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Utrecht

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Utrecht city (1994 pop. 234,106), capital of Utrecht prov., central Netherlands, on a branch of the Lower Rhine (Neder Rijn) River. It is a transportation, financial, and industrial center. Manufactures include machinery, cement, and food products. It is also the site of a major trade fair.

Utrecht was founded by the Romans as Trajectum ad Rhenum [Lat.,=ford of the Rhine]. In the late 7th cent. it was made an episcopal center for St. Willibrord, the Apostle to the Frisians. The bishops of Utrecht, as princes of the Holy Roman Empire, later ruled the area around the city and the lordship (now province) of Overijssel. There was a recurring power struggle between the bishops and the city's merchants. Utrecht received a liberal charter in 1122, but its difficulties with the bishops continued sporadically until 1527, when the bishop was forced to transfer his territorial rights to Emperor Charles V.

One of the most important commercial centers of the Netherlands in the Middle Ages, Utrecht was incorporated with the rest of the Hapsburg-held Netherlands by Charles V. Utrecht joined (1577) in the rebellion against Philip II of Spain, and on Jan. 23, 1579, the seven provinces of the N Netherlands , from then on known as the United Provinces, the nucleus of the Dutch republic, drew together for their common defense in the Union of Utrecht. In the 17th cent., Utrecht became a center of Jansenism (see under Jansen, Cornelis ). In 1713 several treaties forming part of the Peace of Utrecht were signed there.

The old inner city is picturesque, crossed by numerous sunken canals. Utrecht is the site of a 14th-century cathedral and a famous university (founded 1636) with a quaint old campus and vibrant new one. It also is the center of the Roman Catholic authority of the Netherlands.

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Utrecht

Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names | 2005 | | Copyright

Utrecht, The Netherlands, South Africa, Suriname 1. The Netherlands: a province and a city founded in 47 by the Romans to protect an important crossing over the Rhine. Their name, Trajectum ad Rhenum ‘Ford on the (River) Rhine’ came from the Latin trajectus ‘river crossing’. This became Ultrajectum which evolved into Ouda Trecht ‘Old Ford’ and then into the present name.2. The towns in South Africa and Suriname take their names from the Dutch city.

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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Utrecht." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Utrecht." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Utrecht.html

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Utrecht." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Utrecht.html

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Utrecht

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Copyright

Utrecht City on the Oude Rijn River, central Netherlands. Utrecht is the fourth-largest city in the Netherlands. It has been a trading centre since medieval times. It was the scene of the Peace of Utrecht (1713). The old city includes the 14th-century St Martin's Cathedral. Utrecht is a major cultural, financial and rail centre. Industries: steel, machinery, textiles, electrical equipment. Pop. (2001) 256,202.

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Utrecht

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Utrecht , province (1994 pop. 1,056,000), c.500 sq mi (1,290 sq km), central Netherlands, bounded by the IJsselmeer in the north. Utrecht (the capital) and Amersfoort are the chief cities. It largely comprises low-lying land and is drained by the Lower Rhine (Neder Rijn) River. The province has a mixed economy, with prosperous farms and diverse industries.

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Utrecht

Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes | 2007 | Copyright

Utrecht •abreact, abstract, act, attract, bract, compact, contract, counteract, diffract, enact, exact, extract, fact, humpbacked, hunchbacked, impact, interact, matter-of-fact, pact, protract, redact, refract, retroact, subcontract, subtract, tact, tract, transact, unbacked, underact, untracked •play-act • autodidact •artefact (US artifact) • cataract •contact •marked, unremarked •Wehrmacht •affect, bisect, bull-necked, collect, confect, connect, correct, defect, deflect, deject, detect, direct, effect, eject, elect, erect, expect, infect, inflect, inject, inspect, interconnect, interject, intersect, misdirect, neglect, object, perfect, project, prospect, protect, reflect, reject, respect, resurrect, sect, select, subject, suspect, transect, unchecked, Utrecht •prefect • abject • retroject • intellect •genuflect • idiolect • dialect • aspect •circumspect • retrospect • Dordrecht •vivisect • architect • unbaked •sun-baked

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