Leusden
Encyclopedia
Leusden is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands
, in the province of Utrecht
. It is located about 3 kilometres southeast of Amersfoort
.
The western part of the municipality lies on the slopes of the Utrecht Hill Ridge
and is largely covered by forest and heathlands. The eastern parts lay in the Gelderse Vallei and are mostly agricultural.
The municipality of Leusden contains four villages:
There are also a number of hamlets in the municipality:
Asschat
, Den Treek, De Ruif, Jannendorp, Musschendorp, Oud-Leusden
(formerly named "Leusden"), and Snorrenhoef.
In the 1970s, the agricultural villages of Leusbroek and Hamersveld grew together into to a larger, mainly residential town. What once was Hamersveld is now called Leusden-Centrum, now commonly Leusden, and Leusbroek was to become Leusden-Zuid. In the original plans, Leusden was to grow into a town of around 46,000 inhabitants. After the initial expansion there was a growing resistance from the population, so some of the later phases of expansion have been abandoned.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, in the province of Utrecht
Utrecht (province)
Utrecht is the smallest province of the Netherlands in terms of area, and is located in the centre of the country. It is bordered by the Eemmeer in the north, Gelderland in the east, the river Rhine in the south, South Holland in the west, and North Holland in the northwest...
. It is located about 3 kilometres southeast of Amersfoort
Amersfoort
Amersfoort is a municipality and the second largest city of the province of Utrecht in central Netherlands. The city is growing quickly but has a well-preserved and protected medieval centre. Amersfoort is one of the largest railway junctions in the country, because of its location on two of the...
.
The western part of the municipality lies on the slopes of the Utrecht Hill Ridge
Utrecht Hill Ridge
Utrecht Hill Ridge is a ridge of low sandhills that stretches in a direction from southeast to northwest over the Dutch province of Utrecht and over a part of North Holland. The total length of the region is about 50 km. It covers an area of approximately 23.000 ha...
and is largely covered by forest and heathlands. The eastern parts lay in the Gelderse Vallei and are mostly agricultural.
Population centres
- Leusden, originally named "Hamersveld" and later "Leusden-Centrum";
- Leusden-ZuidLeusden-ZuidLeusden-Zuid is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Leusden, and lies about 6 km south of Amersfoort.In 2001, the village of Leusden-Zuid had 1748 inhabitants...
, formerly "Leusbroek" - AchterveldAchterveldthumb|Church JozefkerkAchterveld is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Leusden, and lies about 8 km east of Amersfoort.The village is a catholic enclave in a protestant region. It has a neo-romanic church....
- StoutenburgStoutenburgStoutenburg is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Leusden, and lies about east of Amersfoort.The statistical area "Stoutenburg", which also can include the surrounding countryside, has a population of around 350....
There are also a number of hamlets in the municipality:
Asschat
Asschat
Asschat is a hamlet in the municipality Leusden, in the Dutch province of Utrecht.The hamlet is separated from the village of Leusden in the west by the Valleikanaal canal, and it borders the hamlet Snorrenhoef in the east...
, Den Treek, De Ruif, Jannendorp, Musschendorp, Oud-Leusden
Oud-Leusden
Oud-Leusden is a hamlet in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Leusden, and lies about 4 km south of Amersfoort.-History:...
(formerly named "Leusden"), and Snorrenhoef.
The town of Leusden
The place that is now called Leusden was first mentioned as Villa Lisiduna in a charter in 777. The exact location of that settlement, which is considered to have been a rather extensive farm complex with defenses, is unknown to us. It is possible that the old village of Oud-Leusden once was the location of Villa Lisiduna but excavations in the 1980s have not provided any evidence. However, the church tower of Oud-Leusden is one of the oldest towers in the Netherlands, dating back at least to the 11th century A.D. Close to Leusden is the site of the former monastery Heiligenberg, founded around the year 1000 by bishop Ansfridus of Utrecht, who died here in 1010.In the 1970s, the agricultural villages of Leusbroek and Hamersveld grew together into to a larger, mainly residential town. What once was Hamersveld is now called Leusden-Centrum, now commonly Leusden, and Leusbroek was to become Leusden-Zuid. In the original plans, Leusden was to grow into a town of around 46,000 inhabitants. After the initial expansion there was a growing resistance from the population, so some of the later phases of expansion have been abandoned.