Soest () is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

and a town in the central

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, in the province of

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

. It is about west of

Amersfoort Amersfoort () is a city and municipality in the province of Utrecht, Netherlands, about 20 km from the city of Utrecht and 40 km south east of Amsterdam. As of 1 December 2021, the municipality had a population of 158,531, making it the second- ...

Population centres

The town of Soest

The oldest documents mentioning Soest (then written as ''Zoys'') date from 1029. Its oldest church (the ''Oude Kerk'', meaning ''Old Church''), which is still in use today, dates from the fifteenth century. Traces of earlier habitation are found though. The area of "Hees", now at the outskirts of Soest may date in to the Early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, and prehistoric

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

s in the Soesterduinen point to early habitation in this area. Agricultural activity is still visible as there is much

farmland Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bo ...

within Soest. The biggest area is in the center of the town, on a hill, and are called 'de Engh'. A small street is ''het Kerkpad'' (literally, the Church Path). The Soesterduinen (sand dunes), is a popular area for recreation. Numerous churches depict the Calvinist/Catholic tradition of Soest and the region. Christengemeente Soest, Wilhelmina Kerk Soest, Gereformeerde Kerk Vrijgemaakt, Emmakerk and the Evangelische Kerk Soest are the main churches. Soest Duinen, meaning Soest Dunes, a small town between Soest and Soesterberg contains acres upon acres of sand dunes named the Lange Duinen (meaning the long dunes). Currently some 50,000 inhabitants live in Soest, consisting mainly of commuters.

Transport

Soest has three railway stations: *

Soestdijk Soestdijk () is a neighbourhood of Soest and a hamlet in the municipality of Baarn. Both are part of the province of Utrecht, Netherlands. The village gives its name to Paleis Soestdijk, which from 1937 to 2004 was the residence of Princess and ...

* Soest * Soest Zuid The biggest of the three is Soest Zuid. Soest can be reached by train from

(every half-hour, xx:06 and xx:36) and

Baarn Baarn () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, near Hilversum in the province of Utrecht. The municipality of Baarn The municipality of Baarn consists of the following towns: Baarn, Eembrugge, Lage Vuursche. The town of Baarn ...

(xx:22 and xx:52); all trains stop at the three stations. The station of Soestduinen, situated between Utrecht Centraal and Amersfoort Centraal, was closed in 1998, after being in use for 135 years. It is now a restaurant. The stations that can be reached directly from Soest are: *

Den Dolder Den Dolder is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Zeist, and lies about 4 km northeast of Bilthoven. Den Dolder has a railway station on the route between Amersfoort and Utrecht and is best known fo ...

Bilthoven Bilthoven is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of De Bilt. It has a railway station with connections to Utrecht, Amersfoort and Baarn. It is home to the Netherlands National Institute for Public Health a ...

* Utrecht Overvecht * Utrecht Centraal Soest has a number of bus stops and three bus lines, all of which leave from the bus station at Soest Zuid exactly at the half-hour. Line 70 however, travel both directions to

and Hilversum. Line 74 travels within the town of Soest. And multiple others travel through Soest. (272 Bunschoten-Spakenburg to Uithof, Utrecht vv. More info found at 9292ov.nl for all the public transport connections

Notable people

Gerard Soest Gerard Soest (circa 1600 – 11 February 1681), also known as Gerald Soest, was a portrait painter who was active in England during the late 17th century. He is most famous for his portraits of William Shakespeare and Samuel Butler, but painted ma ...

(ca. 1600 – 1681) portrait painter who was active in England * Johannes Andreas Schmitz (1621–1652) a Dutch physician *

Prince Alexander of the Netherlands Prince Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau (William ''Alexander'' Frederick Constantine Nicholas Michael, nl, Willem Alexander Frederik Constantijn Nicolaas Michiel, Prins der Nederlanden, Prins van Oranje-Nassau; 2 August 181 ...

(1818–1848) second son to King William II and Queen Anna Paulovna *

Dirk Jan de Geer Dirk Jan de Geer (14 December 1870 – 28 November 1960) was a Dutch politician of the defunct Christian Historical Union (CHU) now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA). He served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 8 March 1 ...

(1870–1960) politician,

Prime Minister of the Netherlands The prime minister of the Netherlands ( nl, Minister-president van Nederland) is the head of the executive branch of the Government of the Netherlands. Although the monarch is the ''de jure'' head of government, the prime minister ''de facto'' ...

1926-1929 and 1939-1940 * Frida Vogels (born 1930) writer, lives in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

* Ed van den Heuvel (born 1940) astronomer * Marlous Fluitsma (born 1946) actress * Peter Kooy (born 1954) bass singer specializing in baroque music * Jack Wouterse (born 1957) actor * Thomas von der Dunk (born 1961) cultural historian, writer and columnist *

Janine Jansen Janine Jansen (born 7 January 1978) is a Dutch violinist and violist. Early life and education Jansen was born in Soest in the Netherlands and came from a musical family. Her father plays organ, harpsichord and piano; from 1987 to mid-2011 h ...

(born 1978) a violinist and violist * Mirik Milan (born 1981) former Amsterdam Night Mayor

Sport

* Robert Roest (born 1969) footballer * Jolanda Elshof (born 1975) retired female volleyball player *

Bianca van den Hoek Bianca van den Hoek (born 28 July 1976) is a Dutch racing cyclist. See also * 2014 Parkhotel Valkenburg Continental Team season The 2014 women's road cycling season was the first for the Parkhotel Valkenburg Continental Team as an UCI women' ...

(born 1976) professional racing cyclist * Richard van Zijtveld (born 1979) former darts player * Daniël Stellwagen (born 1987) chess grandmaster * Daan Huizing (born 1990) professional golfer

Sport

There are four football clubs in Soest: SEC, VV Hees, SO Soest and VVZ '49. Soesterberg has its own football club, VV 't Vliegdorp.

Twin towns – sister cities

Soest is twinned with: * Soest, Germany, since 2004

Gallery

File:Museum Ald Soest 19.JPG, Museum Ald Soest File:Soest Wilhelminalinde 8.JPG, Soest Wilhelminalinde File:Soest, Netherlands - autumn landscape 2015 (22743688092).jpg, Soest, Netherlands - autumn landscape File:Soest - Waterpomp op de kruising van de Kerkstraat en de Eemstraat.jpg, Soest - Waterpomp op de kruising van de Kerkstraat en de Eemstraat File:Hie zien we een gedeelte van Hees vanaf het kruispunt van de buurtschappen Wieksloot en Hees.jpg, Hie zien we een gedeelte van Hees vanaf het kruispunt van de buurtschappen Wieksloot en Hees

References

External links

*
Official Website
{{Authority control Municipalities of Utrecht (province) Populated places in Utrecht (province)