Utrecht / Fort aen de Nieuwer-Fluys

Title

Utrecht / Fort aen de Nieuwer-Fluys

Description

Eight plans on one sheet show a plan of the fortified city of Utrecht and plans of the fortresses of Nieuwersluis, Wijk bij Duurstede, Amersfoort, Montfoort, Kleine Wierik, Sterreschans in the Netherlands, Pain and Vin.

ca. 1675

Artist

Bosch van den (1661-1680)

Historical Description

Little is known about the history of Utrecht from the 4th to the end of the 6th century. A church built in the former Roman fort in Utrecht may have existed from the beginning of the 7th century. At this time, the city was under the rule of the kings of the Frankish kingdom of Austrasia, the Eastern Frankish Empire. In the 12th century, Utrecht became a walled city. It was granted city rights by Emperor Henry V in 1122. The city was of great importance as a bishop's seat, which is why it was rich in medieval churches. As a result of the lively construction of churches, monasteries and abbeys, Utrecht developed a strong presence of sculptors, stonemasons and carvers who were involved in the decoration of religious buildings. Their art, some of which also had non-religious content, was also acquired by wealthy merchants and citizens. The works were of such high quality that many sculptures were exported to the Lower Rhine, Spain, Normandy and Norway. At this time, Utrecht was the economic, political, religious and cultural center of the northern Netherlands. Between 1566 and 1580, many works of art, churches and monasteries were destroyed in the course of the Reformation. In 1559, Utrecht became an archbishopric and thus independent of the Archbishopric of Cologne at the instigation of King Philip II, whose aim was to use the reduction in the size of the bishoprics as an ecclesiastical policy instrument against the Reformation. The heyday of sculpture in Utrecht came to an end with the Reformation and the resulting iconoclasm as well as the ongoing political tensions between the crown and the city. In 1579, the Union of Utrecht was concluded here, ending the Hanseatic-English War, securing the Hanseatic League's Stalhof in London and restricting the trade of English long-distance merchants in the Baltic region. The Peace of Utrecht of 1713 ended the Wars of the Spanish Succession.