Goes
City and municipality
Harbour of Goes
Flag Coat of arms
Location in Zeeland
Goes Location within the province of Zeeland Show map of Zeeland Goes Location within the Netherlands Show map of Netherlands Goes Location within Europe Show map of Europe
Coordinates: 51°30′N 3°53′E / 51.500°N 3.883°E / 51.500; 3.883
Country	Netherlands
Province	Zeeland
Government [1]
• Body	Municipal council
• Mayor	Margo Mulder (PvdA)
Area [2]
• Total	101.92 km2 (39.35 sq mi)
• Land	92.58 km2 (35.75 sq mi)
• Water	9.34 km2 (3.61 sq mi)
Elevation [3]	−1 m (−3 ft)
Population  (January 2021)[4]
• Total	38,594
• Density	417/km2 (1,080/sq mi)
Demonym	Goesenaar
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postcode	4460–4483
Area code	0113
Website	goes.nl

Goes (Dutch pronunciation: [ɣus] ^ⓘ) is a city and municipality in the southwestern Netherlands on Zuid-Beveland, in the province of Zeeland. The city of Goes has approximately 29,000 residents.

History

De Maria Magdalenakerk

TV tower

Goes was founded in the 10th century on the edge of a creek: de Korte Gos (the Short Gos). The village grew fast, and in the early 12th century it had a market square and a church devoted to Mary Magdalene. By 1300 it had a brick castle, now known as Oostende Castle.

In 1405 Goes received city rights from William II, Duke of Bavaria, by his right as count of Holland, and in 1417 it was allowed to build town walls. The prosperity of the city was based upon the cloth industry and the production of salt. In the 16th century, Goes declined. Its connection to the sea silted up and in 1554 a large fire destroyed part of the city.

In the autumn of 1572, during the course of the Eighty Years' War, Goes, in the Spanish Netherlands, was besieged by Dutch forces with the support of English troops. The siege was relieved in October 1572 by Spanish tercios, who waded across the Scheldt to attack the besieging forces. In 1577 the Spanish soldiers who occupied Goes were driven out by Prince Maurice of Nassau. The prince built a defence wall around Goes, which is still partly standing. From the 17th century, Goes did not play an important role, except as an agricultural centre. In 1868 a railway was constructed through it, but this did not lead to industrialisation. Agriculture remains the most important economic activity.

Although the Netherlands were neutral in the First World War, seven bombs hit Goes and Kloetinge, due to an error by a British airplane. A house in Magdalenastreet in Goes was destroyed and one person killed. Goes did not suffer extensive damage during the Second World War, but was under German occupation until 1944.

Goes did not experience much population growth until the 1970s and 1980s. Then, the city grew fast because of new districts like Goese Meer, Oostmolenpark, Overzuid and Ouverture being constructed. Goes is now the fourth largest economic centre in Zeeland. New districts are in preparation, amongst them Goese Schans, Mannee and Aria, where 3,000 new houses are to be built.

Population centers

Districts

International relations

Twin towns — sister cities

Front of the railway station in Goes

Goes was twinned with Panevėžys, Lithuania.^[5]

On 22 July 2021 the town council decided to end the twinning.^[6]

Transport

Goes has a railway station located on the Roosendaal–Vlissingen railway.

Notable people

C.H.D. Buys Ballot, 1857

The arts

Leo van Doeselaar, 2007

• Willem Eversdijck (c. 1620–1671), Golden Age painter
• Pieter Peutemans (1641–1698), Golden Age painter
• Pieter Adriaan Jacobus Moojen (1879- 1955), architect, painter and writer
• Leo van Doeselaar (born 1954), classical organist and conductor
• Boudewijn Vincent Bonebakker (born 1968) and Frank Harthoorn, guitarists of Gorefest

Gallery

• 
  City harbor of Goes
• 
  Beeld Bergweg
• 
  De veste (canal) in Goes
• 
  Goese Golf Clubhuis

References

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Goes.

• Media related to Goes (municipality) at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website (in Dutch)