Wesalia in Ducatu Clivensi Urbs Clara Opibus. (Wesel)

Bird's-eye view plan of Wesel.

TRANSLATION OF CARTOUCHE TEXT: Hermannus Hammelman. Wesel in the Duchy of Cleves, famous for its wealth, high status, buildings and trade, which it carries out by ship on the Rhine.

COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Wesel is such a handsome, secure and populous city in the Duchy of Cleves, surrounded by water, ramparts and strong walls, that its inhabitants have become haughty and arrogant. Its location makes it naturally suited for trade. Thus even in our times it has grown to an astonishing extent and has many splendid new buildings and an excess of wealth, highly reputed trading houses and other material things. However, the city would be much happier if it were not disrupted by so many sects of foreign religions."

This plan with east at the top shows the city in its extensions in bird's-eye perspective from a steep angle. It is located at the point where the Lippe flows into the Rhine. In the Middle Ages Wesel's strategic importance was increased when the Rhine moved closer to the city. In the 16th century new fortifications with bastions and moats were built, and the 13 medieval gates were replaced by four strongly fortified gates. The late Gothic five-nave cathedral of St Willibrord in the centre of the town, as well as the Matena church in the new extension of the city to the east, were erected in the 15th-16th centuries. From the 13th to the 15th century Wesel was a flourishing trading city and cultural centre, linking the Cologne area, the Netherlands and Westphalia. It was granted a municipal charter in 1241, became a member of the Hanseatic League in 1407 and many Protestant religious refugees settled here in the 16th century. (Taschen)

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Reference: Van der Krogt 4, 4803; Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.285.