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On January 1st 1986, the newest and twelfth province of the Kingdom of the Netherlands came into existence: the province of Flevoland. Where Flevoland is now used to be the Zuider Zee. In the 17th century, hydraulic engineers started to look at the Zuider Zee with longing eyes. But it wasn't until the 19th century that Cornelis Lely was the first to present a technically feasible plan for impoldering the Zuider Zee. Public attention for the plan grew when the disastrous flood of 1916 caused a tremendous calamity. On June 14, 1918, the Zuider Zee law was a fact. This law meant the closure and drainage of the Zuider Zee. In 1932, after damming it, the Zuider Zee had become the IJsselmeer. In September 1949 the Noordoostpolder was dry. Later, the first residential areas started to appear. After the Noordoostpolder, the construction of Eastern Flevoland was started. This polder had to accommodate the population of the overcrowded urban conurbation (Randstad) of western Holland. After the successful construction of the eastern polder (1957), the southern polder soon followed (1968). Over 350,000 people live on an area extending over 1450 km2. Flevoland has six municipalities: Urk, Noordoostpolder, Lelystad, Dronten, Zeewolde and Almere. The capital of Flevoland is Lelystad.
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