Gemeente Oost Gelre - A rich history

The Oost Gelre municipality has a rich history. The area has been inhabited for centuries. The discovery of a stone axe dating from the seventh century close to Vragender and a burial ground in Lievelde have provided evidence of some of the earliest residents. The larger centres within the municipality are also of historical interest.

Groenlo, the ‘Fortified City’
Groenlo – which has been known through the centuries as Groonloo, Gronlo and Grol – was founded around the year 610 and was awarded city rights in 1277. The city is mainly famous for its illustrious history. It played a prominent role in the Eighty Year War between the Netherlands and Spain. In 1627 the battle for Grol, fought between the troops of Prince Frederik Henrik and the Spanish, put the town at the centre of the action.

The Prince’s troops eventually retook the fortified city from the Spanish. A remaining testament to this historically fascinating past is the Kanonswal (literally ‘Cannon Wall’) on which two cannons can still be seen. Sieges against the city, sometimes lasting for years, were fought on and around these and other walls in the city. The English Schans at Lievelde also date back to the Eighty Year War. The name Groenlo stems from the words for‘green bush’.

Lichtenvoorde, the 'Stone City'
Gieselbert van Bronckhorst, a gentleman from Borcult, chose the site of a ford over the river to build his castle ‘Lichtenvoorde’. In 1766 Lichtenvoorde passed into the hands of Prince Willem V, a descendent of Prince Willem of Orange. The bond between Lichtenvoorde and the Oranges has remained close throughout the centuries, and today Queen Beatrix still retains the title ‘Lady of Lichtenvoorde’.
Lichtenvoorde is known in the region as the ‘Stone City’ due to the more than 20,000 kilos of heavy stone that was once carried from the Vrangenderveld to the market in Lichtenvoorde.

The boulder is a monument symbolizing the hardiness and stamina of the Lichtenvoorde residents, who have been known as ‘stone carriers’ ever since.