Overijssel

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Provincie Overijssel
Province of Overijssel
Coat of arms of Overijssel
Flag Coat of arms
Map: Province of Overijssel in the Netherlands South Holland North Holland Friesland Groningen Drenthe Flevoland Overijssel Gelderland Utrecht Limburg North Brabant Zeeland
About this image
Capital Zwolle
Largest city Enschede
Queen's Commissioner mr. G.J. (Geert) Jansen
Religion (1999) Protestant 32%
Catholic 27%
Area
 • Land
 • Water
 
3.327 km² (4th)
94 km²
Population (2006)
 • Total
 • Density

1,113,529 (7th)
335/km² (7th)
Anthem Aan de rand van Hollands gouwen
ISO NL-OV
Official website www.overijssel.nl

Overijssel pronunciation  (Latin: Transiselania) is a province of the Netherlands in the central eastern part of the country. The province's name in both Dutch and Latin means "Lands across river IJssel". The capital city of Overijssel is Zwolle.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Overijssel is bordered by Germany to the east, the Achterhoek region of Gelderland to the south, the Veluwe region of Gelderland and Flevoland to the west, and Friesland and the former moors of Drenthe to the north. Overijssel comprises three regions: Kop van Overijssel in the northwest, Salland in the centre of the province, and Twente in the east. Besides the capital Zwolle, the major cities are Almelo, Deventer, Enschede, and Hengelo.

To the southeast, the province's surface is mostly sandy, interspersed with small rivers, such as, Regge and Dinkel and brooks, in the northwest, the geology is dominated by sediments from the Overijsselse Vecht and clay. The northern parts were once covered by veen (bogs) which separated the dryer and more arable south from Drenthe and which have been exploited as fuel to a large degree. Only small patches survive today (Engbertsdijksvenen near Tubbergen, Witteveen (near Haaksbergen), and the Aamsveen (near Enschede). The extreme northwest is dominated by a system of lakes formed by former peat-mining, the Weerribben, which is a valuable wetland.

The highest point in Overijssel is the summit of the Tankenberg, a hill in the municipality of Losser, at 89 metres (295 ft). The lowest point is in the Mastenbroek Polder near Kampen at 2 metres (6 ft) below sea level.

[edit] History

Amsterdam Almelo Almere Amersfoort Arnhem Assen Breda Den Haag Delft Delfzijl Den Bosch Den Helder Dordrecht Enchede Haarlem Hilversum Maastricht Middelburg Zwolle Lelystad Leiden Katwijk Nijmegen Eindhoven Vlissingen Rotterdam Leeuwarden Heerenveen Groningen (city) Emmen Almelo Apeldoorn Alkmaar Zaanstad Tilburg Venlo Heerlen Drenthe Flevoland Friesland Gelderland Groningen Limburg North Brabant North Holland Overijssel South Holland Utrecht Zeeland
Map of the Netherlands, linking to the province articles; red dots mark provincial capitals and black dots other notable cities or towns.

During its early history, Overijssel was formerly known as Oversticht and also included much of modern-day Drenthe. In 1336, it was made part of Guelders, though it was ceded to the Bishopric of Utrecht in 1347 and was known as het Sticht. The Bishops ceded the Oversticht to the Emperor Charles V in 1528, who styled himself "Lord of Overijssel", thereby giving the province its modern name. The people joined with the other Dutch and rebelled against Charles' heir Philip II. Overijssel became governed by the most powerful mayors and lords in the province.

After a brief occupation by the forces of the Bishop of Münster (1672–74), Overijssel received a new form of government which granted the stadtholders more power. Widespread resistance against the increased power throughout the provinces eventually led to the formation of the Batavian Republic in 1795. A centralist government arose and the Netherlands was organised into a series of départements, based on those used by revolutionary France. At first organised into its own département, it was merged with Drenthe in 1798 to form Ouden Ijssel, which was renamed Overijssel in 1801.

The French annexed the Batavian Republic in 1810, and Overijssel was organised into the new French département of Bouches-de-l'Yssel. After the defeat of Napoleon in 1814, the kingdom of the Netherlands and the former province of Overijssel were recreated. Overijssel was briefly occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II from May 1940 until its liberation in April 1945. The Noordoostpolder, which had been laid dry in 1942, was part of Overijssel from 1962 until 1986, when it became part of the newly created province of Flevoland.

[edit] Municipalities

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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