Utrecht
—  Municipality  —
Oudegracht
Flag Coat of arms
Coordinates: 52°05′36″N 5°7′10″E / 52.09333°N 5.11944°E / 52.09333; 5.11944
Country	Netherlands
Province	Utrecht
Government
• Mayor	Aleid Wolfsen
Area(2006)
• Municipality	99.32 km2 (38.35 sq mi)
• Land	95.67 km2 (36.94 sq mi)
• Water	3.64 km2 (1.41 sq mi)
Population (1 February 2012)
• Municipality	316,448
• Density	3,279/km2 (8,490/sq mi)
• Metro	640,000
	Source: CBS
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Area code(s)	30

Utrecht (/ˈjuːtrɛkt/; Dutch pronunciation: [ˈytrɛxt] ( listen)) city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 316,448 on 1 February 2012.

Utrecht's ancient city centre features many buildings and structures from the Early Middle Ages. It has been the religious centre of the Netherlands since the eighth century. Currently it is the see of the Archbishop of Utrecht, the most important Dutch Roman Catholic leader.^[1][2] Utrecht is also the see of the archbishop of the Old Catholic church, titular head of the Union of Utrecht (Old Catholic), and the location of the offices of the main Protestant church. Until the Dutch Golden Age Utrecht was the city of most importance of the Netherlands until Amsterdam became its cultural and most populous centre.

Utrecht is host to Utrecht University, the largest university of the Netherlands, as well as several other institutes for higher education. Due to its central position within the country, it is an important transport hub for both rail and road transport. It has the second highest number of cultural events in the Netherlands, after Amsterdam.^[3]

History[link]

Origins (until 650)[link]

Many of the features in Blaeu's 1652 map of Utrecht can still be recognised in the city center

Although there is some evidence of earlier inhabitation in the region of Utrecht, dating back to the Stone Age (app. 2200 BCE) and settling in the Bronze Age (app. 1800–800 BCE),^[4] the founding date of the city is usually related to the construction of a Roman fortification (castellum), probably built in around 50 CE. These fortresses were designed to house a cohort of about 500 Roman soldiers. Near the fort a settlement would grow housing artisans, traders and soldiers' wives and children. A line of such fortresses was built after the Roman emperor Claudius decided the empire should not expand further north. To consolidate the border the limes Germanicus defense line was constructed.^[5] This line was located at the borders of the main branch of the river Rhine, which at that time flowed through a more northern bed compared to today, along what is now the Kromme Rijn.

In Roman times, the name of the Utrecht fortress was simply Traiectum denoting its location at a possibility to cross the Rhine. Traiectum became Dutch Trecht. The U comes from Old Dutch "uut" meaning downriver. It was added to distinguish from the other Tricht, Maas-tricht.^[6][7] In 11th century official documents it was then Latinized as Ultra Traiectum. Around the year 200, the wooden walls of the fortification were replaced by sturdier tuff stone walls,^[8] remnants of which are still to be found below the buildings around Dom Square.

From the middle of the 3rd century Germanic tribes regularly invaded the Roman territories. Around 275 the Romans could no longer maintain the northern border and Utrecht was abandoned.^[5] Little is known about the next period 270–650. Utrecht is first spoken of again centuries after the Romans left. Under the influence of the growing realms of the Franks a church was build in the 7th century within the walls of the Roman fortress during Dagobert I's reign.^[5] In ongoing border conflicts with the Frisians the church was however destroyed.

Centre of Christianity in the Netherlands (650–1579)[link]

The Dom tower, with to the left behind it the remaining section of the Dom church. The two parts have not been connected since the collapse of the nave in 1674.

By the mid 7th century, English and Irish missionaries set out to convert the Frisians. The pope appointed their leader, Willibrordus, bishop of the Frisians; which is usually considered to be the beginning of the Bishopric of Utrecht.^[5] In 723, the Frankish leader Charles Martel bestowed the fortress in Utrecht and the surrounding lands as the base of bishops. From then on Utrecht became one of the most influential seats of power for the Roman Catholic Church in the Netherlands. The see of the archbishops of Utrecht was located at the uneasy northern border of the Carolingian Empire. Furthermore it had to compete with the nearby trading centre Dorestad, also founded near the location of a Roman fortress.^[5] After the downfall of Dorestad around 850, Utrecht became one of the most important cities in the Netherlands.^[9] The importance of Utrecht as a centre of Christianity is illustrated by the election of the Utrecht-born Adriaan Florenszoon Boeyens as pope in 1522 (the last non-Italian pope before John Paul II).

Prince-Bishops[link]

When the Frankish rulers established the system of feudalism, the Bishops of Utrecht came to exercise worldly power as prince-bishops.^[5] The territory of the bishopric not only included the modern province of Utrecht (Nedersticht, 'lower Sticht'), but also extended to the northeast. The feudal system lead to conflict, and the prince-bishopric was at odds with the Counts of Holland and the Dukes of Guelders.^[10] The Veluwe region was soon seized by Guelders, but large areas in the modern province of Overijssel remained as the Oversticht.

Clerical buildings[link]

Several churches and monasteries were built inside, or close to, the city of Utrecht. The most dominant of these was the Cathedral of Saint Martin, inside the old Roman fortress. The construction of the present Gothic building was begun in 1254 after an earlier romanesque construction had been badly damaged by fire. The choir and transept were finished from 1320 and were followed then by the ambitious Dom tower.^[5] The last part to be constructed was the central nave, from 1420. By that time, however, the age of the great cathedrals had come to an end and declining finances prevented the ambitious project from being finished, the construction of the central nave being suspended before the planned flying buttresses could be finished.^[5] Besides the cathedral there were four collegiate churches in Utrecht: St. Salvator's Church (demolished in the 16th century), on the Dom square, dating back to the early 8th century.^[11] Saint John (Janskerk), originating in 1040;^[12] Saint Peter, building started in 1039^[13] and Saint Mary's church building started around 1090 (demolished in the early 19th century, cloister survives).^[14] Besides these churches the city housed Saint Paul's Abbey.^[15] The 15th century beguine monastery of Saint Nicholas, and a 14th-century chapter house of the Teutonic Knights.^[16]

Besides these buildings which were part of the official structures of the bishopric; an additional four parish churches were constructed in the city: the Jacobikerk (dedicated to Saint James), founded in the 11th century, with the current Gothic church dating back to the 14th century;^[17] the Buurkerk (Neighbourhood-church) of the 11th century parish in the centre of the city; Nicolaichurch (dedicated to Saint Nicholas), from the 12th century^[18] and the 13th century Geertekerk (dedicated to Saint Gertrude of Nivelles).^[19]

City of Utrecht[link]

The location on the banks of the river Rhine allowed Utrecht to become an important trade centre in the Northern Netherlands. The growing town Utrecht was granted city rights by Henry V. in 1122. When the main flow of the Rhine moved south, the old bed, which still flowed through the heart of the town became evermore canalized; and a very rare wharf system was built as an inner city harbour system.^[20] On the wharfs storage facilities (werfkelders) were built, on top of which the main street, including houses was constructed. The wharfs and the cellars are accessible from a platform at water level with stairs descending from the street level to form a unique structure.^{[nb 1][21]} The relations between the bishop, who controlled many lands outside of the city, and the citizens of Utrecht was not always easy.^[5] The bishop, for example dammed the Kromme Rijn at Wijk bij Duurstede to protect his estates from flooding. This threatened shipping for the city and led the city of Utrecht to commission a canal to ensure access to the town for shipping trade: the Vaartse Rijn, connecting Utrecht to the Hollandse IJssel at IJsselstein.

The end of independence[link]

In 1528, the secular powers of the bishop over both Neder- and Oversticht – which included the city of Utrecht – were transferred to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, who became the Lord of the Seventeen Provinces (the current Benelux and the northern parts of France). This transition was not an easy one and Charles V tried to exert his power over the citizens of the city, who had achieved a certain level of independence from the bishops and were not willing to cede this to their new lord. Charles decided to build a heavily fortified castle Vredenburg to house a large garrison whose chief task would be to maintain order in the city. The castle would last less than 50 years before it was demolished in an uprising in the early stages of the Dutch Revolt.

Republic of the Netherlands (1579–1815)[link]

Prince Maurits in Utrecht, 31 July 1618

In 1579 the northern seven provinces signed the Union of Utrecht, in which they decided to join forces against Spanish rule. The Union of Utrecht is seen as the beginning of the Dutch Republic. In 1580 the new and predominantly Protestant state abolished the bishoprics, including the one in Utrecht, which had become an archbishopric in 1559. The stadtholders disapproved of the independent course of the Utrecht bourgeoisie and brought the city under much more direct control of the Holland dominated leadership of the republic. This was the start of a long period of stagnation of trade and development in Utrecht, an atypical city in the new state, still about 40% Catholic in the mid-17th century, and even more so among the elite groups, who included many rural nobility and gentry with town houses there.^[22]

The city, which was held against its will in the states of the Republic, failed to defend itself against the French invasion in 1672 (the Disaster Year)

The lack of structural integrity proved to be the undoing of the central section of the cathedral of St Martin church when Utrecht was struck by a tornado in 1674.

The Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 settled the War of the Spanish Succession.

Since 1723 (but especially after 1870) Utrecht became the centre of the non-Roman Old Catholic Churches in the world.

Modern history (1815–present)[link]

In the early 19th century, the role of Utrecht as a fortified town had become obsolete. The fortifications of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie were moved east of Utrecht. The town walls could now be demolished to allow for expansion. The moats remained intact and formed an important feature of the Zocher plantsoen, an English style landscape park that remains largely intact today.

1960s style architecture at the Jaarbeursplein

Growth of the city increased when, in 1843, a railway connecting Utrecht to Amsterdam was opened. After that, Utrecht gradually became the main hub of the Dutch railway network.

In 1853, the Dutch government allowed the bishopric of Utrecht to be reinstated by Rome, and Utrecht became the centre of Dutch Catholicism once more.

With the industrial revolution finally gathering speed in the Netherlands and the ramparts taken down, Utrecht began to grow far beyond the medieval center from the 1880s onward with the construction of neighbourhoods such as Oudwijk, Wittevrouwen, Vogelenbuurt to the East, and Lombok to the West. New middle class residential areas, such as Tuindorp and Oog in Al, were built in the 1920s and 1930s. During this period, several Jugendstil houses and office buildings were built, followed by Rietveld who built the Rietveld Schröder House (1924), and Dudok's construction of the city theater (1941).

During World War II, Utrecht was held by the Germans until the general German surrender of the Netherlands on 5 May 1945. Canadian troops that surrounded the city entered it after that surrender, on 7 May 1945.

Since World War II, the city has grown considerably when new neighbourhoods such as Overvecht, Kanaleneiland, Hoograven and Lunetten were built. Additionally the area surrounding Utrecht Centraal railway station and the station itself have been developed following modernist ideas of the 1960s, in a brutalist style. This led to the construction of the shopping mall Hoog Catharijne, music centre Vredenburg (Hertzberger, 1979), and conversion of part of the ancient canal structure into a highway (Catherijnebaan). Protest against further modernisation of the city centre followed even before the last buildings were finalised. In the early 21st century the whole area is being redeveloped.

Currently the city is expanding once more with the development of the Leidsche Rijn housing area.

Geography[link]

Topography[link]

Climate[link]

Utrecht experiences an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb) similar to almost all of the Netherlands.

Demographics[link]

Inhabitants of Utrecht are called ‘Utrechter’ or more rarely, usually by mistake, ‘Utrechtenaar’ as the latter is also a known Dutch euphemism for homosexual.^{[nb 2]}

Utrecht city had a population of 296,305 in 2007. Utrecht is a growing municipality and projections are that the city's population will surpass 392,000 by 2025.^[24]

In Utrecht 52% of the population is female, 48% is male. Utrecht has a young population, with many inhabitants in the age category from 20 and 30 years, due to the presence of a large university.

The majority of households (52.5%) in Utrecht are single person households. About 29% of people living in Utrecht are either married, or have another legal partnership. About 3% of the population of Utrecht is divorced.^[24]

About 69% of the population is of Dutch ancestry. Approximately 10% of the population consists of immigrants from Western countries, while 21% of the population is of non-Western origin (9% Moroccan, 5% Turkish, 3% Surinamese and Dutch Caribbean and 5% of other countries).^[24] With 9% of its population being of Moroccan heritage, Utrecht contains the largest proportion of people of Moroccan descent of any Dutch municipality.^{[citation needed]} Many of the city's boroughs have a relatively high percentage of originally non-Dutch inhabitants – i.e. Kanaleneiland 83% and Overvecht 57%.

Like Rotterdam, Amsterdam, The Hague and other large Dutch cities, Utrecht faces socio-economic problems. About 38% percent of its population either earns a minimum income or is dependant on social welfare (17% of all households). Boroughs such as Kanaleneiland, Overvecht and Hoograven consist primarily of high-rise housing developments, and are known for relatively high poverty and crime rate.

Population centres and agglomeration[link]

The city of Utrecht consists of 10 official city parts which all have their own neighbourhood council and service center for civil affairs.

• The city of Utrecht (population: app. 316.000) and its city parts:

• (1) Binnenstad – (2) Oost – (3) Leidsche Rijn – (4) West – (5) Overvecht – (6) Zuid – (7) Noordoost – (8) Zuidwest – (9) Noordwest – (10) Vleuten-De Meern

Utrecht is the centre of a densely populated area, which makes concise definitions of its agglomeration difficult, and somewhat arbitrary. The smaller Utrecht agglomeration counts some 420,000 inhabitants and includes Nieuwegein, IJsselstein and Maarssen. It is sometimes argued that the municipalities De Bilt, Zeist, Houten, Vianen, Driebergen-Rijsenburg (Utrechtse Heuvelrug), and Bunnik should also be counted towards the Utrecht agglomeration, bringing the total to 640,000 inhabitants. The larger region, including slightly more remote towns such as Woerden and Amersfoort counts up to 820,000 inhabitants.^[25]

Cityscape[link]

Oudegracht, the 'old canal' in central Utrecht

The Oudegracht ca. 1890.

View on the Oudegracht from the Dom tower

Utrecht's cityscape features the Dom Tower, belonging to the former cathedral (Dom Church).^[26] An ongoing debate is if any building in or near the centre of town may surpass the Dom Tower in height (112 m). Nevertheless, some tall buildings are now being constructed that will become part of the skyline of Utrecht. The second highest building of the city, the Rabobank-tower, completed in 2010 and standing 105 m (344.49 ft) tall.^[27] Two antennas will increase that height to 120 m (393.70 ft). Two other buildings were constructed around the Nieuw Galgenwaard stadium (2007). These buildings, the 'Kantoortoren Galghenwert' and 'Apollo Residence', stand 85.5 and 64.5 metres high respectively.

Another landmark is the old centre and the canal structure in the inner city. The Oudegracht is a curved canal, partly following an old arm of the Rhine. It is lined with the unique wharf-basement structures that create a two-level street along the canals.^[28] The inner city has largely retained its Medieval structure,^[29] and the moat ringing the old town is largely intact.^[30] Because of the role of Utrecht as a fortified city,which restricted construction outside the walls, until the 19th century the city has remained very compact. Surrounding the medieval core there is a ring of late 19th and early 20th century neighbourhoods, with newer neighbourhoods positioned farther out.^[31] The eastern part of Utrecht remains fairly open. The Dutch Water Line, moved east of the city in the early 19th century required open lines of fire thus prohibiting all permanent constructions until the mid of the 20th century on the east side of the city.^[32]

Due to the past importance of Utrecht as a religious centre, several monumental churches have survived.^[33] Most prominent is the Dom Church. Other notable churches include the romanesque St Peter's and St John's churches, the gothic churches of St James and St Nicholas, and the so-called Buurkerk, now converted into a museum for automatically playing musical instruments .

Transport[link]

Public transport[link]

Because of its central location, Utrecht is well connected to the rest of the Netherlands and has a well-developed public transport network.

Heavy and light rail[link]

Utrecht Centraal is the main railway station of Utrecht. There are also some smaller stations in the suburbs: Utrecht Lunetten, Utrecht Overvecht, Utrecht Terwijde, Utrecht Zuilen and Vleuten. Utrecht Maliebaan closed in 1939 and has since been converted into the Dutch Railway Museum.

From Utrecht Centraal, there are regular services to all major Dutch cities; direct services to Schiphol Airport began in March 2006 with the opening of the Utrechtboog. International InterCityExpress (ICE) services to Germany as well as regular local trains to all areas surrounding Utrecht also depart from Utrecht Centraal.

Utrecht Central Station

The Utrecht sneltram is a light rail scheme running southwards Utrecht Centraal to the suburbs of IJsselstein, Kanaleneiland, Lombok-Leidseweg and Nieuwegein. The sneltram began operating in 1983 and is currently operated by the private transport company Connexxion; from December 2011, it will be operated by Qbuzz.^[34]

Utrecht is also the location of the headquarters of both Nederlandse Spoorwegen (English: Dutch Railways) – the largest rail operator in the Netherlands – and ProRail – the state-owned company responsible for the construction and maintenance of the country's rail infrastructure.

Bus transport[link]

The main local and regional bus station of Utrecht is located adjacent to Utrecht Centraal railway station.^[35] Local buses in Utrecht are operated by GVU – its services include a high-frequency service to the Uithof university district. Regional buses from the city are operated by Arriva, Connexxion, Qliner and Veolia. Utrecht Centraal's bus station is the busiest in the Netherlands.^{[citation needed]}

The Utrecht Centraal railway station is also served by the pan-European services of Eurolines. Furthermore, it acts as departure and arrival place of many coach companies serving holiday resorts in Spain and France – and during winter in Austria and Switzerland.^[36]

Road transport[link]

Utrecht is well-connected to the Dutch road network. Two of the most important major roads serve the city of Utrecht: the A12 and A2 motorways connect Amsterdam, Arnhem, The Hague and Maastricht, as well as Belgium and Germany. Other major motorways in the area are the Almere–Breda A27 and the Utrecht–Groningen A28^[37] Due to the increasing traffic, traffic congestion is a common phenomenon in and around Utrecht, causing elevated levels of air pollutants. This has led to a passionate debate in the city about the best way to improve the city's air quality.

Shipping[link]

Utrecht has a industrial port located on the Amsterdam-Rijnkanaal.^[38] The container terminal has a capacity of 80,000 containers a year. In 2003, the port facilitated the transport of four million tons of cargo; mostly sand, gravel, fertilizer and fodder.^[39]

Additionally, some tourist boat trips are organised from various places on the Oudegracht.^[40][41][42]

Economy[link]

De Inktpot

The economy of Utrecht depends for a large part on the several large institutions located in the city. Production industry has a relatively small influence in Utrecht. Rabobank, a large bank, has its headquarters in Utrecht. It is the centre of the Dutch railroad network and the location of the head office of Nederlandse Spoorwegen. The former offices of Nederlandse Spoorwegen – De Inktpot – is the largest brick building in the Netherlands (the "UFO" featured on its facade stems from an art program in 2000). The building is currently used by ProRail.

A large indoor shopping centre called Hoog Catharijne (nl) is located between Utrecht Centraal railway station and the city centre. The corridors have been considered public places like streets, and the route between the station and the city centre is open all night. Over the next 20 years (counting from 2004), parts of Hoog Catharijne will disappear as a consequence of the renovation of the station area.^[43] Parts of the city's network of canals, which were filled to create the shopping center and central station area, will be recreated.

The Jaarbeurs, one of the largest convention centres in the Netherlands, is located at the west side of the central railway station.

One of Europe's biggest used car markets is located in the Voordorp district. It is open every Tuesday except on official holidays. With thousands of second-hand vehicles on sale the market is a special point of interest for customers from Eastern European countries who even organize special one-way bus tours for shopping there.

Education[link]

View on the Uithof campus of Utrecht University

Utrecht is well known for its institutions of higher education. The most prominent of these is Utrecht University (est. 1636), the largest university of the Netherlands with 29,927 students (as of 2009). The university is partially based in the inner city as well as in the Uithof campus area, on the east of the city. According to Shanghai Jiaotong University's university ranking in 2010 it is the 50th best university in the world.^[44] Utrecht also houses the much smaller University of Humanistics (estimated at a few hundred students).

Utrecht is home of one of the locations of TiasNimbas, focused on post-experience management education and the largest management school of its kind in the Netherlands. In 2008, its executive MBA program was rated the 24th best program in the world by the Financial Times.^[45]

Utrecht is also home to two other large institutions of higher education: the Hogeschool Utrecht (30,000 students), with locations in the city and the Uithof campus, and the HKU Utrecht School of the Arts (3,000 students).

There are many schools for primary and secondary education; allowing for different philosophies and religions as is inherent in the Dutch school system.

Culture[link]

Miffy statue at the Nijntjepleintje in Utrecht.

Utrecht city has an active cultural life, and in the Netherlands is second only to Amsterdam.^[3] Utrecht aims to become cultural capital of Europe in 2018.^[46]

There are several theatres and theatre companies. The 1941 main city theatre was built by Dudok. Besides theatres there is a large number of cinemas including three arthouse cinemas. Utrecht is host to the Netherlands Film Festival. The city has an important classical music hall Vredenburg (1979 by Herman Hertzberger). Its acoustics are considered among the best of the 20th century original music halls. Young musicians are educated in the conservatory (a department of the Utrecht School of the Arts). There is a specialised museum of automatically playing musical instruments. Located at the Oudegracht is the rock club Tivoli (which has a second location just outside the centre). There are several other venues for music throughout the city.

There are many art galleries in Utrecht. There are also several foundations to support art, and artists. Training of artists is done at the Utrecht School of the Arts. The Centraal Museum has many exhibitions on the arts, including a permanent exhibition on the works of Utrecht resident illustrator Dick Bruna, who is best known for creating Miffy ("Nijntje", in Dutch). Utrecht also houses one of the landmarks of modern architecture, the 1924 Rietveld Schröder House, which is listed on UNESCO's world heritage sites.

1924 Rietveld Schröder House

To involve the city population as a whole (rather than the elite alone) in the cultural riches of the city, Utrecht city, in collaboration with the different cultural organisations, regularly organise cultural Sundays. During a thematic Sunday several organisations create a program, which is open to everyone without, or with a very much reduced, admission fee. Furthermore there are many initiatives for amateur artists; e.g. in the performing arts, painting and sculpture. The city subsidises an organisation for amateur education in arts aimed at all inhabitants (Utrechts Centrum voor de Kunsten), as does the university for its staff and students. Additionally there are also several private initiatives. The city council provides coupons for discounts to inhabitants who receive welfare to be used with many of the initiatives.

Sports[link]

Triton rowing club team pauses with their coach by the Muntbrug, a rotating bridge built in 1887.

Utrecht is home to the premier league (professional) football club FC Utrecht, which plays in Stadium Nieuw Galgenwaard. It is also the home of Kampong, the largest (amateur) sportsclub of the Netherlands (4,500 members), SV Kampong. Kampong features fieldhockey, soccer, cricket, tennis, squash and jeu de boules. Kampong's men and women top hockey squads play in the highest Dutch hockey league, the Rabohoofdklasse.

Utrecht's waterways are used by several rowing clubs. Viking is a large club open to the general public, and the student clubs Orca and Triton compete in the Varsity each year.

Museums[link]

Utrecht has several smaller and larger museums. Many of those are located in the southern part of the old town, the Museumkwartier.

• Aboriginal Art Museum Located at the Oudegracht this museum has a small exhibit of Australian Aboriginal Art
• Centraal Museum Located in the MuseumQuarter this municipal museum has a large collection of art, design, and historical artifacts.
• Dick Bruna Huis Part of Centraal Museum this separate location is dedicated to Miffy creator Dick Bruna
• Museum Catharijneconvent Museum of the Catholic Church shows the history of Christian culture and arts in the Netherlands
• National museum 'From musical clock to street organ' National Museum in the centre of the city, displays several centuries of mechanical musical instruments.
• Railroad Museum Railroad sponsored museum on the history of the Dutch railroads
• University museum Utrecht University museum includes the ancient botanical garden
• Volksbuurtmuseum Wijk C
• Money museum, museum of the Royal Dutch Mint, located in the actual building where Dutch coins are minted.
• The Utrecht Archives Utrecht Archives are located at Hamburgerstraat 28 in Utrecht

Music and Events[link]

The city has several music venues such as Tivoli Oudegracht, Tivoli De Helling, Vredenburg, EKKO, DBs and RASA. Utrecht hosts the yearly Utrecht Early Music Festival – Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht. In Jaarbeurs it hosts Trance Energy too. Every summer there is the Summer Darkness festival, which celebrates goth culture and music.^[47] In November the Le Guess Who? festival, focused on indie rock, art rock and experimental rock, takes place in many of the city's venues together.

Theatre[link]

There are two main theaters in the city, the Theater Kikker and the Stadsschouwburg Utrecht. The city also hosts the yearly Festival a/d Werf which offers a selection of contemporary international theater pieces, together with visual arts, public art and music.

Notable people from Utrecht[link]

Birth place of Pope Adrian VI

Main article: List of people from Utrecht

See also the category People from Utrecht

Over the ages famous people have been born and raised in Utrecht. Among the most famous Utrechters are:

• Pope Adrian VI (1459–1523) – head of the Catholic Church
• C.H.D. Buys Ballot (1817–1890) – meteorologist (Buys-Ballot's law)
• Theo van Doesburg (1883–1931) – painter, artist (De Stijl movement)
• Gerrit Rietveld (1888–1964) – designer, architect (De Stijl movement)
• Karel Doorman (1889–1942) – Rear Admiral (Battle of the Java Sea)
• Dick Bruna (1927) – writer, illustrator (Miffy)
• Louis Andriessen (1939) – composer
• Marco van Basten (1964) – football player

International relations[link]

Twin towns[link]

Utrecht is twinned with:

• León, Nicaragua
• Brno, Czech Republic^[48]
• Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• previously Hannover, Germany, between 1970 and 1976

See also[link]

• List of mayors of Utrecht
• Utrecht (agglomeration)
• Utrecht (province)
• Ondiep

Notes[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Utrecht (city)

• Official website of the city
• Official website of the city (English)
• Mobile website of the city
• CU 2030, redevelopment of the Utrecht Central railroad station area (Dutch)

Maps

• City map
• Map of the whole province, about equal detail as the map above

v t e    Municipalities of Utrecht Amersfoort Baarn Bunnik Bunschoten De Bilt De Ronde Venen Eemnes Houten IJsselstein Leusden Lopik Montfoort Nieuwegein Oudewater Renswoude Rhenen Soest Stichtse Vecht Utrecht Utrechtse Heuvelrug Veenendaal Vianen Wijk bij Duurstede Woerden Woudenberg Zeist See also Netherlands Provinces Municipalities

v t e Populated places in the municipality of Utrecht Cities/towns Utrecht consists of 10 city parts Binnenstad Oost Leidsche Rijn West Overvecht Zuid Noordoost Zuidwest Noordwest Vleuten-De Meern Hamlets Alendorp Lage Haar Ockhuizen Oudenrijn Stadsdam Strijkviertel Themaat 't Zand Veldhuizen List of cities, towns and villages in Utrecht (province)

Coordinates: 52°05′28″N 5°07′19″E / 52.091°N 5.122°E / 52.091; 5.122

This article is in a list format that may be better presented using prose. You can help by converting this article to prose, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (November 2011)

Owl City
Adam Young performing in 2009
Background information
Origin	Owatonna, Minnesota, United States
Genres	Electronica, synthpop
Years active	2007–present
Labels	Universal Republic
Associated acts	Sky Sailing, Lights, Breanne Düren
Website	owlcitymusic.com
Members
Adam Young

Owl City is an American electronica musical project by singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adam Young formed in 2007 in Owatonna, Minnesota. Young created the project while experimenting with music in his parents' basement. Owl City developed a following on the social networking site Myspace, like many musicians who achieved success in the late 2000s, before signing with Universal Republic in 2008.

After two independent releases, Owl City gained mainstream popularity with the 2009 major label debut album Ocean Eyes, which spawned the quadruple-platinum^[1] hit single "Fireflies". The album was certified Platinum in the United States in April 2010.^[1]

In 2011, Owl City released its third studio album, All Things Bright and Beautiful.

History[link]

Early years (2007–2009)[link]

Suffering from insomnia while working loading Coca-Cola trucks in his hometown Owatonna, Minnesota, Young turned to composing music.^[2][3][4] He began uploading songs recorded in his parents' basement to Myspace.^[4][5] He started to receive favorable attention for his music and then helped cultivate this nascent fanbase by being an open and accessible web presence, responding to any messages he received and constantly posting blogs.^[6] His manager Steve Burksy later highlighted the significance of Young's engaging online manner in building his following saying: "People feel like they know him, like they've got a direct connection to him because of how he approaches his connection with them online."^[6] Through a deal with the digital aggregator CD Baby, he then started making the songs available for sale through iTunes.^[6] In 2007, Owl City released an EP titled Of June, followed by the 2008 release of the album Maybe I'm Dreaming. Of June reached No. 15 on the Billboard Electronic Albums chart, and Maybe I'm Dreaming peaked on the same chart at No. 13.^[7]

The viral phenomenon that was building through Myspace caught the attention of Universal Republic presidents Avery and Monte Lipman who approached Young with a view to signing the artist.^[6] Republic recommended Young partner up with 27-year-old manager Steve Bursky of Foundations Artist Management and the two began working together in late 2008. When later asked by HitQuarters why the label chose him for a major label act given his relative inexperience, Burksy said:

"I think they saw Owl City as representing the future of our business. This idea of a kid in a tiny town in rural U.S. being able to make songs in his basement that sound like Top 40 radio could never have happened ten years ago. By hiring a young management company who understands the business circa 2011 over a seasoned industry vet, who might not understand the online spaces well, showed a lot of understanding of where this kid was going to end up having success."^[6]

Owl City's label deal with Universal Republic was finally confirmed in February 2009.^[8] According to Bursky there was initially some disagreement about the direction Owl City should follow, telling HitQuarters: "They were ready to send him into the studio with big producers and polish him up to try to become this thing that he wasn't. But we put our foot down and said, 'Look, the reason you signed this kid is because it’s working. Whatever it is about him - his music, his interaction with his fans, his brilliance in the online space - these things are connecting with people, and as soon as you change that you lose what’s special about this artist.' To their credit, they really listened and they got it."^[6]

[edit] Ocean Eyes (2009–2010)

Ocean Eyes, Owl City's third full-length album and major label debut, was released on iTunes on July 14, 2009, with the physical release following on July 28, 2009. The album debuted at No. 27 on the Billboard 200. Owl City has released three official singles from this album: "Umbrella Beach", "Vanilla Twilight" and "Fireflies".^[9] "Fireflies" topped the US and Canadian charts. Ocean Eyes reached the top ten on the US album charts, topped the US electronic charts, and also reached Amazon MP3's top 10 most downloaded album list. By April 2010, it was certified Platinum in the United States. On January 24, 2010, Owl City reached the No. 1 spot in the UK Top 40 Singles chart with "Fireflies". The song "Tidal Wave" also received significant airplay on Christian music radio stations.^{[citation needed]} On January 2, 2011, it was revealed "Fireflies" was the 20th most downloaded song of all time in the UK.^[10]

Young is joined by Breanne Düren on several tracks; the most notable example of which is "The Saltwater Room". Owl City's live band consists of Breanne Düren (background vocals/keyboards), Casey Brown (drums), Laura Musten (violin), Hannah Schroeder (cello), and Daniel Jorgensen (vibes).^[11]

Relient K vocalist Matt Thiessen has toured and collaborated with Owl City on several tracks, including "Fireflies", where Matt can be heard providing the backup vocals. Young also produced Relient K's song "Terminals".

	"Fireflies" (2009) noicon Sample of the song "Fireflies" from Owl City's third album Ocean Eyes.
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	"Umbrella Beach" (2010) noicon Sample of the song "Umbrella Beach" from Owl City's third album Ocean Eyes.
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"Fireflies" was released as a free download on the game Tap Tap Revenge 3 by Tapulous. Prior to the July 14, 2009 internet release of Ocean Eyes, and the "Fireflies" single, Steve Hoover was hired as a director for a music video for "Fireflies". The video was to have had an exclusive premiere on MySpace,^[12] but had been leaked onto YouTube and Dailymotion hours earlier. "Fireflies" became a big sleeper hit, topping the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States for the week ending November 7, 2009.^[13]

Owl City is featured on Soundtrack 90210 with a song titled "Sunburn", which was released on October 13, 2009.^[14] Owl City has toured with The Scene Aesthetic, Lights, John Mayer, Maroon 5 and Brooke Waggoner. He was also guest featured in the soundtrack to Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland with a song entitled "The Technicolor Phase" that had already been featured in his debut album.^[15]

In 2010, Young revealed a new musical project known as Sky Sailing, which moved away from his usual electronica genre of music and introduced acoustic guitar and piano accompaniments into his work. The unrefined tracks were recorded in the summer of 2007 before he began making music as Owl City.^[16] His first album under this new project is entitled An Airplane Carried Me to Bed, and was released July 13, 2010 via iTunes.^[17]

In May 2010, Adam Young collaborated with high-profile British electronic composer, producer, musician, and songwriter Nick Bracegirdle. Under his Chicane alias, Bracegirdle released the single "Middledistancerunner" on August 1, 2010 featuring Adam Young on vocals. This is the first single from the fourth Chicane album Giants. He also worked with famed Dutch producer Armin van Buuren, appearing on a track called 'Youtopia' from the van Buuren album Mirage on September 10, 2010.

On September 21, 2010 "To the Sky" was officially released via iTunes on the soundtrack for Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'hoole.

On October 25, 2010, Young released a cover version of the praise and worship song "In Christ Alone" as a streaming MP3 on his website.^[18][19]

On November 13, 2010, a new album called Flight was released on iTunes for one of his other musical projects, Windsor Airlift.^[20]

On November 23, 2010, a new Christmas single called "Peppermint Winter" was released. A preview had been released the previous week on Facebook.

[edit] All Things Bright and Beautiful (2010–2011)

Production on Young's third studio album began around mid-2010, with Young being announced as the executive producer of the album.^[21][22]

On October 18, 2010 Young wrote an entry on his blog regarding his third studio album, saying that the album was nearing completion.^[23]

In February 2011, the title of the album was announced to be All Things Bright and Beautiful and that the album would be released on May 17. However, on April 6, Young released a statement on his website, along with lengthy previews of four of his songs (Dreams Don't Turn to Dust, Alligator Sky Featuring Shawn Chrystopher, Galaxies, and Deer in the Headlights), that the release date for All Things Bright and Beautiful would be pushed back to June 14.^[24]

	"Alligator Sky" (2011) noicon Sample of the song "Alligator Sky" from Owl City's fourth album All Things Bright and Beautiful, featuring Californian rapper Shawn Chrystopher.
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On March 22, "Alligator Sky" was released as the lead single from the album on iTunes.

In late March and early April, tickets went on sale for The All Things Bright and Beautiful World Tour,^[25][26][27] and All Things Bright and Beautiful became available for preorder.^[28]

On April 19, "Galaxies" was released as the second single from the album.

Owl City performing at the 9:30 club in Washington D.C in November 2011.

On May 6, the music video for "Alligator Sky" was released. Young discussed the concept in a making-of video posted on Owl City's VEVO account, "The concept is basically about these two guys who are leaving Earth. Rather than it being this very dark post-apocalyptic vibe, it's very optimistic, and so it's like people are excited to leave earth."^[29]

On May 23, "Deer in the Headlights", the third single from the album, was released on iTunes.

On June 14, All Things Bright and Beautiful was released on iTunes. Although only a few days prior on May 20, almost all of the album leaked onto the internet.^[30]

On June 30, the music video for "Deer in the Headlights" was released. It features Young driving through the night in the DMC DeLorean featured in the Back to the Future trilogy and Canadian musician Lights makes a cameo appearance in the video.

On July 19, "Lonely Lullaby" was released as a single on iTunes, which was previously available only to Owl City Galaxy members.

Young was interviewed in the August issue of Cliché Magazine. He also appeared on the cover of the magazine and the issue also featured some of Young's very own artwork.

On July 21, at The Club Nokia concert in Los Angeles, Young announced that the concert was being filming for a Live DVD. The Live DVD was eventually released on iTunes in November 2011.^[31]

[edit] The Midsummer Station (2011–present)

In Young's final tour dates of 2011, he performed a new song entitled "I Hope You Think of Me".^[32]

On January 2, 2012, Young wrote an entry on his blog regarding his fourth studio album. Young said that he would be collaborating with more producers and songwriters, saying that his new record "Marks a flying leap in this direction". Young expects the album to be released around late Summer to Fall 2012.^[33] In an interview with Billboard, Young revealed that the new album is around 80-85% complete, and that Dr. Luke, JR Rotem, Norwegian production team Stargate, Brian Kennedy and Emily Wright are involved with the production of the album. He was also unsure whether or not "I Hope You Think of Me" would make the final tracklisting.^[31]

On March 5, 2012, Young, along with Jewel and Jay Sean, released a song in promotion of the Child Hunger Ends Here campaign by ConAgra Foods entitled "Here's Hope".^[34][35]

	"Shooting Star" (2012) noicon Sample of the song "Shooting Star" from Owl City's fifth album The Midsummer Station, showcasing his new musical 'style' on his most recent album.
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On April 17 2012, "Dementia", a song by Young which was intended to be included on his upcoming album leaked onto the internet. The song features additional vocals by Mark Hoppus of Blink-182.^[36]

On May 3, 2012, Young announced via Twitter that a new EP entitled "Shooting Star" was to be released on May 15. The EP features four songs off his upcoming album. Young stated that he released the EP because he wanted to give his fans a clear taste of what his upcoming album would sound like.^[37]

On May 24, 2012, Young revealed on Twitter that his fourth studio album would be titled The Midsummer Station.^[38]

Musical styles and influences[link]

Owl City's music is described as indietronica and synthpop and is often described as belonging under the "electronic music" label.^[39] Young has stated that he is inspired by disco and European electronic music, as well as instrumental genres such as drone, ambient, and post-rock. He cites his biggest influences as Johnathon Ford of Unwed Sailor and Thomas Newman. Young also incorporates a large amount of his Christian faith into his music, since he is a vocal Christian.^[40][41][42] Young's faith is evident on the new album, "All Things Bright and Beautiful", especially in "Galaxies". Explaining why the faith-filled song was added to the mix, he said, "I feel like if I were ever to hide the fact that that’s what’s so important to me, it would be a crime, that I should probably be put in jail for that." ^[43]

Owl City also has been compared to The Postal Service, often critically, for his combination of fuzzy synths, ironic lyrics and use of female guest singers.^[44] Pitchfork.com goes far enough to say that "The surprise No. 1 single in the country, Owl City's 'Fireflies,' jacks the Postal Service in such a bald-faced, obvious manner that getting into specifics feels redundant at best and tacky at worst."^[45] In response to the suggestion that his work is derivative, Adam Young suggested in a 2009 interview with The New York Times that Ocean Eyes is perhaps the "next chapter" after American band The Postal Service: "The Postal Service released a record in 2003, and that was it. There was really nothing to compare it to until some one else came along and wrote the next chapter. Maybe that's this record. Maybe that's this band." ^[46]

Band members[link]

Current members

• Adam Young – lead vocals, programming, keyboards, piano, synthesizers, guitars, bass guitar, drums, percussion, vibraphone^[47]

Current touring members

While Young writes, composes, records, and produces all of Owl City's music, during live performances he is accompanied by a group of supporting musicians:^[47][11]

• Breanne Düren – keyboards, backing vocals
• Daniel Jorgensen – guitar, vibraphone
• Laura Musten – violin
• Hannah Schroeder – cello
• Casey Brown – drums

Concert tours[link]

Discography[link]

Extended Plays

• Of June (2007)
• Shooting Star (2012)

Studio albums

• Maybe I'm Dreaming (2008)
• Ocean Eyes (2009)
• All Things Bright and Beautiful (2011)
• The Midsummer Station (2012)

References[link]