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'' is a small city in the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands on the right bank of the IJssel at the influx of the Berkel. It lies about 30 kilometers north-east Arnhem. In 2005, the municipality of Zutphen merged with the municipality of Warnsveld, retaining its name.

Contents

History

Regional center

Juridical center

Medical center

Educational center

Population centers

Sister cities

Transportation

Rail

Road

See also

External links

History

Zutphen received city rights between 1190 and 1196, making it one of the oldest cities in the country. Only Utrecht, Groningen and Deventer preceded Zutphen in receiving city rights. Zutphen, in turn, granted city rights to several other cities, such as Arnhem, Doetinchem, Lochem and Harderwijk. In the Middle Ages, Zutphen was the seat of a line of counts, which became extinct in the 12th century.
One of the largest and oldest churches of the country, the St. Walburgis (Saint Walpurga) church, which dates from the 12th century and contains monuments of the former counts of Zutphen, a 13th century candelabrum, an elaborate copper font (1527), and a fine modern monument to the Van Heeckeren family. The chapter-house ("Librije") contains a pre-Reformation library which includes some valuable MSS. and incunabula. Unique is that these old books are chained to the ancient wooden desk they lay on.
Having been fortified the town stood several sieges, specially during the wars of freedom waged by the Dutch, the most celebrated fight under its walls being the one in September 1586 when Sir Philip Sidney was mortally wounded. Taken by the Spaniards in 1587 by the treachery of the English commander Rowland York, Zutphen was recovered by Maurice, prince of Orange, in 1591, and except for two short periods, one in 1672 and the other during the French Revolutionary Wars, it has since then remained a part of the Netherlands. Its fortifications were dismantled in 1874.
The old center survived the Second World War almost entirely, though some parts of the city were lost, especially the area around the railway station, in the northern part of the city center, known as the Nieuwstad (English: New City). The city center includes many monumental buildings dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries. There are also remains of the old town walls in several places.
Today, Zutphen is a modern small city. The urban area, which includes the town of Warnsveld, has about 51,000 inhabitants. Stores are opened from 9:30 to 18:00 (6 PM) on weekdays, on Friday evening until 21:00 (9 PM) and on Saturday until 17:00 (5 PM). Some stores open earlier, and the larger supermarkets usually stay open until 20:00 (8 PM).

Regional center

Juridical center

Zutphen houses a major court, the national training center for judges and public prosecutors (SSR), the national police academy for senior police investigators, three prisons and a large number of lawyers. It is a highly important national and international juridical center. Zutphen is older than most major Dutch cities, such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague. This explains its important position in the juridical system.

Medical center

Located in Zutphen is the "Spittaal" location of the Gelre Ziekenhuizen (Gelre Hospitals) group. This is a regular hospital offering all common specialties (no cardio-thoracic or neurosurgery) and a 24/7 emergency department. It is located in the southeastern part of the city, in the district of Leesten. A new hospital is due to be built soon to replace the old building, which dates to the 1970s. The new hospital will be built adjacent to the old one and is due to be completed in 2009.
A sizable number of practitioners of alternative medicine are located in Zutphen.

Educational center

Zutphen is home to several well-known schools for secondary education on all levels. These include the "Stedelijk Dalton College", "Baudartius College", "Vrije School de Berkel", "Vrije School de IJssel", and "Isendoorn Lyceum" (located in Warnsveld). Students from a wide area around Zutphen learn at these schools.

Population centers

★ Zutphen

★ Warnsveld

★ Warken

Sister cities

★ Satu Mare, Romania

★ Tartu, Estonia

★ Shrewsbury, United Kingdom

★ Villa Sandino, Nicaragua

★ Horstmar, Germany
Delegations including the mayors of the cities visit each other, and developmental aid programs are in place with Satu Mare, Tartu and Villa Sandino.

Transportation

Rail

Zutphen is an important regional railway center. Twelve trains leave the station in five directions every hour: Apeldoorn, Deventer, Hengelo, Winterswijk and Arnhem. There are direct train connections with Ede-Wageningen, Zwolle and Nijmegen. By changing once, there are connections to almost all major cities throughout the country, such as Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam, The Hague, and Groningen.

Road

Zutphen lies 10 kilometers south of the A1 highway, passing Deventer. Main roads are the N348 (Arnhem - Zutphen - Deventer - Ommen), N314 (Zutphen - Doetinchem), N319 (Zutphen - Vorden - Winterswijk), N345 (Zutphen - Lochem - Hengelo), N826 (Zutphen - Almen - Laren).

See also

★ Battle of Zutphen

★ Zutphen on Wikitravel

External links

★ Official Website

★ Photo Album of Zutphen (in Dutch only)

★ Hanseatic Cities in the Netherlands)