Zwolle () is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It 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 ...

of the province of

Overijssel Overijssel (, ; nds, Oaveriessel ; german: Oberyssel) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the eastern part of the country. The province's name translates to "across the IJssel", from the perspective of the ...

and the province's second-largest municipality after

Enschede Enschede (; known as in the local Twents dialect) is a municipality and city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Overijssel and in the Twente region. The eastern parts of the urban area reaches the border of the German city of Gronau ...

with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is on the border with Gelderland, which follows the river IJssel, and is located about 50 km north east of Utrecht and 85 km south west of

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

. The current Mayor of Zwolle is Lorenzo Brands.

History

Archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

findings indicate that the area surrounding Zwolle has been inhabited for a long time. A

woodhenge Woodhenge is a Neolithic Class II henge and timber circle monument within the Stonehenge World Heritage Site in Wiltshire, England. It is north-east of Stonehenge, in Durrington parish, just north of the town of Amesbury. Discovery Woodheng ...

that was found in the Zwolle-Zuid suburb in 1993 was dated to the Bronze Age period. During the Roman era, the area was inhabited by Salian Franks. The modern city was founded around 800 CE by Frisian merchants and troops of Charlemagne. Previous spellings of its name include the identically pronounced ''Suolle'', which means "hill" (cf. the English

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...

verb "to swell"). This refers to an incline in the landscape between the four rivers surrounding the city, IJssel, Vecht, Aa and Zwarte Water. The hill was the only piece of land that would remain dry during the frequent floodings of the rivers. Zwolle was established on that incline. A document mentions the existence of a parish church dedicated to St Michael. That church, the Grote of Sint Michaëlskerk (St. Michael's church), was renovated in the first half of the 15th century and exists to this day. The church contains a richly carved

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

, the work of Adam Straes van Weilborch (about 1620), some good carving and an exquisite

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

(1721). On 31 August 1230, the bishop of Utrecht granted Zwolle

city rights Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

. Zwolle became a member of the

Hanseatic league The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...

in 1294, and in 1361 joined the war between the Hanseatic League and Valdemar IV of Denmark. In the 1370 Treaty of Stralsund that ended the war, Zwolle was awarded a ''vitte'', a trade colony, in Scania, then part of Denmark. Zwolle's golden age came in the 15th century. Between 1402 and 1450, the city's Gross Regional Product multiplied by about six. In July 1324 and October 1361, regional noblemen set fire to Zwolle. In the 1324 fire, only nine buildings escaped the flames. Blaeu 1652 - Zwolle

Zwolle was also, with

Deventer Deventer (; Sallands: ) is a city and municipality in the Salland historical region of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands. In 2020, Deventer had a population of 100,913. The city is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, bu ...

, one of the centers of the Brethren of the Common Life, a monastic movement. from Zwolle, on a slight eminence called the Agnietenberg, (hill of St Agnes), once stood the Augustinian convent in which Thomas à Kempis spent the greatest part of his life and died (in 1471). At least as early as 1911, Zwolle had a considerable trade by river, a large fish market, and the most important cattle market in the Netherlands after Rotterdam. The more important industries comprised cotton manufactures, iron works, boat-building, dyeing and bleaching, tanning, rope-making, and salt-making. In World War II, Zwolle was single-handedly liberated from the Germans by French-Canadian soldier

Léo Major Léo Major (January 23, 1921 – October 12, 2008) was a Canadians, Canadian soldier who was the only Canadian and one of only three soldiers in the British Commonwealth to receive the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) twice in separate wars. ...

. He was made an honorary citizen of Zwolle in 2005 and a street is named after him, Leo Majorlaan. In 2004, Zwolle's

De Librije De Librije () is a restaurant in Zwolle, Netherlands. It is a fine dining restaurant that has been awarded one or more Michelin stars since 1993. It carried one star in the period 1993–1998, two stars in the period 1999-2003 and three stars sinc ...

restaurant was honored with 3 stars by Michelin Guide; as of 2018, it is one of only three restaurants so honored in the entire country.

Blauwvingers

Citizens of Zwolle are colloquially known as ''Blauwvingers'' (Bluefingers). This dates back to 1682, when the St Michael's church tower collapsed. The authorities were strapped for cash and saw no option but to sell the church bells to neighbouring city

Kampen Campen or Kampen may refer to: Places Finland * Kampen, the Swedish name of Kamppi, a district in Helsinki Germany * Campen, Germany, a village by the Ems estuary, northwestern Germany, home of the Campen Lighthouse * Campen Castle, a part ...

. To make sure that Kampen would not make too much profit from the deal, the local authorities asked a high price for the church bells. Kampen accepted, yet after the arrival of the bells it became clear, they were too damaged to be played. In revenge, Kampen paid in copper coins of four ''duiten'' (the equivalent of two-and-a-half cents). Zwolle distrusted Kampen and wanted to be sure they truly paid the entire price. After the rigorous counting of this vast amount of money, their fingers had turned blue from the counting of money.

Geography

Besides the Grote of Sint Michaëlskerk (St. Michael's church), the latter which houses a majestic

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

organ built by

Arp Schnitger Arp Schnitger (2 July 164828 July 1719 (buried)) was an influential Northern German organ builder. Considered the most paramount manufacturer of his time, Schnitger built or rebuilt over 150 organs. He was primarily active in Northern Europe, es ...

, there are several other historic monuments in Zwolle. The Roman Catholic ''Onze Lieve Vrouwe ten Hemelopneming''- basilica (Our Lady of the Assumption) dates back to 1399. The church tower, called '' Peperbus'' (pepperpot), is one of the tallest and most famous church towers in the Netherlands. The modernized

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

was originally built in 1448. Mention should also be made of the ''Sassenpoort'' (one of the old city gates), the city walls, the ''Mosterdmakerstoren'' (''mustard makers' tower'')(the complex where local mustard used to be made), a guild-house (1571), the former provincial government offices, a Dominican monastery, and on the Melkmarkt, two museums; the of antiquities and natural history, and the

Vrouwenhuis The Vrouwenhuis on Melkmarkt 53 in the Dutch city of Zwolle is a former old age home for women. It is now rented as separate apartment units for students, while housing a small museum on the ground floor that is only accessible by special request. ...

Museum de Fundatie Museum de Fundatie () is a museum for the visual arts in Zwolle, Netherlands. Museum de Fundatie forms part of the Hannema-de Stuers Foundation, to which Kasteel het Nijenhuis in Heino also belongs. Museum de Fundatie possesses a collection of vis ...

, the fine art museum of the province of Overijssel, is hosted in the former Justice Hall on Blijmarkt Square. In the western part of the city, west of the railway station, there is a quarter of

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

buildings, concentrated mostly on Koningin Wilhelminastraat, Prinses Julianastraat, and Prins Hendrikstraat. These three-store living houses were built in 1900s by various Dutch architects. Eleven of the buildings are protected by the Dutch government (

rijksmonument A rijksmonument (, ) is a national heritage site of the Netherlands, listed by the agency Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE) acting for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. At the end of February 2015, the Netherlands ...

en). The ''Broerenkerk'' church was part of the

Dominican monastery Dominican may refer to: * Someone or something from or related to the Dominican Republic ( , stress on the "mi"), on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles, in the Caribbean ** People of the Dominican Republic ** Demographics of the Domi ...

founded in 1465. The monastery was closed in 1580 and the monks were expelled. From 1640 until 1982 the church was used for Protestant services. After a restoration in 1983–1988 it has been used for cultural events and it is now a bookstore.

Image gallery

File:Thorbeckegracht en Wijndragerstoren Zwolle Overijssel.jpg, Thorbeckegracht and Wijndragerstoren File:Peperbus, Eekwal.jpg, Peperbus from the Eekwal. The house in front really ''is'' that crooked. File:Zwolle, Praubstraat.jpg, Praubstraat, inner city File:Zwolle Sassenpoort.jpg, Sassenpoort File:Thorbeckewal en Thorbeckegracht Zwolle Overijssel.jpg, Thorbeckewal and Vispoortbridge File:Zwolle, Rijke Fratershuis.jpg, The ''Rich Friar House'' a center of the '' Devotio Moderna'' and later the home of Willem Bartjens File:Zicht op Zwolle Centrum.jpg, View of Zwolle city centre File:Organ in Broerenkerk, Zwolle, 2013.jpg, The organ in Broerenkerk File:Herman Brood Museum & Experience Zwolle Overijssel.jpg, Herman Brood Museum & Experience File:Zwolle Prins Hendrikstraat Gate.jpg, The Art Nouveau gate at Prins Hendrikstraat 1-3-5. 1902, architect Geurt Gijsbertus Post File:Zwolle, fontein in Stadsgracht bij Museum de Fundatie foto4 2016-06-05 10.03.jpg, Fountain near Museum de Fundatie

Notable residents

:''See also People from Zwolle'' ;Arts, culture, entertainment and the media *

Willem Victor Bartholomeus Willem Victor Bartholomeus (Bunde, Limburg, Bunde, 11 February 1825 – Zwolle, 13 August 1892) was a Dutch organist and conductor. He was born in the family of sexton/organist/church singer Jan/Jean Bartholomeus and Maria Cornelia Isabella Hagem ...

(1825–1892), organist and conductor * Hein Boele (born 1939), actor, Dutch voice of Elmo *

Jonnie Boer Jonnie Boer (born January 9, 1965 in Giethoorn) is a Dutch Michelin star winning head chef and co-owner of the restaurant De Librije in Zwolle, Netherlands. Together with his wife and business partner Thérèse Boer he runs the 3-starred ''De L ...

(born 1965), chef with three Michelin stars *

Gerard ter Borch Gerard ter Borch (; December 1617 – 8 December 1681), also known as Gerard Terburg (), was a Dutch genre painter who lived in the Dutch Golden Age. He influenced fellow Dutch painters Gabriel Metsu, Gerrit Dou, Eglon van der Neer and Johanne ...

(1617–1681), painter * Gerard ter Borch the Elder (1583–1662), painter *

Moses ter Borch Moses ter Borch (1645–1667) was a Dutch Golden Age painter, whose work mostly consists of drawings. Biography Moses ter Borch was born in Zwolle as the youngest son of Gerard ter Borch the Elder and the brother of Gerard ter Borch and Ge ...

(1645–1667), painter *

Tooske Breugem Antonia Grietje "Tooske" Ragas-Breugem (; born 3 June 1974), is a Dutch actress and television host. She played a stewardess in '' 06/05'', a movie by Theo van Gogh about the murder of Pim Fortuyn. She was video jockey (VJ) at TMF Netherlands ...

(born 1974), television host actress * Herman Brood (1946–2001), painter/rock star * Funda Eryiğit (born 1984), Turkish actress *

Willem Grasdorp Willem Grasdorp (1678 in Zwolle – 1723 in Amsterdam), was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands. Biography According to Houbraken after the death of his father, his mother and stepfather apprenticed him in Amsterdam for thre ...

(1678–1723), painter *

Aleida Greve Aleida Greve (1670–1742) was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands known for founding the Vrouwenhuis, Zwolle. Biography She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the largest beer brewer in Zwolle, Geurt Greve (1634-ca.16 ...

(1670–1742), painter *

Anna Cornelia Holt Anna Cornelia Holt (1671–1692), was a late 17th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands. Biography She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of Herman Holt (1643–1672), councilman of Zwolle, and Armarenta Holt (d. 1714).

(1671–1692), painter *

Sophia Holt Sophia Holt (1658 – 1734), was an 18th-century painter from the Northern Netherlands. Biography Holt was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the city secretary Johan Holt.Antonina Houbraken Antonina Houbraken (30 May 1686 – December 1736) was an 18th-century Dutch draughtswoman who is known for her many topographical drawings of Dutch sites. She also drew landscapes. She is recorded as a skilled portraitist. Life Antonina ...

(1686–1736), draughtswoman *

Marnix Kappers Marnix Kappers (8 September 1943 – 10 October 2016) was a Dutch cabaret artist and actor, best known for his roles on '' De Familie Knots'' (1980), ''Zonder Ernst'' (1992), and ''Heerlijk duurt het langst'' (1998). Cabaret In 1966, Kappe ...

(1943–2016), actor * Thomas à Kempis (c. 1380–1471), canon and mystic *

Master I. A. M. of Zwolle Master I. A. M. of Zwolle (known works 1470–1490, lifetime estimated as ca. 1440–1504

(c. 1440–1490), engraver * Ton Koopman (born 1944), a conductor, organist, and harpsichordist * Yuri Landman (born 1973), experimental musical instrument builder, comic book artist *

Cornelia van Marle Cornelia van Marle (1661–1698), was a Dutch Golden Age painter. Biography She was born in Zwolle as the daughter of the beer brewer Herman van Marle and his wife Lamberta Holt. After her father died her mother married another brewer, Geurt ...

(1661–1698), painter * Michael Minsky (1918–1988), singer and conductor *

Leonard van Munster Leonard van Munster (born February 1972, Zwolle) is a Dutch contemporary artist making Site-specific and Subject-specific work. He studied from 1992 to 1996 at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. This included an exchange programme to Parsons ...

(born 1972), artist *

Opgezwolle Opgezwolle () was a Dutch rap group consisting of MCs Sticky Steez and Phreako Rico, and beatmaker DJ Dippy Delic. Biography In 2001 Opgezwolle competed in a contest called "De Oogst van Overijssel". After winning the final in Enschede in May 20 ...

(since 2001), rap crew * Jan Vayne (Jan Veenje) (born 1966), pianist * Charlotte Wessels (born 1987), former singer for Delain * Aleijda Wolfsen (1648–1692), painter ;Authors *

Eef Brouwers Evert (Eef) Brouwers (9 March 1939 – 6 October 2018) was a Dutch journalist, director-general and spokesman. Life and career Brouwers was born in Zwolle in 1939 as an only child. He grew up in the city of Groningen and attended high school t ...

(born 1939), journalist and former head of the Netherlands Government Information Service *

A. den Doolaard A. den Doolaard (; mk, А. ден Долард, A. den Dolard, ; 7 February 1901 – 26 June 1994) is the pseudonym of the Dutch writer and journalist Cornelis Johannes George (Bob) Spoelstra Jr. Biography Den Doolaard went to high school in ...

(1901–1994), author * Rhijnvis Feith (1753–1824), author * Everhardus Johannes Potgieter (1808–1875), author ;Business * Willem Jan van Dedem (1776–1851), landowner and founder of the canal and town of Dedemsvaart ;Religion *

Johannes Busch Johannes (or Jan) Busch (1399 – c. 1480) was a major reformer and provost of a community of Canons Regular. He was associated with the Brethren of the Common Life. He was born in Zwolle. He spent most of the last 40 years of his life visiting an ...

(1399–c. 1480), church reformer and provost of the Augustinian monastic order * Andreas Ignatius Schaepman (1815–1882), Archbishop of Utrecht *

Alanus de Rupe Alanus de Rupe (also Alan, Alain de la Roche, or Blessed Alain de la Roche); (c. 1428 – 8 September 1475) was a Roman Catholic theologian noted for his views on prayer. Some writers claim him as a native of Germany, others of Belgium; but his ...

(1428–1475), Roman Catholic theologian and Dominican promotor of the

rosary The Rosary (; la, , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), also known as the Dominican Rosary, or simply the Rosary, refers to a set of prayers used primarily in the Catholic Church, and to the physical string of knots or b ...

;Politics * Laurens Jan Brinkhorst (born 1937), former Minister of Economic Affairs *

Joan van der Capellen tot den Pol Joan Derk, Baron van der Capellen tot den Pol (; 2 November 1741, Tiel – 6 June 1784, Zwolle) was a Dutch nobleman who played a prominent role in the revolutionary events that preceded the formation of the Batavian Republic. As a member of the ...

(1741–1784), role in the

Batavian Republic The Batavian Republic ( nl, Bataafse Republiek; french: République Batave) was the successor state to the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795 and ended on 5 June 1806, with the accession of Louis Bona ...

* Wybo Fijnje (1750–1809), Mennonite minister, publisher, exile, coup perpetrator, politician *

Willem Johan Lucas Grobbée Willem () is a Dutch and West FrisianRienk de Haan, ''Fryske Foarnammen'', Leeuwarden, 2002 (Friese Pers Boekerij), , p. 158. masculine given name. The name is Germanic, and can be seen as the Dutch equivalent of the name William in English, G ...

(1822–1907), Minister of Finance from 1883 to 1885 * Johannes van Heerdt tot Eversberg (1829–1893), former governor of Suriname and Curaçao *

Piet Kasteel Petrus Albertus "Piet" Kasteel (4 November 1901 – 13 December 2003) was a Dutch journalist, diplomat, and colonial administrator. He was parliamentary editor of ', and fled to England during World War II where he served for the Dutch government- ...

(1901–2003), ambassador and former governor of Curaçao * Johan Rudolf Thorbecke (1798–1872), Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1849/1853, 1862/1866, 1871/1872) ;Sports * Jeroen Dubbeldam (born 1973), 2000 Olympic Equestrian champion *

Marten Eikelboom Marten Eikelboom (born 12 October 1973 in Zwolle) is a field hockey striker from the Netherlands, who was a member of the Dutch team that won the gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. After the World Hockey Cup in Kuala Lumpur (2002) ...

(born 1973), hockey player *

Maarten Grobbe Maarten Grobbe (7 September 1901 – 13 May 1961) was a Dutch footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American ...

(1901–1961), football player * Martin Haar (born 1952), former football defender and current trainer * Rinus Israël (born 1942), former football player and current scout *

Ron Jans Ron Jans (, born 29 September 1958) is a Dutch football coach and former player, he currently is the head coach of Twente. Coaching career FC Groningen Born in Zwolle, Overijssel, Ron Jans joined FC Groningen on 2002, and was the longest-serv ...

(born 1958), former football player and current

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

* Bert Konterman (1971), football player * Hennie van Nee (1939–1996), football player *

Eric Pierik Johannes Maria Henricus ("Eric" or "Erik") Pierik (born March 21, 1959 in Zwolle) is a former field hockey player from the Netherlands, who was a member of the Dutch National Team that finished sixth in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles ...

(born 1959), field hockey player * Johnny Rep (born 1951), football player *

Piet Schrijvers Piet Schrijvers (15 December 1946 – 7 September 2022)https://www.telegraaf.nl/sport/1875093014/voormalig-oranje-doelman-piet-schrijvers-75-overleden was a Dutch professional football manager and player who played as a goalkeeper. At interna ...

(1946–2022), football player *

Johannes Smeekens Jan Smeekens (born 11 February 1987) is a Dutch former speed skater. He is a 500 m specialist. Smeekens won his first international medal during the 2004 World Junior Single Distance Championships in Moscow where he won the gold medal at the 50 ...

(born 1987), Olympic

speedskater 　 Long-track speed skating, usually simply referred to as speed skating, is the Olympic discipline of speed skating where competitors are timed while crossing a set distance. It is also a sport for leisure. Sports such as ice skating marathon, ...

Jaap Stam Jakob Stam (; born 17 July 1972) is a Dutch professional football coach and former player. As a player, he played as a centre-back and is regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation. Stam played for several European clubs including P ...

(born 1972), former football player and current coach *

Gerrit Voges Gerrit Voges (11 July 1932 – 21 June 2007) was a Dutch footballer. He played in two matches for the Netherlands national football team The Netherlands national football team ( nl, Nederlands voetbalelftal or simply ''Het Nederlands elfta ...

(1932–2007), football player * Peter Wessels (born 1978), tennis player ;Science *

Christianus Carolus Henricus van der Aa Christianus Carolus Henricus van der Aa (25 August 1718 – 23 September 1793) was a Lutheran pastor in Haarlem and secretary of the Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities. Life Christianus Carolus Henricus was born in Zwolle, where ...

(1718–1793), Secretary of the Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities *

Thomas Joannes Stieltjes Thomas Joannes Stieltjes (, 29 December 1856 – 31 December 1894) was a Dutch mathematician. He was a pioneer in the field of moment problems and contributed to the study of continued fractions. The Thomas Stieltjes Institute for Mathematics at ...

(1856–1894), mathematician, civil engineer and politician *

Derk-Jan Dijk Derk-Jan Dijk (born 1958 in Zwollerkerspel, Netherlands) is a researcher of sleep and circadian rhythms. As of 2005 he is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Surrey and the director of its Sleep Research Centre. Education and early ...

(Born 1958), Researcher of sleep and circadian rhythms

Educational institutions

Zwolle is home to several universities and colleges: * Artez *

Christelijke Hogeschool Windesheim Windesheim University of Applied Sciences ( nl, Hogeschool Windesheim) is a Dutch vocational university institute for higher education and research. With over 27,000 students and more than 3,000 members of staff at sites in Zwolle and Almere, Win ...

* * *

Landstede Zwolle Landstede Hammers is a Dutch basketball club based in Zwolle. The club plays in the BNXT League, the Dutch top tier division. The club was founded as Cees Lubbers The Hammers in 1995. In 1999, the club’s name was changed into Landstede Hammers. ...

* * * * *

Windesheim Honours College Windesheim Honours College (Zwolle, Netherlands) is an initiative of Windesheim University of Applied Sciences and VU University Amsterdam. The college offers an international and English-language Bachelor's degree programme, for students who aspir ...

Transport

Road transport

Zwolle is a hub in the national highway network, and gateway to northern Netherlands. This is reflected in the high traffic volumes in and around the city. The A28 serves Zwolle with 4 exits, and runs from Utrecht to

. It is being widened to 8 lanes across the

IJssel River The IJssel (; nds-nl, Iessel(t) ) is a Dutch distributary of the river Rhine that flows northward and ultimately discharges into the IJsselmeer (before the 1932 completion of the Afsluitdijk known as the Zuiderzee), a North Sea natural harbour ...

and 6 lanes from Zwolle to Meppel in 2010 and 2011. The motorway initially opened between 1964 and 1970. Another motorway, the A50, interchanges with A28 just west of the city, offering a route for southbound traffic to Apeldoorn and

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,N35 highway starts in Zwolle, where it forms the eastern section of the ring road of Zwolle, it runs as a non-motorway to Almelo and continues to

as A35 motorway. The ringroad is mainly a 4-lane road, with numerous traffic lights. It forms a full ring, and also exists out of the N337 highway that runs to

. Other sections of the ring road are not numbered. Parts of the ring road were widened to six lanes in 2010. Other numbered highways running from Zwolle are N331 to

Hasselt Hasselt (, , ; la, Hasseletum, Hasselatum) is a Belgian city and municipality, and capital and largest city of the province of Limburg in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is known for its former branding as "the city of taste", as well as its ...

, N758 to

Nieuwleusen Nieuwleusen (Low Saxon: ''Ni'jlusen'') is a town in the Dutch province of Overijssel with 9300 inhabitants as of 2021. In the 2001 municipal reform, most of the former municipality of Nieuwleusen was incorporated into the municipality of Dalfsen. ...

, N340 to Ommen and N764 to

Bridges

Due to nearby rivers, there are several major bridges in and around Zwolle. The most important bridge is the IJssel Bridge where the A28 motorway runs across. It was completed in 1970 and carries over 125.000 vehicles per day. Adjacent to this bridge is the older IJssel Bridge, which opened in 1930 and was destroyed twice during World War II. A third IJssel Bridge is the railway bridge (called Hanze boog) which carries the railway line from Zwolle to Amersfoort, and from 2012, to

Lelystad Lelystad () is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdi ...

. There are several bridges across the Zwarte Water River, including two 4-lane bridges, a 2-lane bridge, and a bus/bicycle bridge. There is also a bridge across the Vecht, which carries A28 motorway. Another local bridge is adjacent to this bridge. A third bridge carries rail traffic to Leeuwarden and

. Numerous local bridges exist around the historic city center.

Rail transport

* Zwolle railway station The first train in Zwolle arrived on 6 June 1864. Today the city has rail connections in eight directions (viz.

, Leeuwarden,

, Emmen,

, Arnhem/

Nijmegen Nijmegen (;; Spanish and it, Nimega. Nijmeegs: ''Nimwèège'' ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and tenth largest of the Netherlands as a whole, located on the Waal river close to the German border. It is about 6 ...

/ Amsterdam, and Amersfoort). The rail connection with Amsterdam via

– the Hanzelijn – is operational since December 2012. The second station, Zwolle Stadshagen, was opened on 15 December 2019.

Water transport

Zwolle is located on or near three rivers ( Zwarte Water, Vecht, and IJssel), several canals (the now disused Willemsvaart, Nieuwe Vecht and Overijssels Kanaal and the modern Zwolle-IJssel Kanaal). There are some water-related industries in Zwolle, mainly in the Voorst industrial area.

International relations

Twin towns—sister cities

Zwolle is currently twinned with: * Lünen, Germany In the past, Zwolle had partnerships with: *

Érsekhalma Érsekhalma (Croatian: ''Loma'') is a village in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of Hungary. Geography It covers an area of and has a population of 702 people (2005). Partnership * Gheorghieni, Romania * Šuplj ...

, Hungary * Rutobwe, Rwanda * Vologda, Russia * Kaliningrad, Russia

References

Literature

External links

* *
Official website
{{Authority control Cities in the Netherlands Members of the Hanseatic League Municipalities of Overijssel Populated places in Overijssel Provincial capitals of the Netherlands Salland