Benschop is a village in the

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

province of

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

. It is a part of the municipality of

Lopik Lopik () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht, close to the Lek_(river), Lek river. History Lopik lies within the Lopikerwaard region, which used to be occupied by swamps and forests unt ...

, and lies about 4 km west of

IJsselstein IJsselstein () is a municipality and city in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. IJsselstein received city rights in 1331. IJsselstein owes its name to the river Hollandse IJssel which flows through the city. It is a major commuting su ...

. Benschop is an extremely long village: apart from a relatively compact town centre, it consists of a long ribbon (over 8 km long) of houses (mainly farms) on both sides of the Benschopsche Wetering. Until 1989, Benschop was a separate municipality.

History

The village was first mentioned between 1280 and 1287 as benscop, and means "(peat) concession of Ben (person)". Excavation of the peat started in the 11th and 12th century. Benschop used to be part of the

Prince-Bishopric of Utrecht The Bishopric of Utrecht (; ) was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire in the Low Countries, in the present-day Netherlands. From 1024 to 1528, as one of the prince-bishoprics of the Holy Roman Empire, it was ruled by the b ...

. In 1285, the village became part of Holland. The Dutch Reformed Church dates from around 1500, but has 13th century elements. Huis Snellenburg was a manor house built around 1700. It was redeveloped into a farm, however the interior and the carriage house remain. In 1805, Benschop was returned to Utrecht. In 1840, it was home to 1,415 people. Benschop used to be an independent municipality. In 1989, it was merged into

Gallery

File:Benschop Dorp 141 Boerderij.jpg, House in Benschop File:Overzicht witgepleisterde boerderij, voorgevel en linker zijgevel - Benschop - 20371754 - RCE.jpg, Farm in Benschop File:Benschop.Beer.Inez van Dijk.jpg, The bear of Benschop by Inez van Dijk File:HUA-201899-Gezicht op de voorgevel van het huis Snellenburg bij Benschop.jpg, Huis Snellenburg (1839)

References

{{Authority control Former municipalities of Utrecht (province) Populated places in Utrecht (province) Lopik