Oldenzaal

Oldenzaal lies in Twente in the eastern Netherlands. A chapter attached to the predecessor of the church of Saint Plechelmus made it an important religious centre, and market rights were granted in 1049. It received town rights between 1233 and 1249; the original charter has been lost. A great fire devastated much of the town in 1492.

During the Dutch Revolt Maurice of Nassau took Oldenzaal in 1597, Spanish forces recovered it in 1605, and a siege returned it to the Dutch States in 1626. The predominantly Catholic town came under Reformed administration, and Saint Plechelmus church was used for Reformed worship for much of the ensuing period. Religious change and successive occupations thus left a marked imprint on this eastern town.