Utrecht (Dutch pronunciation:[ˈytrɛxt]ⓘ), officially theProvince of Utrecht (Dutch:Provincie Utrecht), is aprovince of theNetherlands. It is located in the centre of the country, bordering theEemmeer in the north-east, the province ofGelderland in the east and south-east, the province ofSouth Holland in the west and south-west and the province ofNorth Holland in the north-west and north. The province of Utrecht has a population of about 1,388,000[2] as of January 2023. With a land area of approximately 1,484 square kilometres (573 sq mi), it is the second smallest province in the country. Apart from itseponymous capital, major cities and towns in the province areAmersfoort,Houten,IJsselstein,Nieuwegein,Veenendaal andZeist. The busiestrailway station in the Netherlands,Utrecht Centraal, is located in the province of Utrecht.[5]
TheBishopric of Utrecht was established in 695 when SaintWillibrord was consecrated bishop of theFrisians atRome byPope Sergius I. With the consent of theFrankish ruler,Pippin of Herstal, he settled in an oldRoman fort inUtrecht. After Willibrord's death the diocese suffered greatly from the incursions of theVikings. Better times appeared during the reign of theSaxon emperors, who frequently summoned the Bishops of Utrecht to attend the imperial councils anddiets. In 1024 the bishops were made Princes of theHoly Roman Empire and the new Prince-Bishopric of Utrecht was formed. In 1122, with theConcordat of Worms, the Emperor's right of investiture was annulled, and the cathedral chapter received the right to elect the bishop. It was, however, soon obligated to share this right with the four other collegiate chapters in the city. The Counts ofHolland andGuelders, between whose territories the lands of the Bishops of Utrecht lay, also sought to acquire influence over the filling of the episcopal see. This often led to disputes and consequently theHoly See frequently interfered in the election. After the middle of the 14th century the popes repeatedly appointed the bishop directly without regard to the five chapters.
In 1527, the Bishop sold his territories, and thus his secular authority, to Holy Roman EmperorCharles V and the principality became an integral part of theHabsburg dominions, which already included most other Dutch provinces. The chapters transferred their right of electing the bishop to Charles V and his government, a measure to whichPope Clement VII gave his consent, under political pressure after theSack of Rome. However, the Habsburg rule did not last long, as Utrecht joined in theDutch Revolt against Charles' successorPhilip II in 1579, becoming a part of theDutch Republic.
InWorld War II, Utrecht was held by German forces until the general capitulation of the Germans in the Netherlands on May 5, 1945. It was occupied by Canadian Allied forces on May 7, 1945. The towns ofOudewater,Woerden,Vianen andLeerdam were transferred from the province ofSouth Holland to Utrecht in 1970, 1989, 2002 and 2019 respectively. In February 2011, Utrecht, together with the provinces ofNorth Holland andFlevoland, showed a desire to investigate the feasibility of a merger between the three provinces.[6] This has been positively received by theDutch cabinet, for the desire to create oneRandstad province has already been mentioned in thecoalition agreement.[7] The province of South Holland, part of the Randstad urban area, visioned to be part of the Randstad province,[8] and very much supportive of the idea of a merger into one province,[9] is not named. With or without South Holland, if created, the new province would be the largest in the Netherlands in botharea and population.
In the east of Utrecht lies theUtrecht Hill Ridge (Dutch: Utrechtse Heuvelrug), a chain of hills left aslateral moraine by tongues of glacial ice after the Saline glaciation that preceded thelast ice age. Because of the scarcity of nutrients in the fast-draining sandy soil, the greatest part of a landscape that was formerlyheath has been planted withpineplantations. The south of the province is a river landscape. The west consists mostly of meadows. In the north are big lakes formed by the digging ofpeat from bogs formed after the last ice age; these lakes are now popular recreational areas for boating, fishing, and water sports.
One of the most attractive natural areas in the province is theVechtstreek ("Vecht region"), situated on either side of theVecht river.
An international nature conservation organisation that has settled the head office of its Netherlands branch in this province (at Zeist) is theWWF.
"Natuur en Milieu" ("Nature and Environment")[10] is a national nature protection organisation whose head office is in this province (at Utrecht city).
In 2015, 20.3% of the population belonged to theProtestant Church in the Netherlands, while 13.2% wereRoman Catholic, 6.6% belonged to other churches or faiths, and 5.6% wereMuslim. Over half of the population (54.3%) identified as non-religious.
TheGross domestic product (GDP) of the region was 71.5 billion € in 2018, accounting for 9.2% of the Netherlands economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 47,900 € or 159% of the EU27 average in the same year.[13]
^Rockwell, William Walker (1911)."Adrian (popes)" .Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). pp. 215–216, see page 216.Adrian VI. (Adrian Dedel...1459–1523), pope from 1522 to 1523, was born at Utrecht in March 1459, and....
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