Groninga

Sources from old books

1635. Historia mundi: or Mercator's atlas. London. by Gerhard Mercator.

THE LORDSHIP OF GRONINGA. (Book Groninga)

GROENINGA Domin̄i (Book Groninga)

GRoninga is the head Cittie of the Province of Groninga, and the fairest Cittie in Friesland. Some thinke it to bee that which Ptolemie calls Phileum. They derive the name from Grano a certaine Trojan or Friesland Prince, but Vbbo Emmius, rejecting other opinions which are grounded on fabulous reports, supposeth that it was so called from the greene Meddowes, and tufts of trees therein. It is distinguished from the other parts of Friesland, in the middle whereof this Province is seated, by the River Amasus, and the Lavician Bay; and now since the yeare 1536, it is counted one of the seventeene Provinces, at what time the Groningians did put themselves into the protection of Charles the fifth. Heretofore this Lordship did doe homage and fealtie to the Bishop of Vltrajectum, being given him by the Emperour Henry the third, and afterward by the Emperour Maximilian the first, in the yeare 1494. And also he gave the Government of Groninga, and all Friesland, to Albert Duke of Saxonie: the Groningians refusing the governement of the Saxons, who having made many treaties of peace but in vaine; they committed themselves in the yeare 1506, into the Protection of Edzard Earle of East Friesland, and afterward dismissing Edzard, because he was not able to resist the Saxon, and the Emperour, they tooke the oath of alleagiance to Charles Duke of Gelderland; so at length George, the sonne of Albert Saxon, did surrender and yeeld up all Groninga and West Friesland to the Emperour Charles the fifth, as to the chiefe Lord thereof. This occasioned warres betweene the Austrians and the Gelderlanders, whereby it came to passe, that the Groningians being wearied with continuall warres, did yeeld themselves in the yeare 1515 unto Caesar, as Prince of Brabant and Holland. It is a pleasant Countrie and full of faire pasture grounds, except toward Druenttum, where it is moorish. The Cittie is strongly fortified with ditches and trenches, being very wide and spacious, adorned with many magnificent publicke and private buildings. The suburbs whereof some few yeares agoe was much enlarged, and the new Cittie was joyned to the old, and so the Cittie was more strongly fortified against the invasion of enemies than before. There are twelve Churches in it, of which there are three Parish Curches, as they call them, five belonging to Monasteries, and foure belonging to Guesthouses. The fairest and auncientest of all the Parish Churches is S. Martines, having a high steeple, although the top thereof be somewhat decayed, and heretofore it was devoted to heathen superstition. It was made a Bishops seate in the yeare 1569, by Pope Paul the third, which Iohn Carisius of Vliraj•••um, was the first and last that possessed it. This Cittie is populous and rich, and it hath a large jurisdiction. Here Rodolphus Agricola the learnedest man in those times was borne, whose bookes are still approved by the learned. He dyed at Heidelberg in the yeare 1485, on whom Hermolaus Barbarus a noble man of Venice bestowed this Epitaph:

Invida •lauserunt hoc marmore fata RudolphumAgricolam Frisij spem{que} decus{que} soli;Scilicet, hoc vivo meruit Germania laudis,Quicquid habet Latium, Graecia quicquid habet. The envious fates heere have shut,Within this Marble Tombe,Rudolphus Agricola, by whose worthFriesland much honour wonne.For while he lived, Germany did inherritAll praise which Greece and Italy could merit.

Also this Cittie was the birth place of Wesselus Bassilius, a most excellent Philosopher, who dyed in the yeare 1584; also Reinerus Predinius, Hieron. Verutius, and many others were borne here. There is a great Free Towne in this Province called Damme which is but two miles distant from Groninga, and it hath 145 villages; some whereof are fairer and greater than the rest. Concerning other matters you shall finde them accurately described by Vbbo Emmius.