Municipality in Zeeland, Netherlands
Sluis (Dutch: [slœys] ⓘ ;Zeelandic :Sluus [slys] ;French :Écluse ) is acity andmunicipality located in the west ofZeelandic Flanders , in the south-western Dutch province ofZeeland .
The current incarnation of the municipality has existed since 1 January 2003. The former municipalities ofOostburg andSluis-Aardenburg merged on that date. The latter of these two municipalities was formed from a merger between the previous municipality named Sluis and the former municipality of Aardenburg in 1995.
Sint Anna ter Muiden and Sluis on theFerraris map (around 1775) The town receivedcity rights in 1290. In 1340 theBattle of Sluys was fought nearby at sea during theHundred Years' War . There is a record of one of the first lotteries with money on 9 May 1455 of 1737 florins (US$170,000, in 2014).
During theEighty Years' War in 1587 the townwas captured by Spanish troops under theDuke of Parma andwas retaken in 1604 by a Dutch and English force underMaurice of Nassau .
From 2006 until its closure in 2013,Oud Sluis was one of only twoMichelin three-starred restaurants in the entire country.
Dutch Topographic map of Sluis, June 2015 In addition to the town of Sluis itself, the municipality is made up of the following population centres:
Sint Anna ter Muiden , with a population of only 50 (2001), is a small village about 1 km west of the town of Sluis, located on thewesternmost point of the Netherlands.
The population of the municipality is 23,098 as of 2025.
Historical population (1996–2025) Year Number of inhabitants % difference 1996 24,258 –0.18% 1997 24,326 +0.28% 1998 24,331 +0.02% 1999 24,209 −0.50% 2000 24,253 +0.18% 2001 24,594 +1.41% 2002 24,755 +0.65% 2003 24,828 +0.29% 2004 24,596 −0.93% 2005 24,605 +0.04% 2006 24,357 −1.01% 2007 24,325 −0.13% 2008 24,238 −0.36% 2009 24,156 −0.34% 2010 24,089 −0.28% 2011 23,979 −0.46% 2012 23,892 −0.36% 2013 23,886 −0.03% 2014 23,820 −0.28% 2015 23,747 −0.31% 2016 23,639 −0.45% 2017 23,658 +0.08% 2018 23,526 −0.56% 2019 23,386 −0.60% 2020 23,210 −0.75% 2021 23,166 −0.19% 2022 23,141 −0.11% 2023 23,243 +0.44% 2024 23,150 −0.40% 2025 23,098 −0.22%
Aferry connection across theWesterschelde exists between Breskens andVlissingen . After the opening of theWesterschelde tunnel nearTerneuzen in 2003, the ferry now carries only pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
Joost de Soete Ate de Jong, 1976 John Crabbe (before 1305 in Muide – 1352)l a Flemish merchant, pirate and soldierJoost de Soete (ca.1510/1520 in Sluis – 1589), a Dutch nobleman and Field MarshalJacob van Loo (1614 in Sluis – 1670), a painter of theDutch Golden Age Joan Blasius (1639 in Cadzand — 1672), a Dutch poet, playwright, translator and lawyerJohanna Jacoba van Beaumont (ca.1752 in Sluis - 1827), a politically active journalist, feminist and editorJohan Hendrik van Dale (1828 in Sluis - 1872), a Dutch teacher, archivist and lexicographerErnst Oppler (1867–1929), German impressionist painter, lived for some years in SluisHermine Moquette (1869-1971), Dutch archivist, born in SluisJan Eekhout (1900 in Sluis - 1978), a Dutch writer, poet, translator and NaziHerman Wijffels (born 1942 in Turkeye), a retired Dutch politician and businessmanHans Wijers (born 1951 in Oostburg), a retired Dutch politician and businessmanAte de Jong (born 1953 in Aardenburg), a Dutch film director[ 5] Willem van Hanegem (born 1944 in Breskens), a Dutch former football midfielder with over 50 caps and 600 appearances in the top flight of association footballAnnabel Kosten (born 1977 in Oostburg), a retired freestyle swimmer, bronze medallist at the2004 Summer Olympics The town hall and the Belfort in Sluis
The channel and the catholic church in Sluis
Molen De Brak windmill in Sluis, built 1739. Served as a defensive structure and was the first stone mill in Sluis.
A street of the village Sint Anna ter Muiden
Retranchement, de Retranchementse Molen
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for
Sluis .
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