The town hall of Gouda in the Netherlands during the blue hour

by Bart Ros

The cityhall of Gouda in the Netherlands during the bluehour,

Gouda s a city and municipality in the east of the province of Zuid-Holland in the Netherlands with 74,165 inhabitants (January 31, 2022, source: CBS) on a territory of 16.92 km².

The city is located in Midden-Holland and in the urban area the Randstad, at roughly equal distance from Rotterdam, Utrecht and The Hague. Gouda has a regional function within the Green Heart, where it is the largest city in terms of population and the second largest municipality (after Alphen aan den Rijn). In terms of population, it is the 48th municipality in the Netherlands and the 12th municipality in Zuid-Holland.

Gouda lies at the confluence of the Gouwe and Hollandse IJssel rivers. Thanks in part to the inland waterways via these rivers, Gouda grew into an important city in the Middle Ages. In 1272 the city received city rights and by the end of the Middle Ages Gouda had grown to become the fifth largest city in Holland.[1] In the inner city a large number of historical and monumental buildings can still be found, of which the City Hall and the Sint-Jansberg are probably the most famous. The city is also known for its Gouda cheese, which is traded in the summer at the Thursday tourist cheese market. Finally, Gouda is known for the manufacture of beer, candles, pipes, Gouda plateel, stroopwafels and the annual Kaarsjesavond (Candle Evening).