Coevorden (; ; ) is a city and municipality in the province of Drenthe, in the east of Netherlands. During the 1998 municipal reorganisation in the province, Coevorden merged with Dalen, Sleen, Oosterhesselen and Zweeloo, retaining its name. In August 2017, it had a population of 35,267.
Etymology
The name
Coevorden means "cow ford(s)" or "cow crossing", similar to
Bosporus or
Oxford.
History
Coevorden received city rights in 1408. It is the oldest city in the province of
Drenthe.
The city was captured from the Spanish in 1592 by a Dutch and English force under the command of Maurice, Prince of Orange. The following year it was besieged by a Spanish force but the city held out until its relief in May 1594. Coevorden was then rebuilt in the early seventeenth century to an ideal city design, similar to Palmanova. The streets were laid out in a radial pattern within polygonal fortifications and extensive outer earthworks.
The city of Coevorden indirectly gave its name to both Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and Vancouver, Washington, named after the 18th-century British explorer George Vancouver. The explorer's ancestors (and family name) originally came to England "from Coevorden" (tussenvoegsel Coevern in Dutch Low Saxon).
Geography
Coervorden is located at in the south of the province of
Drenthe in the east of the
Netherlands.
The population centres in the municipality are:
International relations
Coevorden is twinned with:
Transportation
There are two railway stations in the municipality:
-
Coevorden railway station
-
Dalen railway station
Notable people
-
Johannes Benedictus van Heutsz (1851-1924). Gouverneur-generaal (1904-09), a Dutch military officer and governor general of the Dutch East Indies in 1904
-
Albert Bouwers (1893 in Dalen – 1972) a Dutch optical engineer, worked with X-Rays
-
Relus ter Beek (1944 in Coevorden – 2008) a Dutch politician
-
Tim de Zeeuw (born 1956 in Sleen) a Dutch astronomer specializing in the galaxies
-
Thijs Berman (born 1957 in Coevorden) a former journalist, a Dutch politician and a Member of the European Parliament
-
Herman von Hebel (born 1961 in Coevorden) was a Registrar of the International Criminal Court
-
Maxim Februari (born 1963 in Coevorden) a Dutch writer, philosopher and columnist
-
Joël Voordewind (born 1965 in Sleen) a Dutch politician
-
Don Pepijn Schipper (born 1980 in Coevorden) stage name Don Diablo is a Dutch DJ, record producer, musician and songwriter of electronic dance music
-
Mark-Jan Fledderus (born 1982 in Coevorden) a Dutch retired footballer with 321 caps
See also
-
Fantasy Gardens, a replica of Coevorden Castle donated to Richmond, British Columbia for the Expo 86
Gallery
File:Coevorden Wilhelminastraat 2b Sint-Willibrordeuskerk.jpg|Coevorden Wilhelminastraat, Sint-Willibrordeus church
File:Kasteel coevorden.jpg|Coevorden Castle
File:Gracht bij Van Heutszpark.jpg|Moat at the Van Heutszpark
File:Coevorden, Netherlands - panoramio (15).jpg|Coevorden city hall
External links
