| Veere | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — Municipality — | |||
| Harbor of Veere | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Netherlands | ||
| Province | Zeeland | ||
| Area(2006) | |||
| • Total | 207.09 km2 (80 sq mi) | ||
| • Land | 132.94 km2 (51.3 sq mi) | ||
| • Water | 74.15 km2 (28.6 sq mi) | ||
| Population (1 January 2007) | |||
| • Total | 21,974 | ||
| • Density | 165/km2 (427.3/sq mi) | ||
| Source: CBS, Statline. | |||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
Veere () is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands, on Walcheren island in the province of Zeeland.
Contents |
Aagtekerke (population as of 2003: 1,479), Biggekerke (895), Domburg (1,481), Gapinge (522), Grijpskerke (1,377), Koudekerke (3,620), Meliskerke (1,477), Oostkapelle (2,451), Serooskerke (1,833), Veere (1,520), Vrouwenpolder (1,125), Westkapelle (2,672), Zoutelande (1,593).
The small city of Veere (population as of 2001[update]: 1,520) is located on the Veerse Meer on the island of Walcheren in Zeeland. The name means "ferry" after Wolfert Van Borsselen established one here in 1281.[1] Veere received city rights in 1355.
The "Admiraliteit van Veere" (Admiralty of Veere) was set up as a result of the Ordinance on the Admiralty of 8 January 1488 in an attempt to create a central naval administration in the Burgundian Netherlands. To this was subordinated the Vice-Admiralty of Flanders in Dunkirk. In 1560 under admiral Philip de Montmorency, Count of Hoorn this admiralty was relocated near Ghent and in 1561 the Habsburg naval forces were also moved to Veere.
Veere was the staple port for Scotland[2] between 1541 and 1799. Flemish architects Antonis Keldermans and Evert Spoorwater designed the Grote Kerk, the fortifications, the Cisterne and the town hall. During this period of prosperity, the cultural centre was located at Sandenburgh castle, the residence of the noble Van Borsele and Van Bourgondië families. Court painter Jan Gossaert van Mabuse worked here.[3] The poet Adrianus Valerius lived and worked in the city from 1591. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Veere was a prosperous trading city. There were about 750 houses inside the city walls then, compared to about 300 now. As a result of the damming of the Veerse Gat inlet in 1961, the fishing fleet of Veere moved to a new home port at Colijnsplaat on Noord-Beveland.[4] Today, the main business of the town is tourism.
The area of the borough is 13,496 hectares, with a coastline of 34 kilometres and a population of about 22,000. The area is visited by 4 million tourists annually. The main attractions are the beaches and marinas. The Storm Surge Barrier on the Oosterschelde is the most popular visitor attraction in Zeeland.[5] The Scoutcentrum Zeeland on the coast of the Veerse Meer attracts Scout visitors from around the world[6]
The town of Veere forms the setting for "Van Loon's Lives", a book of contemporary fantasy written by Hendrik Willem Van Loon in 1942, in which the protagonists are able to magically summon the great men and women of history for weekend dinner parties, leading to often humorous incidents. The book was written at the time when Veere, like the rest of the Netherlands, lay under Nazi occupation, and despite its light-hearted tone clearly indicates the longing of the writer - living in the US - for his homeland whose liberation he was doomed never to see.
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