Groningen

   Dutch province and also the city that serves as its capital. The province of Groningen originated during the Middle Ages as a possession of the bishop of Utrecht, consisting of the Saxoncity of Groningen and its surrounding Frisian regions (or Ommelanden), bordering on the provinces of Frisia and Drenthe. During the 16th century, the German emperor Charles V(of the House of Habsburg) acquired this northern part of the Low Countries, which he had united by 1548 in a loose federation. During the Revolt of the Netherlands against King Philip II of Spain, the local magnates in the Ommelanden took sides with the Calvinist party and its leader, William I of Orange. In 1594, the stadtholders Maurice and Willem Lodewijk conquered Groningen and united the territory of the northern Seven Provinces—the Dutch Republic. Agriculture, shipping activities (in the Eems harbor, the harbor city of Delfzijl, and near Hoogezand-Sappemeer), and chemical industries are important provincial sources of earnings. Its profits from the enormous natural gas reserve found near Slochteren in 1959 were relatively small, because most of the money went to the central government. The Lauwers Lake area, created in 1969 after the Lauwers Sea was closed off, became a national park (known for its many species of birds) in 2003. The province currently has a population of about 575,000. The city of Groningen acquired rights in the 11th century. During the 17th and 18th centuries, it remained the economic and political stronghold in a province in which only a few minor cities were toler ated. Its university was founded in 1614. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Groningen became more integrated with the rest of the Netherlands by the improvement of transportation (highways, water ways, and rail). The town has about 181,000 residents (some 40,000 are university and polytechnic students). Two major sugar industries are located in Groningen, as is the headquarters of the national gas distribution. Trade, tobacco and catering industries, information and communication technology, civil services, and medical care and re search have generated many jobs. Groningen houses several muse ums, including the much talked-about Groninger Museum (mainly arts), a shipping museum, and the Dutch Comics museum.