Vlissingen
 flag |
 coat of arms |
| province |
 Zeeland
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| mayor | Bas van den Tillaar ( CDA ) |
| Seat of the municipality | Vlissingen |
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Area - land - water |
344.98 km 2 34.16 km 2 310.82 km 2 |
| CBS code | 0718 |
| Residents | 44,366 (Jan 31, 2019) |
| Population density | 129 inhabitants / km 2 |
| Coordinates | 51 ° 27 ' N , 3 ° 35' E |
| height | 1 m NAP |
| Important traffic route |
     
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| prefix | 0118 |
| Postcodes | 4380-4387 |
| Website | Homepage of Vlissingen |
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Vlissingen ( ) ( Zeeland Vlissienge ), also known as Flushing as a former English garrison town , is a Dutch port city at the mouth of the Westerschelde , on the south coast of the Walcheren peninsula in the Dutch province of Zeeland .
Basic data
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Vlissingen is an important place for shipping, as a location for pilots who guide ships through the narrow channels of the Westerschelde to or to the seaports of Terneuzen and Antwerp . Here the Kanaal door Walcheren flows into the Westerschelde. The Royal Navy - shipyard here has its significantly reduced in recent decades location , as well as a large fishing fleet. The importance of tourism for Vlissingen has also grown steadily over the last few decades, clearly recognizable from the skyline of the Boulevard, the only beach promenade with southern exposure in the Netherlands. A large and important industrial area is located east of the city around the seaport.
In March 2003, the former car ferry connection from Vlissingen to Breskens was replaced by the Westerschelden tunnel. The connection for pedestrians and cyclists is still available, but with new, smaller ferries.
Westerschelde before Vlissingen with departing pilot boat
Vlissingen, Lotsenhafen, March 2018
City beach and boulevard with hotel and apartment buildings
history
Vlissingen is mentioned for the first time at the end of the 12th century and received city rights in 1315. Fort Rammekens , east of the city, was built in 1547 to protect United India Company ships . The city's prosperity was based on the herring trade and salt production, but also on pirate trips and the slave trade by shipowners. King Philip II embarked for Spain here in 1559, never to return to the Netherlands. As one of the first Dutch cities, Vlissingen rebelled against Spanish rule in 1572. In 1573 a Dutch fleet succeeded in preventing a cannon bombing of the city by the Spanish Armada during the Dutch War of Independence in the Battle of Vlissingen . Vlissingen, along with Briel and Fort Rammekens, was pledged to Queen Elizabeth I by Wilhelm von Oranien as compensation for the war money loaned to Holland and was occupied by English troops until 1616, when the loan was paid.
From the 18th century, Vlissingen was particularly important as a naval station. On January 21, 1808, it was incorporated into the French Empire . During the Napoleonic Wars , it was a priority for the English on their Walcheren expedition in 1809 to conquer Vlissingen because of its dominant position at the entrance to the Scheldt. General Monnet was in command of the fortress, which had a crew of 5,000. On July 30, 1809, the English landed on Walcheren and began to enclose Vlissingen from the land side after a lively battle with the garrison, which had made a sortie (August 1, 1809). General Sir Eyre Coote and Major General Frayer commanded the containment forces. At the same time, Admiral Strachan appeared with the fleet in front of the port and began bombarding the city, while the tranches were opened on the land side . The defenses of the garrison did nothing against the superior strength of the English land troops, and the heavy artillery of the ships of the line and frigates soon gained the upper hand over the batteries of the fortress. Finally, after the bombs from the ships had cremated part of the city and he himself had been wounded, Monnet demanded that he surrender, since an early relief was hard to imagine. The main wall did not yet have a major breach, but the bombardment had wreaked havoc on the city, which was surrounded by poor fortifications without casemates, and the condition of the fortifications did not allow the resistance to be maintained for long. 4000 men and 225 guns fell into the hands of the English; on August 18, the prisoner-of-war garrison withdrew from the fortress. A total of over 100 houses, two churches and the town hall were destroyed. General Monnet later before a military court tried and convicted in absentia. The English held Vlissingen until November 1809 and when they withdrew they destroyed the fortifications and all the larger establishments that Napoleon had built there for the navy.
As a result, Vlissingen was an important naval port until 1867, which was significantly reinforced by Napoleon in 1810-12 after the destruction by the English. Since 1865 the port has been converted into a first-rate trading port, for which purpose the sloe was first dammed and then a wide canal was dug from Vlissingen via Middelburg to Veere through the island of Walcheren. The new port facilities on the east side of the city were reopened in 1873. The port was particularly important for the crossing to England. A memorial was erected here in 1841 to Admiral Michiel de Ruyter , who was born in Vlissingen .
During the Second World War, Vlissingen was of particular strategic importance due to its location on the sea route to Antwerp and was therefore at the center of the battle at the Scheldt estuary in 1944 . On November 1, 1944, allied troops landed at Vlissingen early in the morning from Breskens, which meant the end of the German occupation of Walcheren.
After the Zuid-Sloe was dyed in the early 1960s, the new seaport and industrial area Vlissingen-Oost with several docks was built east of the city .
politics
Distribution of seats in the municipal council
The local elections on March 21, 2018 resulted in the following distribution of seats:
| Political party | Seats | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 2010 | 2014 | 2018 | |
| Partij Souburg-Ritthem | 5 | 5 | 4th | 5 |
| Local partij Vlissingen | 3 | 6th | 5 | 5 |
| VVD | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 50PLUS | - | - | - | 2 |
| GroenLinks | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| PvdA | 8th | 4th | 3 | 2 |
| POV perspective op Vlissingen | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| SGP | - | - | 1 | 2 |
| SP | 3 | 2 | 4th | 2 |
| D66 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| CDA | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| ChristenUnie | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Vlissing's concern | - | - | - | 0 |
| Right Protestants Christelijke Unie | 1 | 0 | - | - |
| total | 29 | 27 | 27 | 27 |
- ↑ Until December 19, 2017, the party was called Progressief Ondernemend Vlissingen .
HZ Vlissingen
The Hogeschool Zeeland (1904) is located in Vlissingen and has the entire peninsula as its catchment area. The school emphasizes its international orientation. Of the approx. 4000 students, around 1000 are not from the Netherlands, but from partner schools around the world.
Today the Hogeschool Zeeland (HZ Vlissingen) calls itself "HZ University of Applied Sciences", which corresponds to the term used in German for technical colleges .
Sights and museums
- Fort Rammekens , the oldest still existing sea fort in Europe, near the village of Ritthem
- Old stock exchange in Vlissingen, built in the Renaissance style in 1636
- Zeeuws maritiem muZEEum vlissingen
- Grote of Sint Jacobskerk , late Gothic hall church
- Lutherse Kerk , baroque hall church
- Iguana reptile zoo
- Het Arsenaal (the arsenal)
- Bunker 143 Oranjemolen
- Dokje van Perry, oldest still existing dry dock in Europe
Economy and Infrastructure
The shipyard Koninklijke Maatschappij "De Schelde" (KMS) - today Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding - was founded in 1875. Together with the Amels yacht shipyard, which is also part of the Damen Group, it forms the shipyard area in the inland port. Another shipyard of the Damen group is located in the Sloehaven east of the city. The extensive industrial area Vlissingen-Oost has emerged around the Sloehafen. In 1969 a French company built an aluminum factory here , whose electricity needs are covered by the neighboring Borssele nuclear power plant . In addition to this nuclear power plant, there is also a gas power plant. As a result of the economic crisis, some plants at this location had to close, including the said aluminum factory and a plant for the production of phosphorus . The gas power plant is also affected by an imminent closure, but there are still unapproved plans to switch to gas from biomass.
Petroleum warehouse
The warehouse complex called The ARA Refined Product Storage ends in Vlissingen . The complex stores a one-week demand for gasoline and naphtha (for petrochemicals) as well as for kerosene and distillates (primarily diesel fuel). The warehouses are spread across Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Antwerp and Vlissingen. However, there are no huge tank farms for this, but around 1000 smaller tanks distributed in the region of the four cities. They source already refined products, which are mainly refined in the Netherlands.
traffic
Train traffic
Vlissingen is the terminus of the Zeeuwse Lijn . There are two train stations in the city, the Vlissingen train station at the port and the smaller Vlissingen Souburg train station in the suburb of the same name. Intercity trains in the direction of Rotterdam , The Hague , Schiphol , Amsterdam and Lelystad stop twice an hour .
Until 1944 there were two tram lines in Vlissingen. One line led to Middelburg through the northern suburbs of the city and the other led to Koudekerke through the city center of Vlissingen.
Road traffic
Vlissingen is connected to the Dutch motorway network via the A58 ( E312 ) - this ends near the port. The motorway runs through Roosendaal and Breda to Eindhoven and is considered the main artery of Zeeland. There is also a motorway-like expressway that runs parallel to the Kanaal door Walcheren in the direction of Middelburg.
ferry
Veolia Transport Fast Ferries operates a ferry connection for pedestrians and cyclists to Breskens across the Westerschelde, which is mainly used by schoolchildren and tourists. The ferry runs every hour in the low season and every half hour in the high season. Until the opening of the Westerschelden tunnel in March 2003, there were large ferries that alsotransported motor vehicles .
Between 1875 and 1939 and between 1974 and 1994, the city had a daily passenger and freight ferry to England . From 1875 to 1939 this was operated by the Steamship Company Zealand (SMZ) and served the ports in Sheerness , Queenborough , Folkestone and Harwich . However, with the outbreak of World War II , ferry traffic was suspended until further notice. After the war, operations were not resumed because of the severely damaged port of Vlissingen and the route was led via Hoek van Holland . Operations only resumed in 1974, but only the port in Sheerness was served (see Olau Line ). Due to the economic downturn in Great Britain and increasing competition, the connection was finally closed on May 15, 1994.
bus
The bus service in Vlissingen is operated by the transport company Connexxion . Seven lines run from Vlissingen to the neighboring municipalities and through the city.
Marina
Industrial area at the Sloehaven
IC and Stoptrein in Vlissingen train station
the Westerschelde, an important shipping route
Personalities
- Cornelis Lampsins (1600–1664), shipowner, wholesaler and politician
- Michiel de Ruyter (1607–1676), Admiral
- Benjamin Raule (1634–1707), Dutch shipowner and general naval director from Brandenburg
- Betje Wolff (1738–1804), writer
- Jan Schröder (1800–1885), Dutch naval officer in the Prussian-German service
- Constantin Guys (1802-1892), painter and draftsman
- Émile Cornellie (1869–1945), Belgian sailor
- Carel Albert van Woelderen (1877–1951), Mayor of Vlissingen
- Jan Verwey (* 1936), jazz musician
- Chris de Vries (1939-2017), football player
- Arendo Joustra (* 1957), journalist
- Marco Kunst (* 1966), writer
- Piëdro Schweertman (* 1983), squash player
- Lex Veldhuis (* 1983), poker player
Web links
- Website of the municipality (Dutch, German, English)
- Tourist office website (German, Dutch, English, French)
- Vlissingen: Website of the tourist association VVV Zeeland (German, Dutch, English)
- Website of the Zeeuws maritiem muZEEum (Dutch, German, English)
- Website of the Bunkermuseum Foundation (German, Dutch, English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bevolkingsontwikkeling; regio per maand . In: StatLine . Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (Dutch)
- ↑ Illustration by Frans Hogenberg from 1576: Rammeken a very strong nest, which Vlißinger woll is located ... ( digitized version )
- ↑ Flushing , in: Meyers Conversations-Lexicon great for the educated classes , 0. edition, 2nd Division, Volume 14 (1852), S. 191st
- ↑ Vlissingen . In: Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon . 6th edition. Volume 20, Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1909, pp. 202–203 .
- ↑ Vlissingen . In: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon . 4th edition. Volume 16, Verlag des Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1885–1892, p. 240.
- ↑ Result of the local elections: 2014 2018 , accessed on April 13, 2018 (Dutch)
- ↑ Allocation of seats in the municipal council: 2006–2014 ( Memento of the original from April 14, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 2010–2018 Gemeente Vlissingen, accessed on April 13, 2018 (Dutch)
- ↑ Homepage of the City of Vlissingen , accessed on April 13, 2018 (Dutch)
- ↑ http://www.genscape.com/solutions/oil/ara-product-crude-storage-reports#tabs-ARA-Refined-Product-Storage-Reports_panel ARA Refined Product Storage Reports (English)
Borsele | Goes | Hulst | Chapel | Middelburg | Noord-Beveland | Reimerswaal | Schouwen-Duiveland | Sluis | Terneuzen | Tholen | Veere | Vlissingen