The celebration of the 700 year jubilee of Dutch city of Zwolle in 1930 in color [AI enhanced]

Zwolle is a city and municipality in the North East of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel. Zwolle is located on the border with the province of Gelderland, which follows the river IJssel, not far from Flevoland to the northwest and the province of Drenthe to the northeast.
It currently has a population of just over 130000, and is the second-largest municipality in Over aissel after Enschede.

On 31 August 1230, the bishop of Utrecht granted Zwolle city rights, hence its 700 year jubilea in 1930.
Zwolle became a member of the Hanseatic league in 1294. This was originally a cooperative organization of merchants from German cities around the Baltic and North Sea. The Hanseatic league also included cities from the Low Countries (present-day Belgium and the Netherlands), as well as Denmark, Norway and Sweden.
Other Hanseatic cities near Zwolle included Kampen, Deventer, Doesburg, Zutphen and Harderwijk.

In World War II, Zwolle was single-handedly liberated from the Germans by French-Canadian soldier Léo Major. He was made an honorary citizen of Zwolle in 2005, and a street is named after him, Leo Majorlaan.

Citizens of Zwol le are colloquially known as Blauwvingers, Blue fingers in English, which dates back to 1682 and is related to a payment controversy between Zwolle and Kampen involving counting copper coins to pay for the repair of the collapsed St Michael's church tower.

In January 1930, at the initiative of the College of Mayor and Aldermen and the V.V.V. tourist association established a committee for the festive commemoration of the 700th anniversary of Zwolle as a city. This Committee in turn formed twenty subcommittees. With a joint effort, plenty of festivities were organized for the period of 2 to 6 September 1930, with the construction of historic facades on Rodetorenplein as one of the biggest attractions.

The whole event was surrounded by festivities such as concerts, fireworks, demonstrations, competitions, parades, fairground attractions and a historical exhibition. Children's games were organized for 6500 children in different districts and neighbourhoods. As a lasting memory, a relief depicting the handing over of the city letter by the Bishop of Utrecht was attached to the wall next to the Sassenpoort. The municipal staff got three afternoons off. A festive gift was available for needy residents ranging from 1 to 3 Dutch Guilders.

The film itself starts with a shot of the mayor of Zwolle, Mr. I.A. van Royen, followed by members of the jubilee committee.
The most interesting part of this film are the shots of the old city of Zwolle, especially with the Kamper Poort and the so called Peperbus, the nick name for the 75 meter high Onze Lieve Vrouwe tower, one of Zwolle's famous landmarks.

In the footage about "Oud Swolle" we see how the old city center has been reconstructed. There is also a merry-go-round and a group of musicians in traditional costumes perform.

The official opening of the festivities took place on the party site in the garden of the Buitensociëteit by Mayor Van Royen.

The second half of the film shows the Open Air Game, "Swolle City 1230", written by C.J. Zebinding Baggerman, performed at the De Kranenburg estate, with Frank Luns as Artistic leader.

The festivities conclude in the wonderfully lit city at night with a historic procession representing the arrival of Count Willebrand van Oldenburg, the Bishop of Utrecht and his retinue on the marke of Swolle. It depicts the events on 31 August 1230 during which the bishop grants Zwolle the city charter.

Music: Trevor Kowalski,
Source: Beeld En Geluid,
Commentary: In English and Dutch, made by Rick (copyright).