Netherlands, Amersfoort

Amersfoort is a municipality and the second largest city of the province of Utrecht in central Netherlands.

Population centres

The municipality of Amersfoort consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Amersfoort, Hoogland, Hooglanderveen, Stoutenburg Noord.

History

Hunter gatherers set up their camps in the Amersfoort region in the Mesolithic period. Traces of these camps have been found to the north of Amersfoort by archaeologists, mainly consisting of vague features, which represent the hearths of the hunter-camps. Sometimes microlithic flint objects have been found.

The Onze-Lieve-Vrouwentoren is one of the highest medieval church towers of the country: 98 m. The construction of the tower and the church was started in 1444. The church was demolished by an explosion in 1787, but the tower survived.

In the Second World War there was a concentration camp near the city of Amersfoort. The camp, officially called Polizeiliches Durchgangslager Amersfoort (Police Transit Camp Amersfoort), better known as Kamp Amersfoort, was actually located in the neighbouring municipality of Leusden.

The nickname for Amersfoort, Keistad (stone-city), originates in the Amersfoortse Kei, a boulder that was dragged into the city in 1661 by 400 people because of a bet.

Transport

In Amersfoort you can use the Connexxion buses, the BBA buses and the "Stadsvervoer Nederland" buses. With Connexxion you can travel to each place in Amersfoort and some places further, like Utrecht. With BBA, just like Stadsvervoer Nederland, you can travel to regional destinations. Amersfoort has three railway stations.