Bolsward (, West Frisian: ''Boalsert'') is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Súdwest-Fryslân Southwest Friesland ( ) is a municipality in the northern Netherlands, located in the province of Friesland. It had a population of 89,999 in January 2021. Sneek is the municipal seat. With a total area of 841.56 km2, Southwest-Friesland is ...

in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Friesland Friesland ( ; ; official ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia (), named after the Frisians, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen (p ...

, the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. Bolsward has a population of just under 10,200. It is located 10 km W.N.W. of

Sneek Sneek (; ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city southwest of Leeuwarden and the seat of the former municipality of Sneek in the province of Friesland, Netherlands. As of 2011 it is the seat of the municipality of Súdw ...

History

The town is founded on three artificial dwelling mounds, the first of which was built some time before Christ. During the

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

, Bolsward was a trade center and port city connected to the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

via the Middle Sea. This connection was lost when the Middle Sea was reclaimed to form arable land. After this, a canal was dug to the Zuiderzee. The town is first mentioned in AD 725. As a trading city, Bolsward was granted city rights by Philip the Good in 1455. Bolsward was made a member of the

Hanseatic league The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

in 1422. Before being merged into the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân, the town of Bolsward was an independent municipality.

Notable historical figures

Notable historical figures born here include: * Juw Juwinga or Jonghema (14th century), 11th ''potestaat'' of Friesland * Petrus Thaborita (1450–1527), historian * Boetius Adamsz Bolswert (c.1580-1633), engraver * Schelderic Adamsz Bolswert (c.1586-1659), engraver * Gysbert Japiks (1603–1666), poet * Frederick Philipse (1626–1702), American progenitor and founder * Willem Muurling (1805–1882), theologian * Titus Brandsma (1881–1942), Carmelite philosopher

Events

Heamiel. A local festival of four days in June. This is an old traditional festival to celebrate that the farmers finished getting the hay from the fields. The name of the festival, Heamiel, is Frisian for 'Hay meal', and is derived from the traditional banquet. Bolletongersdei. Bolletongersdei is Frisian for 'bulls Thursday'. Bolletongersdei includes a street market. Bolletongersdei is held on the first Thursday of October. Simmerwike. A festival of four evenings with musical performances, held in August.

Elfstedentocht

Bolsward is one of the eleven Frisian cities in which the ice skating Elfstedentocht, an

ice skating Ice skating is the Human-powered transport, self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. ...

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

, is held. Because the marathon depends on the thickness of the ice, it is not held on a regular schedule and is somewhat rare. Bolsward is also the host city for the yearly Cycling Elfstedentocht, a

road bicycle racing Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on Road surface, paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The ...

tour.

Notable buildings

* Protestant church of Bolsward * Gysbert Japicx House, birth place and museum about Gysbert Japiks. *Broerekerk (burned 1980, repurposed 2006) Bolsward-Broerekerk-May-2018

References

External links

*
Official website
{{Authority control Municipalities of the Netherlands disestablished in 2011 Cities in the Netherlands Cities in Friesland Former municipalities of Friesland Populated places in Friesland Súdwest-Fryslân