Gelderland

Gelderland or Guelders is a province in the east of the Netherlands. The capital city is Arnhem, but Nijmegen and Apeldoorn are bigger. Other important cities are Zutphen, Doetinchem, Harderwijk and Tiel. About 2,134,000 people are living in Gelderland (2023).

Gelderland / Guelders Gelderland / Gelderlaand
Province
Uddelsche Buurtveld (municipality of Apeldoorn)
Flag Coat of arms
Map: Province of Guelders in the Netherlands Location
Map
Coordinates: 52°5′N 5°55′E
Country	Netherlands
Established	1815
Seat	Arnhem
Area
• Total	5,136 km2 (1,983 sq mi)
• Land	4,960 km2 (1,920 sq mi)
• Water	176 km2 (68 sq mi)
Highest elevation	110 m (360 ft)
Lowest elevation	−1 m (−3 ft)
Population  (2023)
• Total	2,134,000
• Density	430/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Website	www.gelderland.nl

It is surrounded by the provinces of Limburg, North Brabant, South Holland, Utrecht, Flevoland and Overijssel and the German federal state North Rhine-Westphalia.

The most important rivers are the Rhine (Rijn), the Waal, the IJssel and the Maas (border with North Brabant). The border with Flevoland is formed by the so-called randmeer ("border lake") of the Flevopolder.

History

In the 11th century, Guelders was a county. It was called Gelre in Dutch and Geldern in German. In 1339, it became a duchy. At first, it existed of the surroundings of the city of Geldern (now in Germany). By the end of the 14th century, it included most of the modern province of Gelderland and parts of the province of Limburg and of the German District of Cleves. It became part of the Habsburg Netherlands in 1543, one of the Seventeen Provinces.

Other websites

• Official website
• interactive province map Archived 2005-02-08 at the Wayback Machine
• another map, more up-to-date, but the map is not interactive Archived 2006-03-01 at the Wayback Machine
• Detailed map Archived 2006-02-10 at the Wayback Machine