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Utrecht is the smallest province of the Netherlands, and is located in the center of the country. It is bordered by the IJsselmeer in the north, Gelderland in the east, the river Rhine in the south, South Holland in the west, and North Holland in the northwest.
Important cities in the province are its capital Utrecht and Amersfoort.
| Capital | Utrecht |
| Queen's Commissioner | Boele Staal |
| Area - Total - % water | 12th 1449 km² 4.3% |
| Population - Total (2002) - Density | 5th 1.15 million 821/km² |
In the Middle Ages, most of the area of the current province was ruled by the bishop of Utrecht. The bishopric was founded in 722 by Willibrord. Many wars were fought between Utrecht and the neighbouring counties and duchies, Holland, Gelderland and Brabant.
In 1527, the bishop of Utrecht sold his worldly power over his territories to Emperor Charles V, who already owned the other Dutch provinces. However, the Habsburg rule did not last long, as Utrecht joined the revolt of the United Provinces against Charles' son Philip II of Spain in 1579.
In the east of Utrecht lies the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, a chain of hills left as lateral moraine by tongues of glacial ice after the Saline glaciation that preceded the last ice age. Because of the scarcity of nutrients in the fast-draining sandy soil, the greatest part of a landscape that was formerly heath has been planted with pine trees. The south of the province is a river landscape. The west consists mostly of meadows. In the north are big lakes formed by the digging of peat from bogs formed after the last ice age.
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