Winterswijk (; also known as ''Winterswiek'' or ''Wenters'') is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

and a town in the eastern

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. It has a population of and is situated in the

Achterhoek The Achterhoek (; Dutch Low Saxon: ''Achterhook'') is a cultural region in the Eastern Netherlands. Its name (meaning "rear-corner") is geographically appropriate because the area lies in the easternmost part of the province of Gelderland and th ...

, which lies in the easternmost part of the 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 ...

in the Netherlands. It was also known as ''Winethereswick'', ''Winriswic'' or ''Wenterswic''; the

Anglo Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo-Saxons happened wit ...

'' wich'' or ''wic'' means the living place of a certain person. The person would likely have been called ''Wenether'', ''Winitar'' or ''Winter''.

Geography

Winterswijk is located in east of the province of

in the east of the

. It is part of the region of

History

Winterswijk, de Sint Jacobskerk RM39053 foto4 2015-05-14 08

Founded around 1000 AD it remained an isolated farming community until 1830 when the road from Borken to

Zutphen Zutphen () is a city and municipality located in the province of Gelderland, Netherlands. It lies some 30 km northeast of Arnhem, on the eastern bank of the river Ijssel at the point where it is joined by the Berkel. First mentioned in the 1 ...

via Winterswijk and

Groenlo Groenlo () is a city in the municipality of Oost Gelre, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, on the German border, within a region in the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek (literally: "back corner"). Groenlo was a municipalit ...

was built. Around 1840 many emigrated to America — Michigan in particular. After 1870 the town became a centre for textiles, such as spinning and weaving and indeed the Tricot fabriek employed a large proportion of the local population in its heyday. In 1878 the railway line to Zutphen was built primarily for the textile industry, which was set up by Jan Willink. Some of the families such as the Willinks have lived there since 1284.

World War II and Liberation

On 31 March, 1945 was the liberation day for Winterswijk during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Before the city was liberated, there was a tank battle on the 30th of March in one of the townships called Woold, with sixty

Sherman tank } The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most widely used medium tank by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. It w ...

s. The 53rd Welsh Division and the 3rd British Infantry Division, were moving from Bocholt via

Aalten Aalten () is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. The former municipalities of Bredevoort (1818) and Dinxperlo (2005) have been merged with Aalten. Notable inhabitants of Aalten include Angus Young, guitarist of the Australian ro ...

to Winterswijk. The tank battle resulted in sixteen German and nine British soldiers losing their lives. On 31 March, 1945 (Good Friday) around nine o'clock in the evening allied forces had a struggle just over five km south of Winterswijk following reinforcements from the NSB. On 31 March the first allied troops finally reached the Slingestream near Winterswijk. 31 March is marked as the official day to remember the liberation of Winterswijk, despite the fact that in the late afternoon of 31 March parts of Miste and Woold were already liberated. After the liberation of Winterswijk they founded a Rest-Centre for British soldiers in the Sociëteit de Eendracht (Zonnebrink), where the British soldiers, who came from the front, could find some rest. The British front was moving in April 1945, in the northwest of Germany. ''Liberation of Winterswijk, during World War II'
wenters.nu
Although the Jewish community of Winterswijk was greatly decimated during the war, a synagogue still exists. Yet no regular services are being held. The synagogue is open for visitors and guided tours.

Railway stations

Winterswijk Winterswijk (; also known as ''Winterswiek'' or ''Wenters'') is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. It has a population of and is situated in the Achterhoek, which lies in the easternmost part of the province of Gelderland in th ...

* Winterswijk West

Notable residents

* John H. Corscot (1839–1926), mayor of

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

, 1893 to 1895 *

Piet Mondriaan Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan (), after 1906 known as Piet Mondrian (, also , ; 7 March 1872 – 1 February 1944), was a Dutch painter and art theoretician who is regarded as one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. He is known for being o ...

(1872–1944), painter, pioneer of 20th century

abstract art Abstract art uses visual language of shape, form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th ...

, lived in Winterswijk ages 8-20 *

Willem van Otterloo Jan Willem van Otterloo (27 December 190727 July 1978) was a Dutch conductor, cellist and composer. Biography Van Otterloo was born in Winterswijk, Gelderland, in the Netherlands, the son of William Frederik van Otterloo, a railway inspector, a ...

(1907–1978), conductor, cellist, composer * Max van Dam (1910–1943) artist, murdered in the

Sobibor extermination camp Sobibor (, Polish: ) was an extermination camp built and operated by Nazi Germany as part of Operation Reinhard. It was located in the forest near the village of Żłobek Duży in the General Government region of German-occupied Poland. As ...

Johanna Reiss Johanna Reiss ( ; born 4 April 1932) is a Dutch-American writer whose work focuses on her experiences as a Jewish child during the Second World War. Her books have been compared to the writing of Anne Frank. Early life Johanna Reiss was born ...

(born 1932), Dutch-American writer, longtime resident of New York City * Bram Stemerdink (born 1936), politician,

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from coun ...

1976/77 *

Gerrit Komrij Gerrit Jan Komrij (30 March 1944 – 5 July 2012) was a Dutch poet, novelist, translator, critic, polemic journalist and playwright. He rose to prominence in the early 1970s writing poetry that sharply contrasted with the free-form poetry of his ...

(1944-2012) poet, novelist, critic, journalist and playwright * Dick Mol (born 1955) paleontologist and specialist in the field of mammoths * Johan Houwers (born 1957) politician, real estate broker and convicted mortgage fraudster * Herman Brock Jr. (born 1970) left-handed Dutch bluegrass, Americana and Blues musician * Fleur Dorland (born 2005) Dutch singer

Sport

2016-12-14 Myrthe Schoot by Sandro Halank–4

* Willy Hillen (born 1943) former sports shooter, competed at the

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...

and

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

* Jan Vreman (born 1965), football manager and former player for

De Graafschap VBV De Graafschap () is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands, playing in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the De Vijverberg stadium. ...

Martijn Meerdink Martijn Meerdink (born 15 September 1976) is a Dutch former professional footballer who most notably played for AZ Alkmaar as a winger and was capped for the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_cap ...

(born 1976), football player *

Jurgen Wevers Jurgen Wevers (born 12 January 1979 in Winterswijk, Gelderland) is a Dutch professional association football, footballer who currently plays for FC Oss. Wevers plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He formerly played for De G ...

(born 1979), football goalkeeper * Myrthe Schoot (born 1988) volleyball player, competed at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

Stef Dusseldorp Stef Dusseldorp (born 27 September 1989 in Winterswijk, Gelderland) is a Dutch racing driver. He started a career in formula cars in 2007, having competed in series such as Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup (5th in 2008) and the German F ...

(born 1989), racing driver

Gallery

File:Marktplein in Winterswijk.jpg, Marktplein with church (Jacobskerk) File:Wenterswiek nijstraote.jpg, Wenterswiek nijstraote File:Winterswijk, de Watertoren RM523469 IMG 2610 2022-07-18 18.06.jpg, Water tower File:Winterswijk, sculptuur het Strijktrio van Jan Bons IMG 2583 2022-07-18 17.17.jpg, Sculpture: the Strijktrio (String Trio) designed by Jan Bons File:Grote steen Woold.JPG, Great stone at Woold, Winterswijk

References

External links

* {{Authority control Municipalities of Gelderland Populated places in Gelderland Cities in the Netherlands Achterhoek