Nijkerk


Nijkerk is a municipality and a city located in the middle of the Netherlands, in the province of Gelderland.

Population centres

Some people state that Groot Corlaer is a population centre on its own, but it is officially part of Nijkerk.

Transportation

Railway station: Nijkerk

The city of Nijkerk

The name Nijkerk stems from Nieuwe Kerk. This new church was built after the old chapel had been destroyed by fire in 1221. Nijkerk was strategically located between the Duchy of Guelders and the Bishopric of Utrecht. Because of this strategic location Nijkerk regularly was the scene of war, and in 1412 the village was completely destroyed. It was restored and Nijkerk received city rights in 1413. In 1421 the church that gave Nijkerk its name burnt down and was replaced; this happened several times, until a new church, the Grote-of-Sint-Catharinakerk; was built in the 18th century. It still stands today. The organ in this church was built in 1756 by Mathijs van Deventer.
In the 18th century Nijkerk was a flourishing merchant city. Several inhabitants traveled to the New World, including Arent van Curler and Kiliaen van Rensselaer and founded new cities.
Since World War II, Nijkerk has grown rapidly. It is situated on the shore of the IJsselmeer, which allows for transportation of goods via ships, and in the proximity of two major motorways, the E30 and E232. This allowed local industries to grow, and also encouraged people who work in the nearby Randstad to move to the more rural and peaceful town of Nijkerk.

Politics

In 2000, the municipalities of Nijkerk and Hoevelaken merged to form the new municipality of Nijkerk.
On August 24, 2011, the municipality announced that Nijkerk had passed the mark of 40,000 inhabitants. The city council was consequently expanded to 27 seats from the 2014 election.
After the 2022 municipal elections the seats divided as follows:
PartyNumber of seats
CDA7
Christian Union and SGP6
Progressief 215
Lokale Partij5
VVD4

Progressief 21 is a local party combining the local branches of Democrats 66, GroenLinks and the Labour Party. The Lokale Partij has no national connection.

Geography

Climate

Notable residents

Nijkerk is twinned with