Stavoren (; ; previously Staveren) 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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

, on the coast of the

IJsselmeer The IJsselmeer (; , ), also known as Lake IJssel in English, is a closed-off freshwater lake in the central Netherlands bordering the Provinces of the Netherlands, provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland. It covers an area of with a ...

, about 5 km (3.1 mi) south of Hindeloopen, in the

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

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 ...

. Stavoren had a population of 950 in January 2017. It is one of the stops on the Elfstedentocht (English: "eleven cities tour"), an ice skating contest that occurs when the winter temperatures provide safe conditions. A

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

for pedestrians and cyclists operates between Stavoren and Enkhuizen, with increased frequency during summer months. The Friese Kustpad, a 131 kilometres (81 miles) long-distance trail to Lauwersoog, begins in Stavoren.

History

The historical Stavoren was granted city rights between 1060 and 1067, making it the oldest city in

. It is mentioned in early texts as the burial place of the early kings of Friesland, including the first Christian king Adgil II (d. 730), who was a son of

Redbad Radbod, Radbot, Ratbod, Ratpot, Redbod, Redbad, Radboud, Rapoto, or sometimes just Boddo, is a Germanic masculine first name that may refer to: *Radbod of Frisia, leader of the Frisians (died 719) *Radbod (prefect) (833–854), Frankish prefect *Ra ...

, the last pagan king who lived from about 670 to 719. Stavoren was the site of a memorable battle on 26 September 1345 where the count of Holland William IV "the Bold" lost his life. Geschiedenis van het oude dorp Rottum, en andere bijzonderheden, Volume 1, p. 87. Fongers, 1857
, National Library of the Netherlands (original from the University of Amsterdam). A digital version free e-book is at Google Books Stavoren began to decline in the

late Middle Ages The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...

after a sandbank formed outside the harbour, blocking ships from entering and exiting. The appearance of the sandbank is the topic of the Dutch Renaissance folk-tale of the Lady of Stavoren. In 1657, the entire town was submerged in a great flood. Before 2011, the city was part of the Nijefurd municipality and before 1984 Stavoren was an independent municipality.

Notable people

Notable people from Stavoren include: * Andreas Cornelius (died 1589), musician and historian * Bendiks Cazemier (born 1931), politician * Bernhard van Haersma Buma (1932–2020), politician and writer * Marijke ten Cate (born 1974), illustrator * Age Hains Boersma (born 1982), football player

Climate

References

External links

*
A bishop from Frisia who proceeded The Hunger Games
by Frisia Coast Trail (2024) {{Authority control Cities in the Netherlands Cities in Friesland Populated places in Friesland Súdwest-Fryslân