Zeist () is the

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

and largest

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of the municipality of Zeist. The town is located in the

Utrecht province Utrecht (), officially the Province of Utrecht ( nl, Provincie Utrecht, link=no), is a province of the Netherlands. It is located in the centre of the country, bordering the Eemmeer in the north-east, the province of Gelderland in the east an ...

of the

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 ...

, east of the

city of Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Neth ...

History

The town of "Seist" was first mentioned in a charter in the year 838. The original settlement was located at the present ''Dorpsstraat''. In the late 12th century, a church was built here. Its tower is now a part of the Reformed Church, the remainder of which was built in the 19th century. Until medieval times, a branch of the river

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

flowed close to the centre of the town. Three mansions were built near the village: the ''Huis te Zeist'', Kersbergen, and Blikkenburg. From 1677 to 1686, the "Slot Zeist" was built on or near the ruins of "Kasteel Zeist", the original castle (donjon) of Rodgar van Zeist. There is very little documentation on the family that lived there, but a few names are found: in the 12th century a ''Godefridus de Seist'' and in the late 13th century another Godefridus, a knight, with his son Johannes and his daughter Petronilla. (''Bronnen voor de geschiedenis van Zeist'', deel 1, ed. Van Hinsbergen) The last member of the van Zeist family was a woman, Elisabeth (?), who married a member of the Borre van Amerongen family. They had a son who adopted his mother's name and his father's coat-of-arms. In the last quarter of the 17th century, Count Willem Adriaan van Nassau, an illegitimate descendant of Prince Maurice of Orange, acquired the property and built Slot Zeist in the Dutch Classisist style. Murals by

Daniel Marot Daniel Marot or Daniel Marot the Elder (1661–1752) was a French-born Dutch architect, furniture designer and engraver at the forefront of the classicizing Late Baroque Louis XIV style. He worked for a long time in England and the Dutch Republic ...

are still largely intact. Members of the ''Evangelische Broedergemeente'' (Evangelical Brethren's Congregation), the Dutch name for the

Moravians Moravians ( cs, Moravané or colloquially , outdated ) are a West Slavic ethnographic group from the Moravia region of the Czech Republic, who speak the Moravian dialects of Czech or Common Czech or a mixed form of both. Along with the Silesi ...

, settled in Zeist in 1746, building for their community an impressive array of 18th century Classisist houses planned around two squares. Their headquarters are still located in the centre of town, next to "the palace". The oldest Dutch archives of the Moravians are kept at the Utrecht Archival Centre at

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

. In the 19th century, Zeist became a favorite residence for the rich, mainly from the city of Utrecht. Camp New Amsterdam, ( vliegbasis Soesterberg) a former

Royal Netherlands Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = ''Parade March of the Royal Netherlands Air Force'' , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

military airbase near this town, was the venue for the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing trial to take place outside the UK, but under

Scots law Scots law () is the legal system of Scotland. It is a hybrid or mixed legal system containing civil law and common law elements, that traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. Together with English law and Northern Ireland l ...

. The court was designated the Scottish Court in the Netherlands.

Organisations and surroundings

Zeist is the location of the

Royal Dutch Football Association The Royal Dutch Football Association (, ; KNVB ) is the governing body of football in the Netherlands. It organises the main Dutch football leagues (Eredivisie and Eerste Divisie), the amateur leagues, the KNVB Cup, and the Dutch men's and women ...

(KNVB), the

Royal Dutch Korfball Association The Royal Dutch Korfball Association (Dutch: ''Koninklijk Nederlands Korfbalverbond'', or KNKV) is the governing body of korfball in the Netherlands. It organises the main Dutch korfball leagues (Korfbal League and Hoofdklasse) and the more recr ...

(KNKV) and the

International Korfball Federation The International Korfball Federation (IKF) is the governing body of korfball. IKF is responsible for the organisation of korfball's major international tournaments, notably the IKF World Korfball Championship. The IKF was founded on 11 June 1933 ...

(IKF), and is also known for the

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s surrounding the town. For many years the Dutch National Archaeological Research Service (''Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek'') was housed at Slot Zeist.

Notable people

The following notable persons were born in Zeist: HendrikMarsman193X

Guido Verbeck Guido Herman Fridolin Verbeck (born Verbeek) (23 January 1830 – 10 March 1898) was a Dutch political advisor, educator, and missionary active in ''Bakumatsu'' and Meiji period Japan. He was one of the most important foreign advisors serving th ...

(1830–1898) political adviser, educator and missionary, worked as a foreign adviser in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Hermann Snellen Herman Snellen (February 19, 1834 – January 18, 1908) was a Dutch ophthalmologist who introduced the Snellen chart to study visual acuity (1862). He took over directorship of the Netherlands Hospital for Eye Patients (Nederlandsch Gasthuis voo ...

(1834–1908)

ophthalmologist Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgery, surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Followin ...

invented the

Snellen chart A Snellen chart is an eye chart that can be used to measure visual acuity. Snellen charts are named after the Dutch ophthalmologist Herman Snellen, who developed the chart in 1862. Many ophthalmologists and vision scientists now use an improved ...

* Anthon van Rappard (1858–1892) painter and draughtsman *

Willem Pijper Willem Frederik Johannes Pijper (; 8 September 189418 March 1947) was a Dutch composer, music critic and music teacher. Pijper is considered to be among the most important Dutch composers of the first half of the 20th century. Life Pijper was b ...

, (1894–1947) composer, music critic and music teacher *

Hendrik Marsman Hendrik Marsman (30 September 1899, in Zeist – 21 June 1940, in Gulf of Biscay) was a Dutch poet and writer. He died while escaping to Great Britain, when the ship he was sailing on, the ', either suffered a fatal engine-room explosion, or wa ...

, (1899–1940) poet and writer *

Isaäc Arend Diepenhorst Isaäc Arend "Iek" Diepenhorst (18 July 1916 – 21 August 2004) was a Dutch politician of the defunct Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP) and later the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist. Diepenhorst applied at the Free University ...

, (born 1916) former minister of education * Johan Witteveen (1921–2019) politician and MD of the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...

(IMF) 1973-1978 *

Carel Blotkamp Carel Hendrik Blotkamp (born 1945) is a Dutch artist, art historian, writer and critic. He was a professor at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam between 1982 and 2007. Apart from his academic career Blotkamp is known for his work in art critique, wri ...

(born 1945) artist, art historian, writer and critic *

Wam Kat Pieter Jan Herman Fredrik (Wam) Kat (born 23. November 1956, Zeist) is a Dutch political activist and author who now lives in Germany and serves in the city government of Belzig. Biography As child Wam was a longtime member of the Boy Scouts a ...

, (born 1956) political activist and author *

Mark Overmars Markus Hendrik Overmars (; born 29 September 1958 in Zeist, Netherlands) is a Dutch computer scientist and teacher of game programming known for his game development application GameMaker. GameMaker lets people create computer games using a dra ...

, (born 1958) author of GameMaker Studio * Jan van de Pavert (born 1960) sculptor, painter, draftsman, animator, and video artist *

Mirjam Sterk Willemina Roziena Catharina (Mirjam) Sterk (born 23 May 1973 in Zeist) is a Dutch former politician, civil servant, NH editor as well as educator. As a member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (Christen-Democratisch Appèl) she was an MP from ...

(born 1973) former politician, civil servant and educator

Sport

* Henk Kamerbeek (1893–1954) hammer thrower, competed at the

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hol ...

and

1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from ...

André Bolhuis Johan Henk André Bolhuis (born 4 October 1946) is a retired field hockey player from the Netherlands. He competed at the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics and finished in fourth place in both Games. He was the Olympic flag bearer for the Netherland ...

(born 1946) a retired field hockey player, 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 ...

* Bert Blyleven, (born 1951)

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

Hall of Fame

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

Guusje van Mourik Guusje van Mourik (born 5 October 1955, Zeist, Netherlands) she is a Dutch karateka, judoka and boxer. She has a 4th Dan black belt in karate, and is the winner of multiple Karate World Championships, World Karate Championships, and is in ''T ...

(born 1955)

karateka (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

, judoka and boxer *

Jos Ruijs Jos Ruijs (born 18 March 1955) is a Dutch rower. He competed in the men's coxed four event at the 1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into for ...

(born 1955) rower, competed in the

Chima Onyeike Chima Michail Onyeike (born 21 June 1975) is a Dutch football coach and former professional player. Early and personal life Onyeike was born in Zeist, Netherlands; his father is Nigerian. His brother Obi is also a footballer; both brothers have p ...

(born 1975) football coach and former professional player with 257 caps *

Jeroen Rauwerdink Jeroen Rauwerdink (born 13 September 1985) is a Dutch male volleyball player. He is part of the Netherlands men's national volleyball team. On club level he plays for Dynamo Apeldoorn. Jeroen Rauwerdink is, with his 337 caps (on 26 April 2021), t ...

(born 1985) volleyball player *

Eva de Goede Eva de Goede (born 23 March 1989) is a Dutch field hockey player who played in the Dutch teams that won the gold medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics, the 2012 Summer Olympics and the 2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also k ...

(born 1989) field hockey player, gold medalist in the

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

and

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

silver medallist 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 ...

Transport

Zeist has two railway stations. Driebergen-Zeist railway station is located between Zeist and Driebergen-Rijsenburg, to the south of Zeist. It is on the Amsterdam–Arnhem railway.

Den Dolder railway station Den Dolder is a railway station located in Den Dolder, Netherlands. The station is located on the Utrecht–Kampen railway The Utrecht–Kampen railway (also known as ''Centraalspoorweg'') is an important railway line in the Netherlands running ...

is located in Den Dolder. It is on the Utrecht–Kampen railway and the

Den Dolder–Baarn railway The Den Dolder–Baarn railway is a railway line in the province of Utrecht, Netherlands running from Den Dolder to Baarn, passing through Soest. It is also called the Sticht Line (Dutch: ''Stichtse lijn''). Opened in 1898 in order to link Baarn ...

Gallery

File:Main shopping street "Slotlaan" (lane of the castle) of Zeist at 31 July 2015 - panoramio.jpg, Main shopping street, Zeist File:Jan de Baat De Zee Zeist 03.jpg, Jan de Baat De Zee Zeist File:Triodos Zeist A.jpg, Triodos Bank, Zeist File:Zeist 4469.JPG, Shops in Zeist Image:Zeist, Ma Retraite RM510262 foto8 2012-05-27 17.54.jpg, Villa Ma Retraite

References

External links

* *
Website
{{Authority control Zeist Populated places in Utrecht (province) Cities in the Netherlands