Franeker
Encyclopedia
Franeker is one of the eleven historical cities of Friesland
and capital of the municipality of Franekeradeel
. It is located about 20 km west of Leeuwarden on the Van Harinxma Canal. As of 1 January 2006, it had 12,996 inhabitants. The city is famous for the Eisinga Planetarium
from around the year 1800.
stronghold. The name probably derives from Froon-acker, meaning "country of the king"; the oldest street in the city is still called Froonacker. Beginning around the 11th century, Franeker developed into the administrative center Westergoa
.
Franeker received city rights
in 1374. In the 15th century, Albert, Duke of Saxony
established himself in Franeker. The city appeared for a time to be growing into the primary city of Friesland, but was eventually overshadowed in this role by Leeuwarden.
During the period of the Dutch Revolt
, the town sided early on with William I
.
From 1585 to 1811, the city housed the University of Franeker
, which was the second university in the Netherlands. It was closed shortly after the incorporation of the Kingdom of Holland
into the French Empire
. A successor institution, the Rijksatheneum, was founded in 1815, but in 1847 it, too, closed.
The Krystkongres
(Christmas Congress), usually held in Franeker, is the annual convention for Frisian students living in Dutch student towns.
The city contains two major museums, the Eisinga Planetarium
and the Museum Martena. The Planetarium is an orrery
built by a local wool carder to explain a conjunction of the planets and to help mitigate local fears of what would happen during the planets' alignment. Built in Eisinga's own living room, it is one of the oldest operating orreries in the world. The Museum Martena, opened in 2006, is housed in a manor house built in 1498 and is devoted to the history of the city and the region.
.
Being one of the Frisian cities, Franeker is also on the route of the 200 kilometres (124.3 mi) Elfstedentocht (Eleven-cities Tour), an endurance skating event held at irregular intervals depending on weather conditions.
is a station on the NS
line between Leeuwarden and Harlingen
. It also had a station on the North Friesland Railway which was the terminus of a branch from Tzummarum. The line opened in October 1903 and closed in October 1933. The station building survives.
The windmill Arkens
is a hollow post mill which has been restored. It originally stood in Arkens and was moved in 1972. It is the only windmill in the Netherlands equipped with Vlinderwieken (Butterfly sails).
Friesland
Friesland is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the ancient region of Frisia.Until the end of 1996, the province bore Friesland as its official name. In 1997 this Dutch name lost its official status to the Frisian Fryslân...
and capital of the municipality of Franekeradeel
Franekeradeel
Franekeradeel is a municipality in the northern Netherlands. It was created in 1984 by combining an earlier Franekeradeel municipality with the city of Franeker and parts of the former municipality of Barradeel...
. It is located about 20 km west of Leeuwarden on the Van Harinxma Canal. As of 1 January 2006, it had 12,996 inhabitants. The city is famous for the Eisinga Planetarium
Eisinga Planetarium
The Eisinga Planetarium is an orrery, a working model of the solar system. It was built from 1774 to 1781 by Eise Eisinger in Franeker. The "face" of the model looks down from the ceiling of what used to be his living room, with most of the mechanical works in the space above the ceiling. It is...
from around the year 1800.
History
Franeker was founded around 800 as a CarolingianCarolingian
The Carolingian dynasty was a Frankish noble family with origins in the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The name "Carolingian", Medieval Latin karolingi, an altered form of an unattested Old High German *karling, kerling The Carolingian dynasty (known variously as the...
stronghold. The name probably derives from Froon-acker, meaning "country of the king"; the oldest street in the city is still called Froonacker. Beginning around the 11th century, Franeker developed into the administrative center Westergoa
Westergoa
Westergoa was one of the seven sealands and one of the three that now lie within the borders of today's Dutch province of Friesland. Later it was one of the three goaen of Frisia. In the Middle Ages Westergoa most probably formed the political centre of the Frisian realm.- Area :On the eastern...
.
Franeker received city rights
City rights in the Netherlands
City rights are a medieval phenomenon in the history of the Low Countries. A liegelord, usually a count, duke or similar member of high nobility, granted a settlement he owned certain town privileges that settlements without city rights did not have....
in 1374. In the 15th century, Albert, Duke of Saxony
Albert, Duke of Saxony
Albert III was a Duke of Saxony. He was nicknamed Albert the Bold or Albert the Courageous and founded the Albertine line of the House of Wettin....
established himself in Franeker. The city appeared for a time to be growing into the primary city of Friesland, but was eventually overshadowed in this role by Leeuwarden.
During the period of the Dutch Revolt
Dutch Revolt
The Dutch Revolt or the Revolt of the Netherlands This article adopts 1568 as the starting date of the war, as this was the year of the first battles between armies. However, since there is a long period of Protestant vs...
, the town sided early on with William I
William the Silent
William I, Prince of Orange , also widely known as William the Silent , or simply William of Orange , was the main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish that set off the Eighty Years' War and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. He was born in the House of...
.
From 1585 to 1811, the city housed the University of Franeker
University of Franeker
The University of Franeker was a university in Franeker, Friesland, presently part of the Netherlands. It was the second oldest university of the Netherlands, founded shortly after Leiden University....
, which was the second university in the Netherlands. It was closed shortly after the incorporation of the Kingdom of Holland
Kingdom of Holland
The Kingdom of Holland 1806–1810 was set up by Napoleon Bonaparte as a puppet kingdom for his third brother, Louis Bonaparte, in order to better control the Netherlands. The name of the leading province, Holland, was now taken for the whole country...
into the French Empire
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
. A successor institution, the Rijksatheneum, was founded in 1815, but in 1847 it, too, closed.
The Krystkongres
Krystkongres
The Krystkongres is the annually held congress for members of the Frisian student societies in the Netherlands.The first Krystkongres was held in 1931. Usually the congress takes place in the city of Frjentsjer, a formerly academic town in the province Friesland...
(Christmas Congress), usually held in Franeker, is the annual convention for Frisian students living in Dutch student towns.
Culture
Eisinga Planetarium
The Eisinga Planetarium is an orrery, a working model of the solar system. It was built from 1774 to 1781 by Eise Eisinger in Franeker. The "face" of the model looks down from the ceiling of what used to be his living room, with most of the mechanical works in the space above the ceiling. It is...
and the Museum Martena. The Planetarium is an orrery
Orrery
An orrery is a mechanical device that illustrates the relative positions and motions of the planets and moons in the Solar System in a heliocentric model. Though the Greeks had working planetaria, the first orrery that was a planetarium of the modern era was produced in 1704, and one was presented...
built by a local wool carder to explain a conjunction of the planets and to help mitigate local fears of what would happen during the planets' alignment. Built in Eisinga's own living room, it is one of the oldest operating orreries in the world. The Museum Martena, opened in 2006, is housed in a manor house built in 1498 and is devoted to the history of the city and the region.
Sports
Since 1852 Franeker is the home of the PC, the most important tournament in Frisian handballFrisian handball
Frisian handball is a traditional Frisian sport, related to American handball and fives, that is most commonly practiced by people from the northern Dutch province of Friesland . It is believed to be one of the oldest ballgames and was an unofficial Demonstration sport at the 1928 Summer Olympics...
.
Being one of the Frisian cities, Franeker is also on the route of the 200 kilometres (124.3 mi) Elfstedentocht (Eleven-cities Tour), an endurance skating event held at irregular intervals depending on weather conditions.
Railways
Franeker railway stationFraneker railway station
Franeker is a railway station located in Franeker, The Netherlands. The station was opened on 27 October 1863 and is located on the Harlingen–Nieuweschans railway between Harlingen and Leeuwarden...
is a station on the NS
Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Nederlandse Spoorwegen , or NS, is the principal passenger railway operator in the Netherlands.Its trains operate over the tracks of the Dutch national railinfrastructure, operated by ProRail, which was split off from NS in 2003...
line between Leeuwarden and Harlingen
Harlingen, Netherlands
Harlingen is a municipality and a city in the northern Netherlands, in the province of Friesland at the Wadden Sea. Harlingen is an old town with a long history of fishing and shipping....
. It also had a station on the North Friesland Railway which was the terminus of a branch from Tzummarum. The line opened in October 1903 and closed in October 1933. The station building survives.
Windmill
Arkens, Franeker
Arkens is a Hollow Post mill in Franeker, Friesland, Netherlands which has been restored to working order. The mill is listed as a Rijksmonument, number 15710.-History:...
is a hollow post mill which has been restored. It originally stood in Arkens and was moved in 1972. It is the only windmill in the Netherlands equipped with Vlinderwieken (Butterfly sails).
Famous People from Franeker
- Eise EisingaEise EisingaEise Jeltes Eisinga was a Dutch amateur astronomer who built an orrery in his house in Franeker, Netherlands. The orrery still exists and is the oldest functioning planetarium in the world.-Biography:...
- François HemsterhuisFrançois HemsterhuisFrançois Hemsterhuis was a Dutch writer on aesthetics and moral philosophy.The son of Tiberius Hemsterhuis, he was born at Franeker in the Netherlands. He was educated at the University of Leiden, where he studied Plato...
- Jan Hendrik OortJan OortJan Hendrik Oort was a Dutch astronomer. He was a pioneer in the field of radio astronomy. The Oort cloud of comets bears his name....
- Anna Maria van SchurmanAnna Maria van SchurmanAnna Maria van Schurman was a German-Dutch painter, engraver, poet and scholar. She was a highly educated woman by seventeenth century standards...
External links
- Municipality of Franekeradeel (in Dutch, with English page)
- Royal Eise Eisinga Planetarium
- Museum Martena (in Dutch)