhabitants:
|
121.000 (as per 2002)
|
|
Size:
|
98.30 km˛
|
|
Location:
|
Between the rivers Merwede, Oude Maas (Old
Meuse), Noord (North) and Dordtse Kil, on the so-called 'Eiland van
Dordrecht' (Island of Dordrecht). Distance to other cities, Rotterdam
20 km, Delft 35 km, The Hague 45 km, Leiden 70 km, Amsterdam100 km. Belgium
50 km, Paris 450 km. |
|
Position:
|
About 20 km southeast of Rotterdam, roughly
50 km north of the border with Belgium. Dordrecht lies at the southern
tip of the province Zuid Holland (South Holland) (see arrow on the map
below): |
|
Famous for:
|
The Oldest City of Holland
The Financial center of Holland.
The first assembly of the States of Holland in 1572 in which the
Seven United Provinces under the leadership of William I the Silent
of Orange declared themselves independent from Spain.
The Synod of Dordrecht (1618-1619, an important religious institute
of the Reformed church.
The birth-place of the brothers de Witt, Johan de Witt, a 17th-century
Grand Pensionary of Holland, and his brother Cornelius were natives
of the town. Important men of state and the first republicans in the17th
century, who were later lynched in The Hague.
The 17th-century Dutch painters Albeart Cuyp (the most famous), Ferdinand
Bol, Aeart de Gelder, Samuel van Hoogstraten, Benjamin Gerritz Cuyp,
Abraham Bloemaert, Nicolaes Maes and Ary Scheffer.
Museums with collections of paintings by old Dutch masters and local
medieval antiquities.
Both the brothers de Witt and Ary Scheffer have a statue in the center
of the town. A strange fact is that Albert Cuyp, one of the most worldwide
famous painters, have no statue until this day. (it is said that there
are now pictures of him, that's why)
|
Dordrecht on the map of the Netherlands
|
City Flag
|
City Weapon
|
|
|
|
The Dordrecht arms, two griffons holding a crowned shield of red, divided
by a central, vertical bar of silver. Its original meaning lies hidden in the
mists of time.
The oldest known City-seal of Dordrecht, 1255 AD, at the left the original
seal and at the right a reconstruction of the seal.
Next : The History of Dordrecht
