Heelsum is a village in the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

province of

Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...

. It is located in the municipality of

Renkum Renkum () is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. The municipality had a population of in and has a land area of . Renkum is situated along the river Rhine. The municipality Renkum is part of the ''Stadsregio'' (English: City reg ...

, west of

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...

.''ANWB Topografische Atlas Nederland'', Topografische Dienst and ANWB, 2005. Part of the

Battle of Arnhem The Battle of Arnhem was a battle of the Second World War at the vanguard of the Allied Operation Market Garden. It was fought in and around the Dutch city of Arnhem, the town of Oosterbeek, the villages Wolfheze and Driel and the vicinity fro ...

was fought in and around Heelsum. The initial British landings were carried out just north of the village.

History

The village was first mentioned around 1160 as in Helessem, and means "settlement of Hele (person)". Helsum is an ''

esdorp __NOTOC__ An ''Angerdorf'' (plural: ''Angerdörfer'') is a type of village that is characterised by the houses and farmsteads being laid out around a central grassed area, the ''anger'' (from the Old High German ''angar'' =pasture or grassy place ...

'' which developed in the Middle Ages near the brook Heelsumse beek. It became a separate parish in 1517. The Dutch Reformed church was built in 1517 by the lady of the castle Margaretha van Homoet. It was expanded in 1859. The Catholic community wanted an own church as well. On 1 April 1950 announced plans to built a church, however the municipality preferred villas at the location. The church was finally constructed in 1961, however it was decommissioned in 2018. Heelsum was home to 120 people in 1840. Hotel Klein Zwitserland (Little Switzerland) was built in 1905 in

Swiss chalet style Swiss chalet style (german: Schweizerstil, no, Sveitserstil) is an architectural style of Late Historicism, originally inspired by rural chalets in Switzerland and the Alpine (mountainous) regions of Central Europe. The style refers to traditi ...

in the middle of Wilhelmina park. On 17 September 1944, the 1st Airborne Division was dropped in Heelsum near

Oosterbeek Oosterbeek is a village in the eastern part of Netherlands. It is located in the municipality of Renkum in the province of Gelderland, about west of Arnhem. The oldest part of Oosterbeek is the Benedendorp (Lower Village), on the northern bank o ...

. The landing was unopposed, however they ran into an armoured tank division of the Germans on the way to

. On 9 September 1945, the Airborne monument was revealed in Heelsum. Heelsum and

have formed a single urban area, however both are considered separate villages.

Gallery

File:Arnhem Map 2.jpg, Map showing the landingzone just north of Heelsum File:Partycenter-restaurant Rehoboth Heelsum - panoramio.jpg, Restaurant/party centre File:6866 Heelsum, Netherlands - panoramio (2).jpg, Villa in Heelsum File:A traditional Dutch farm, called Kabeljauw (a sea fish) near the Doorwerth park - panoramio.jpg, Farm Kabeljauw (Cod fish)

References

{{Authority control Populated places in Gelderland Renkum