Doetinchem

The first known mention of Doetinchem dates from 838 AD. Not long after the town became fortified and got a church that was part of the Episcopal principality of Utrecht. Most due to local dialect not being well-documented during this time, many variations of Doetinchem exist.

Doetinchem began to grow in the 12th century. A city wall was erected to defend against the many attempts of pillaging. Doetinchem got its city rights in 1236, which allowed for raising of the city walls by a metre. The then barriers by the wall became the four city gates. Several moats were dug around the town, all of which got its water from the Slingebeek, connecting to the Oude IJssel river directly south of the city. Doetinchem became a centre of trade with many sorts of markets being organised on the Markt, the current Simonsplein. Doetinchem at this time had become one of the five most notable cities in the County of Zutphen. A large fire in 1527 destroyed most documents of the city. The city wall was demolished not long after the Eighty Years' War or Dutch Independence War. Doetinchem didn't see a lot of wars, nor war-related damages until the Second World War.

Like most European cities occupied by Nazi-Germany during the Second World War, most of Doetinchem's Jewish population were deported or killed, and would never return. The Second War was otherwise light on the city until 1945. Some prisoners of war were executed by the Nazis in the city as a response to a raid on Putten, nine Dutch Jews, thought to be better than other Jews by the Dutch National Socialist Movement (NSB), had special protection granted to them in Villa Bouchina, a villa north of the city centre. The war only really hit the city on the 19th, 21st and 23rd of March 1945, when Allied planes bombed the city centre, which was set alight and pretty much wiped off the face of the earth. The first bombing by the British (March 19th) destroyed a small airfield southeast of the city and a German transmission post. The second British bombing, two days later, is assumed to have been an accident. Doetinchem would have been thought to have been Anholt or Isselburg across the border in Germany. The third bombing, executed by Americans, is thought to have targeted German fortifications, though proof of these, if they even had been erected in the first place, has been bombed out of existence. Barely two weeks after the last bombing, on April second, the city fell into Allied hands after severe battles between the Canadians and Germans.

During the rebuilding of Europe that followed after the war, Doetinchem grabbed its chance and grew larger than its 'rivals' Doesburg, Winterswijk and Zutphen, becoming the de facto capital of the Achterhoek. Modern day Doetinchem is still undergoing this urban sprawl to some extent. The city no longer aims to expand beyond its current borders, but instead wants to optimise its usage of the space it already takes up, which in turn leads to better usage of the river banks near the city centre, as well as other useful spots in the city.

Regional transport: Regional buses are serviced by Arriva.

• 🌍 Stadsmuseum, Burgemeester van Nispenstraat 2 (Follow signs directing to the Catharinagarage), ☏ +31 314 335 557. Has permanent and changing exhibitions, along with a large scale model of Doetinchem in 1945. 
• 🌍 Stadscentrum Doetinchem (City centre), Simonsplein. The city centre still has a lot of buildings that survived the three bombings of March 1945. The buildings are sprouted throughout the entire city centre. 
• 🌍 Openbaar Vervoer en Speelgoedmuseum (Public Transit and Toymuseum), Stationsstraat 50, ☏ +31 314 395 106. Has permanent and changing exhibitions and material about public transport in Doetinchem, especially the Geldersche Tramwegen (GTW). It includes a collection of old toys. 
• 🌍 Stadion de Vijverberg, Lijsterbeslaan 101-A, ☏ +31 314 368 450. Football stadium of not only de Graafschap (Jupiler League (Dutch Secondary League)). (updated Jun 2020)
• 🌍 De Walmolen, IJsselkade 30 (Located where the Gaswal, IJsselkade and C. Missetstraat meet. Paid parking is available across the Gaswal, right by the riverbanks.), ☏ +31 6 20226026, bgrootwassink@hotmail.com. 
• 🌍 Kasteel de Kelder (Havezate Hagen), Kelderlaan 11 (Located directly behing the Slingeland Ziekenhuis (Slingeland Hospital)), ☏ +31 314 343 285. Tu-Sa 10:00 - 15:00. Hagen, better known as Castle De Kelder, is a former manor with estate located on the river dunes north of the Oude IJssel river, in between the city Doetinchem and the Kruisberg Forest. 
• 🌍 Saint Catharinachurch (Catherinakerk), Simonsplein 25 (In the centre of the Simonsplein). Main church of Doetinchem. It was damaged severely after the 1945 bombings, and rebuilt completely in the following years. 
• 🌍 Kasteel de Slangenburg, Kasteellaan 6 (about 3 km outside of the city.), ☏ +31 315 298 200. 
• 🌍 Sint Willibrords Abdij (Saint Willibrord Abbey), Abdijlaan 1, ☏ +31 315 298 268. Explore the life in a Benedictan monastery. The chapel is open all day for everyone. Attending prayers is possible. (updated Mar 2017)

• Once a year a street theatre event called Buitengewoon is held. It offers a wide variety of big and small street theatre groups which perform in the city centre for several days.
• Huntenkunst is an event that is more focused at artworks. It is held once every two years around the Houtkamphal. The committee of the event wants to ensure quality of all submissions. Each year about 150 artists from the Netherlands and abroad take part.
• Stadsfeest Doetinchem
• Watch football (ie soccer) at De Graafschap. They were relegated in 2019 so they now play in Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football. Their home stadium "de Vijverberg", capacity 12,600, is 1 km southeast of city centre.
• 🌍 Stadsbrouwerij Doetinchem (City Brewery Doetinchem), Grutstraat 31, NL-7001 BW, info@grandcafehendrixen.nl. Every second Sunday of the month, 15:00-17:30. Visit the brewery and see how the 'Waltersbier' is brewed. For groups of 12-15 people an expanded tour is available from Wednesday to Sunday. This, of course, can be expanded upon with some snacks, diner of a simple taste of the beer in the Grand Café. (updated Mar 2017)

The Doetinchem city centre offers a wide variety of shops, most of which can be found in the Hamburgerstraat and Boliestraat. The lifestock market of Doetinchem is one of the largest in the Netherlands.

• 🌍 Stadscafé Simons, Simonsplein 8 (south east of the Catherinachurch.), ☏ +31 314 392 233. 10:00 - 02:00. 
• 🌍 Restaurant MyWereld Doetinchem, Havenstraat 146 (just north of Exit #4, Doetinchem (A18).), ☏ +31 314 745 188. 16:00 - 22:00. All-inclusive world restaurant. From €27. 
• 🌍 Het Borghuis, Burgemeester van Nispenstraat 4, ☏ +31 314 36 61 68. (updated Aug 2016)
• 🌍 Eterij & Tapperij 't Raedthuys, Raadhuisstraat 14, ☏ +31 314 36 07 04. (updated Aug 2016)
• 🌍 Gringo's, Grutstraat 15a, ☏ +31 314 36 55 39. (updated Aug 2016)
• 🌍 Restaurant De Zaak, Grutstraat 16, ☏ +31 314 36 10 22. (updated Aug 2016)
• 🌍 Entree 1863, Grutstraat 44, ☏ +31 314 844 999. (updated Sep 2016)
• 🌍 Grand Café de Bank, Simonsplein 16, ☏ +31 314 333 501. (updated Sep 2016)

• 🌍 Wijngaard Duetinghem 838 (Vineyard Duetinchem 838), Westermaatweg 7, ☏ +31 314 640 634, wijngaardduetinghem838@gmail.com. Sa 13:00 - 17:00. Near the Kruisberg Forest a small, hidden vineyard. It is urban yet rural. A tour of the vineyard (~90 minutes) and a 'high wine' is optional. Reservations per phone are preferred. (updated Mar 2017)

If you have enjoyed Doetinchem, then you might also like other cities and towns in the Achterhoek, or Gelderland in general. If you like city trips more, then you may want to head west towards the Randstad. From Doetinchem you can also get to Germany easily by train.