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Stavoren

City in Friesland, Netherlands

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Stavoren (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈstaːvərə(n)]; West Frisian: Starum [ˈstaːrəm]; previously Staveren) is a city in the province of Friesland, Netherlands, on the coast of the IJsselmeer, about 5 km (3.1 mi) south of Hindeloopen, in the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân.

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 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.

01History

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

Stavoren began to decline in the late Middle Ages 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.

The Lady of Stavoren, 1969 statue
The Lady of Stavoren, 1969 statue

02Notable people

Notable people from Stavoren include:

Watch videos about StavorenExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article Stavoren, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

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