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Gennep

Gennep is a municipality and a city in upper southeastern Netherlands. It lies in the very northern part of the province of Limburg, 18 km south of Nijmegen. Furthermore, it lies on the right bank of the Meuse river, and south of the forest of the Klever Reichswald. The municipality of Gennep has 17,277 inhabitants (2014).

The Niers river flows into the Meuse in Gennep.

Population centres
• Aaldonk

• Dam

• De Looi

• Diekendaal

• Gennep

• Heijen

• Hekkens

• Milsbeek

• Ottersum

• Smele

• Ven-Zelderheide

• Zelder

The city of Gennep
Gennep was the title of a comital family, known descendants of which are the famous Saint Norbert of Gennep and William of Gennep, Archbishop-Elector of Cologne.

Gennep probably received city rights in 1371. However, it remains unclear whether these city rights have really been assigned to Gennep, as the supposed documents burned during a fire in the townhall of Gennep at the end of the 16th century. Gennep lies about 18 km southeast of Nijmegen.

In 2001, Gennep had 8306 inhabitants. The built-up area of the town was 2.11 km², and contained 3124 residences.

Twin towns — Sister cities
Gennep is twinned with:

Notable people

 * Norbert of Xanten, Catholic priest and ascetic, was born in Gennep
 * Marcel van Grunsven (1896 in Gennep - 1969) Mayor of Heerlen from 1926 to 1961
 * Theo Blankenaauw (1923 in Gennep – 2011) a Dutch track cyclist, competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics

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Gulpen-Wittem

Gulpen-Wittem (Gullepe-Wittem ) is a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands (in the province of Limburg) with 0 inhabitants as of.

Gulpen-Wittem came into being after the merger of the municipalities Gulpen and Wittem. This took place after a request of both municipalities. At the time of the merger, both municipalities had about 8000 inhabitants, although Wittem was bigger than Gulpen. The town hall was situated in Gulpen, and has kept its function as town hall in the new municipality. The former town hall of Wittem was situated in a manor house in Mechelen since 1986, which is now being used as a "nursing hostel".

The municipality is rural, with many castles, half-timbered houses and old monumental farms. Yearly, Gulpen-Wittem attracts many tourists from the entire country because of its relatively sloping landscape, especially during the summer.

Population centres
• Beertsenhoven

• Berghem

• Berghof

• Beutenaken

• Billinghuizen

• Bissen

• Bommerig

• Broek

• Cartils

• Crapoel

• Dal

• De Hut

• Diependal

• Dijk

• Elkenrade

• Elzet

• Epen

• Eperheide

• Etenaken

• Euverem

• Eys

• Eyserheide

• Gracht

• Gulpen

• Heijenrath

• Helle

• Hilleshagen

• Höfke

• Hurpesch

• Ingber

• Kapolder

• Kleeberg

• Kosberg

• Kuttingen

• Landsrade

• Mechelen

• Mingersberg

• Nijswiller

• Overeys

• Overgeul

• Partij

• Pesaken

• Piepert

• Plaat

• Reijmerstok

• Schilberg

• Schweiberg

• Sinselbeek

• Slenaken

• Stokhem

• Terlinden

• Terpoorten

• Terziet

• Trintelen

• Wahlwiller

• Waterop

• Wijlre

• Wittem

Topography

Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of Gulpen-Wittem, June 2015

Economy
Apart from beer brewing ("Gulpener" (at Gulpen) and "Brand" (at Wijlre)), vinegar production ("Gulpener") and agriculture, tourism is essential aspect of economical activity in this municipality. Especially Slenaken is a distinct tourist site.

Notable people

 * Jan Gerard Kemmerling (1776 in Gulpen – 1818) Mayor of Heerlen and Nieuwenhagen
 * Adolphe Engers (1884 in Gulpen – 1945) a Dutch writer and stage and film actor
 * Martinus Cobbenhagen (1893 in Gulpen - 1954) a Dutch Roman Catholic priest, economist and academic
 * Antoon Coolen (1897 in Wijlre - 1961) a Dutch writer of novels
 * René van der Linden (born 1943 in Eys) a retired Dutch politician, diplomat and economist
 * Sjef Hensgens (born 1948 in Wijlre) a retired Dutch middle-distance runner, competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics
 * Henk Savelberg (born 1953 in Mechelen) a Dutch head chef
 * Ralf Vandebergh (born 1976 in Nijswiller) a Dutch astronomer and professional photographer

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

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Haelen

Haelen (Hale) is a town in the south-eastern Netherlands.

History
The village was first mentioned in 1224 as "Gregorio (de) Haele", and means "bend of the highland". Haelen developed along the Haelense Beek. It used to belong to the County of Horne, and later became part of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège. In 1679, it became an independent heerlijkheid.

Aldengoor Castle was first mentioned in 1212. One tower from 15th century remains, the other three towers were destroyed during a siege in 1598 by the Dutch Republic. During the 17th and 18th century, it was enlarged with two wings. In 1903, it was used as a monastery. In 1977, a museum was housed in the castle, and it has become private property since 1996. In 2006, a bed and breakfast opened in the castle.

The Catholic St Lambertus Church is a three aisled church built between 1953 and 1955 to replace the church which was destroyed in 1944.

Haelen was home to 374 people in 1840. Until it became a part of Leudal on 1 January 2007 Haelen was a separate municipality, and included the villages of Buggenum, Horn, and Nunhem.

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Heel

The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg.

Structure
To distribute the compressive forces exerted on the heel during gait, and especially the stance phase when the heel contacts the ground, the sole of the foot is covered by a layer of subcutaneous connective tissue up to 2 cm thick (under the heel). This tissue has a system of pressure chambers that both acts as a shock absorber and stabilises the sole. Each of these chambers contains fibrofatty tissue covered by a layer of tough connective tissue made of collagen fibers. These septa ("walls") are firmly attached both to the plantar aponeurosis above and the sole's skin below. The sole of the foot is one of the most highly vascularized regions of the body surface, and the dense system of blood vessels further stabilize the septa.

The Achilles tendon is the muscle tendon of the triceps surae, a "three-headed" group of muscles—the soleus and the two heads of the gastrocnemius. The main function of the triceps surae is plantar flexion, i.e. to stretch the foot downward. It is accompanied by a "fourth head", the slight plantaris muscle, the long slender tendon of which is also attached to the heel bone but not visible.

Function
The compressive forces applied to the foot are distributed along five rays, three medial (side of big toe) and two lateral (side of little toe). The lateral rays stretch over the cuboid bone to the heel bone and the medial rays over the three cuneiform bones and the navicular bone to the ankle bone. Because the ankle bone is placed over the heel bone, these rays are adjacent near the toes but overriding near the heel, and together they form the arches of the foot that are optimized to distributed compressive forces across an uneven terrain. In this context the heel thus forms the posterior point of support that together with the balls of the large and little toes bear the brunt of the loads.

Cracked heels
Cracked heels is a common health problem and it may cause infections. It is caused by dryness of the foot skin, and accumulation of dead skin. Over time, it may cause pain and irritations. Various moisturising creams and foot files are available to cure and prevent it.

Other animals
In the long-footed mammals, both the hoofed species (unguligrade) and the clawed forms which walk on the toes (digitigrade), the heel is well above the ground at the apex of the angular joint known as the hock. In plantigrade species, it rests on the ground. In birds, the heel is the backward-pointing joint which is often mistaken as the "knee" (the actual knee of birds is hidden under the plumage).

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Heerlen

Heerlen (Heële ) is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands. It is the third largest settlement proper in the province of Limburg. Measured as municipality, it is the fourth municipality in the province of Limburg.

Heerlen forms part of the city-region of Parkstad Limburg, an agglomeration with about 250,000 inhabitants and encompassing 8 municipalities. It is to the east of Maastricht and north of the German city of Aachen.

After its early Roman beginnings and a modest medieval period, Heerlen became a centre for the coal mining industry in the Netherlands in the late 19th century. In the 20th century, architect Frits Peutz played a major role in shaping the city as we know it today. His most famous design, and a distinctive building in the city centre, is the so-called Glaspaleis (Glass Palace), listed as one of the world's thousand most architecturally important buildings of the 20th century.

History
A habitation from the Michelsberg culture (4400–3500 BC) was excavated at the Schelsberg, near Heerlen, in 1997. Archeological finds from this period are rare in the Netherlands, and this site is unique among those in the country, as it is the first excavated site with ditches and earth walls (earthworks).

Even with these proofs of early habitation, the history of Heerlen properly starts with the arrival of the Romans. They founded a military settlement, named Coriovallum on the crossroad of two main roads: Boulogne sur Mer - Cologne and Xanten - Aachen - Trier. In Heerlen and its surroundings, much evidence of Roman life has been excavated, especially Roman villas (country estates). The most notable archeological excavation from Roman times is the Thermae complex in the centre of Heerlen, a Roman bathhouse, discovered in 1940. In the Netherlands only a few of these have been found. It is a clear indication that Coriovallum/Heerlen was of some importance. A museum has been built over the Thermae and opened in 1977. The Thermenmuseum also houses other Roman finds from the area.

Like many other Roman settlements in the Netherlands, Coriovallum was probably abandoned after the 3rd/4th century Roman retreat. Very little is known about Heerlen's history until the 10th century, when agricultural development continues once again in these parts of Europe. Farmhouses and mills are built across the valleys of Caumerbeek, Schandelerbeek and Geleenbeek and medieval Heerlen slowly takes shape.

The oldest mention of Heerlen (as 'Herle') is in an official document dated 1065. Udo, bishop of Toul, documents some gifts. One of them is the allodium Heerlen, in the bishopry of Liege. Another allodium consists of a few chapels, which belong to the mother church in Voerendaal, close to Heerlen. Shortly after this, the allodium of Heerlen appears to be owned by the counts of Ahr-Hochstaden.

Theoderich van Are (Udo van Toul's cousin) separated Heerlen from Voerendaal and chose Saint Pancratius as the patron saint of the church. The counts of Are where probably responsible for the construction of the Schelmentoren and the St-Pancratius church and also may have ordered the construction of a moated castle. Through these fortifications, Heerlen acquired some rights and freedoms, which gave it an elevated status over the surrounding countryside. Voerendaal, Hoensbroek, Schaesberg en Nieuwenhagen now fell under the legislation of the so-called "Land van Herle".

In 1244, Heerlen came under the authority of the dukes of Brabant, but in 1388, along with Hoensbroek, it was given a separate status. During the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), Heerlen was disputed by the kingdom of Spain and the Dutch Protestant rebels and swapped sides several times. At the 1661 Partage Treaty, Heerlen became part of "Staat-Limburg", ruled by the States-General of the newly founded Dutch Republic. This resulted in it bordering the territory of the Spanish Netherlands, causing it to remain quite isolated from the rest of the state until 1793, when the French conquered Heerlen. After the defeat of Napoleon in 1814, it became part of the Netherlands province of Limburg (present-day Dutch and Belgian Limburg). In 1830, like most of Limburg, Heerlen sided with Belgium in the Belgian Revolution. In 1839, however, as a result of an agreement between the main European powers, it became part of the Netherlands again.

In the 19th century, Heerlen, like most of Limburg municipalities (Maastricht was an exception), did not partake in the Industrial Revolution and it remained largely agrarian until coal mining began in the late 19th/early 20th century. In March 1874, coal had been found at the Valkenburgerweg. However, setting up a mine was a risky long-term investment and only very few private enterprises took up the challenge and bought a concession. In 1896, Heerlen got its first railway connection to allow the transportation of coal from these first coal mines. Development was still rather slow: in 1812 Heerlen had a population of 3497; in 1900 this was still only 6646. In 1901, the national government stepped in and bought all remaining unsold concessions and set up the State Mines. In a short period of time several large state-operated coalmines began production. The population rose sharply from 6646 in 1900 to 12,098 in 1910 to 32,263 in 1930. During these early expansion years many old buildings in the centre of Heerlen were demolished. The coalmines remained central to the development of Heerlen into a modern city until the early 1960s, during which Marcel van Grunsven ended his service as mayor of Heerlen.

The golden years of coal mining ended in the late 1950s, after which production gradually diminished due to competition from cheaper Polish and American coal and the discovery of natural gas in the province of Groningen. In the period 1965–1975 the coal mines were closed altogether. In the area around Heerlen-Kerkrade-Brunssum and Sittard-Geleen 60,000 people lost their jobs. A difficult period of economic re-adjustment started. The Dutch government tried to ease the pain by moving several governmental offices (ABP, CBS) to Heerlen but even today the city has not fully recovered from the loss of tens of thousands of jobs.

In the cityscape of modern-day Heerlen, there are very few reminders of the once omni-present mining industry. Most of the typical mounts of mining debris that surrounded the coal mines have been removed or transformed into green hills during an operation called van zwart naar groen (from black to green). Even the tallest mine chimney of Europe, 'Lange Lies' (tall Liz) and her older brother 'Lange Jan' (tall John), once major landmarks, were demolished. One of the few remaining mining buildings (shaft 2 of the Oranje Nassau I) now houses the Dutch Mine Museum.

Geography
Heerlen is located at 50.88333°N, 5.98333°W in the province of Limburg in the southeast of the Netherlands on the border with Germany. It is situated in the COROP region of South Limburg and is part of the agglomeration Parkstad Limburg, formerly known as Oostelijke Mijnstreek.

Heerlen is bordered by the Dutch municipalities of Simpelveld (in the south), Voerendaal and Nuth (west), Schinnen (northwest), Brunssum (north), Landgraaf and Kerkrade (east), and the German municipality of Aachen (southeast).

Heerlen's high elevation makes it one of the highest cities above sea level in the Netherlands.

Economy
Heerlen houses the biggest furniture strip of Europe, with 120,000 m2 floorspace after the opening of the biggest (35,000 m2) IKEA of the Benelux on 27 August 2008.

On 1 October 2008, the world's first minewater power station was opened in Heerlen. It will be used to heat and cool 200 homes, along with shops, a supermarket, a library and large office buildings.

Mines
List of mines which were located in what is now Heerlen:

 * Oranje Nassau I, 1899–1974, now used in the Minewater Project
 * Oranje Nassau III, 1917–1973, now used in the Minewater Project
 * Oranje Nassau IV, 1927–1966
 * Staatsmijn Emma, 1911–1973

Education
Among the educational institutes in Heerlen is Zuyd Hogeschool, which is a University of Applied Sciences with branches in Heerlen, Sittard and Maastricht. Also based in Heerlen is the administrative office of the Open University of the Netherlands (Open Universiteit or OU in Dutch), which is a university for distance learning with tens of thousands of students throughout the Netherlands. Heerlen was also the location of the now-defunct University of Theology and Pastorate (Universiteit van Theologie en Pastoraat or UTP in Dutch), which had to close down due to lack of students. Jokingly it was said that Heerlen was the location of the biggest (OU) and the smallest (UTP) university of the Netherlands.

Health care
Health care in Heerlen (and the rest of the Parkstad Limburg) is provided by Stichting Gezondheidszorg Oostelijk Zuid-Limburg (G.O.Z.L.). Zuyderland Medisch Centrum Parkstad (Zuyderland Medical Center Parkstad), is the name of the different hospitals in the Parkstad, and is part of G.O.Z.L. Until 2015 these hospitals were called Atrium Medisch Centrum Parkstad. Zuyderland location Heerlen was previously known as De Wever ziekenhuis named after Frans de Wever, who in 1904, together with mgr. Joseph Savelberg, founded the first hospital in Heerlen (at its foundation in 1904 called Maria Hilfspital, and after a few years renamed St. Joseph hospital until the De Wever was opened in 1968).

Architecture
The city's best-known architect is Frits Peutz. His legacy consists of at least 10 landmark buildings in Heerlen. In 1935 Heerlen's most famous landmark building, the Glaspaleis, was built next to the medieval church in the centre of the then modest town. It was commissioned by the merchant Peter Schunck and it was quite an extraordinary step for this conservative businessman to ask the young Heerlen-based architect Peutz to design the new Schunck department store. It is one of the most outstanding examples of early Modernism in The Netherlands but it was only recognized as such at a fairly late stage (after it had been badly maimed). In the 1990s it was added to a prestigious list of the world's 1000 most important buildings of the 20th century created by the International Union of Architects (only 13 buildings in the Netherlands are on that list). It encouraged the city administrators to buy the dilapidated building and make plans for its renovation. The renovation has now been completed and it now houses several of the city's cultural institutions, including a museum of modern art. The renovated Glaspaleis has become a symbol of the revived Heerlen after the closing of the coalmines.

Although many interesting buildings were demolished around 1900, some older buildings still exist in the centre of Heerlen, for instance, a Romanesque style 12th-century church (Pancratiuskerk), and a former prison tower from around the same period (Schelmentoren).

Other buildings worth mentioning are a Neoclassical chapel (Grafkapel de Loë built in 1848, the only remaining Neoclassical building in Heerlen), and a former mansion annex pharmacy, left in almost the same state as after its 1801–1828 expansion (Huis de Luijff).

In other parts of Heerlen, especially near the numerous small rivers around Heerlen, many older buildings can be found, noticeably a couple of watermills (like the Weltermolen (14th century), Eikendermolen (15th century), Oliemolen (16th century), and Schandelermolen (17th century)), some castles (for instance Hoensbroek Castle oldest part 1380, Kasteel Terworm 15th century) and old farms (Geleenhof (dating back to Roman days), Benzeraderhof (13th century), Hoeve Den Driesch (14th century), Overste Douvenrade (largely destroyed and rebuilt in 1779) and Hoeve de Bek (1796)).

Architects with significant work
Here follows a list of architects who have built important landmarks in Heerlen, and those landmarks.

 * A van Beers: Huize Op de Berg (1897)
 * Johan Kayser, (1842, Harlingen – 1917): Chapel Savelberg Convent (1878–1879, style: Neo-Gothic)
 * Jan Stuyt (1868–1934)): Ambachtsschool (1913, style: Hollands Classicisme )
 * J. Pauw: Former library (1917, style: Amsterdam School)
 * Dirk Roosenburg (1887–1962): Former office Oranje Nassau mine (1928, style: International style)
 * Dirk Brouwer (3 November 1899 – 1941): Former HEMA building (1939, style: International style)
 * Frits Peutz (7 April 1896 – 24 October 1974): Glaspaleis (1933, style: International style), Monseigneur Schrijnen Retreat House (1932), townhall (1940), municipal theatre
 * Gerrit Rietveld, (Utrecht 24 June 1888- Utrecht 26 June 1964): house on Zandweg (1961–1964)
 * Jo Coenen (born 1949 in Heerlen-Hoensbroek): Library and entrance Stadsgalerij (1983, 1989)

Transport
Heerlen has three railway stations:
 * Heerlen
 * Heerlen Woonboulevard
 * Hoensbroek

From Heerlen one can travel to Eindhoven, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Maastricht/Liège, Kerkrade and towards Aachen/Köln in Germany.

Sports
The GP Heerlen is a February cyclo-cross race held in Heerlen.

People from Heerlen
A chronological list of notable Heerlenaren (inhabitants of Heerlen):

Public service & public thinking

 * M. Sattonius Iucundus (third century), Roman politician
 * Theoderich van Are (1087–1126) the first count of Are (Germany)
 * Jacob Derk Carel van Heeckeren (1730–1795) a politician from a Dutch noble family
 * Christian Quix (1773–1844) a Roman Catholic priest and director of the Aachen city library
 * Jan Gerard Kemmerling (1776–1818), Mayor of Heerlen
 * Egidius Slanghen (1820–1882), politician and historian
 * Joseph Savelberg (1827–1907), Roman Catholic priest
 * Henri Sarolea (1844–1900), a Dutch railway entrepreneur and contractor
 * Frans de Wever (1869–1940), general practitioner
 * Frederik van Iterson (1877-1957) a Dutch mechanical engineering professor, developed the power station natural draught cooling tower
 * Marcel van Grunsven (1896–1969), Mayor of Heerlen from 1926 to 1961
 * Maximilian von Fürstenberg (1904–1988) a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church
 * Pierre Schunck (1906–1993) family owned Schunck department store and worked in the Dutch resistance
 * Theo Bemelmans (born 1943), a Dutch computer scientist and academic
 * Klaas de Vries (born 1943), a retired Dutch politician and jurist
 * Maud de Boer-Buquicchio (born 1944) a Dutch jurist and United Nations special rapporteur
 * Jo Ritzen (born 1945), a retired Dutch politician economist
 * Jo Coenen (born 1949) a Dutch architect and urban planner
 * Loek Hermans (born 1951), a retired Dutch politician and businessman
 * Wiel Arets (born 1955), a Dutch architect and industrial designer
 * Ellen 't Hoen (born 1960) an international medical activist and academic
 * Frans Timmermans (born 1961), politician, Vice-President of the European Commission
 * Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert (born 1973), a Dutch politician, Minister of Defence 2012-2017
 * Gijs Tuinman (born 1979) Royal Netherlands Army officer, recipient of the Military Order of William

Arts

 * Wilhelm of Herle (fl 1350–1370), painter.
 * Jan Michiel Dautzenberg (1808–1869), Belgian writer
 * L. O. Wenckebach (1895–1962) a Dutch sculptor, painter and medallist
 * Agnes Giebel (1921–2017), a German classical soprano
 * Thomas Bernhard (1931–1989), an Austrian playwright and novelist
 * Harrie Geelen (born 1939) a Dutch illustrator, film director, animator and poet
 * Margriet Ehlen (born 1943), a Dutch poet, composer and conductor
 * Hein van der Heijden (born 1958) a Dutch stage, TV and film actor
 * L.A. Raeven, twins and arts duo
 * Tamara Hoekwater (born 1972), a Dutch pop singer
 * Dennis "Seregor" Droomers (born 1980), singer and guitarist of symphonic black metal band Carach Angren
 * Simone Simons (born 1985), singer of Dutch symphonic metal band Epica

Sport

 * Tinus Osendarp (1916–2002) a Dutch sprinter, twice bronze medallist at the 1936 Summer Olympics
 * René Hofman (born 1961) a retired Dutch footballer with 400 club caps
 * Guido Görtzen (born 1970) a volleyball player, team gold medallist in the 1996 Summer Olympics
 * Ger Senden (born 1971) a retired Dutch footballer, played 411 games with Roda JC
 * Fernando Ricksen (1976–2019) a Dutch professional footballer with 452 club caps
 * Eugène Martineau (born 1980) a Dutch decathlete
 * Shirley Kocaçınar (born 1986), a Turkish-Dutch women's football forward
 * Danny Hoesen (born 1991) a Dutch footballer for Ajax
 * Jessica Blaszka (born 1992) a Dutch female wrestler
 * Jules Szymkowiak (born 1995) a Dutch racing driver

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Helden, Limburg

Helden (Helje) is a village located in the province of Limburg in southeastern Netherlands. The village dates back to the tenth century at least, and a local variation of Limburgish is still spoken by some of the population. Helden and twin city Panningen previously belonged to the Helden municipality, but in 2010 they joined other municipalities to form the new municipality of Peel en Maas.

History
The village was first mentioned in 1144 as "apud Helden", and means "hill". Until 1279, it was part of the County of Kessel.

In 1674, it was sold to Gelderland as an independent heerlijkheid, which before 1800 was the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas in these parts.

After the occupation by Gelderland, Helden was sold to Prussia. Under Prussia, Helden developed a small industry.

Only after the Napoleonic wars of 1814 did Helden belong to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. But not for long, as Belgium's Independence changed Helden with a large part of Limburg going to the state of Belgium.

The Catholic St Lambertus Church is a three-aisled basilica-like church. The nave and choir date from the 15th century. The church was restored after a fire in 1885. In 1944, the tower which probably dated from the 14th century was blown up. The church was restored from 1952 to 1953, and a more modest tower was added.

Helden was home to 341 people in 1840. It was an independent municipality, however the town hall was located in Panningen. In 2010, it was merged into Peel en Maas.

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Heythuysen

Heythuysen (Heitse) is a town in the south-eastern Netherlands.

History
It was first mentioned in 1383 as Heythusen, and means "houses on the heath". It was located on the road from Venlo to Antwerp, and between the Bevelandse beek and the Tungelroyse beek. In 1243, it became a border town for the County of Horne. In 1680, Heythuysen became an independent heerlijkheid.

The Catholic St Nicolaas Church is a three-aisled church which was built shortly after 1504. In 1847, the current Gothic Revival tower was built. In 1927, the church was enlarged.

Heythuysen was home to 275 people in 1840. Until it became a part of Leudal on 1 January 2007, Heythuysen was a separate municipality, including the villages of Baexem, Grathem and Kelpen-Oler. Heythuysen is home of the Grand Café Tom Tom.

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Horst aan de Maas

Horst aan de Maas (Haors aan de Maos ) is a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands, in the province of Limburg. In 2010 the municipalities Sevenum and part of Meerlo-Wanssum joined the municipality.

Population centres
America, Broekhuizen, Broekhuizenvorst, Evertsoort, Griendtsveen, Grubbenvorst, Hegelsom, Horst, Kronenberg, Lottum, Meerlo, Melderslo, Meterik, Sevenum, Swolgen and Tienray.

Topography

Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of Horst aan de Maas, June 2015.

Notable people

 * Frans Schraven (1873 in Lottum – 1937) a Dutch Catholic bishop who served as a missionary in China
 * Hub van Doorne (1900 in America – 1979) and his brother Wim, founded DAF
 * Servaas Huys (1940 in Grubbenvorst – 2016) a Dutch politician
 * Jack Poels (born 1957 in America) singer, guitarist and harmonica player of Rowwen Hèze
 * Peter Jenniskens (born 1962 in Horst) a Dutch and American astronomer and senior research scientist
 * Twan Huys (born 1964 in Sevenum) a Dutch journalist, TV presenter and author
 * Henriëtte van Gasteren (born 1964 in Sevenum) a Dutch photographer and artist, known for her self-portraits
 * Raymond Knops (born 1971 in Hegelsom) a Dutch politician
 * Marijn Poels (born 1975 in Meerlo) a Dutch independent filmmaker and documentary maker
 * Mark Verheijen (born 1976 in Baarlo) a Dutch politician
 * Rowwen Hèze (founded 1985) a Limburgish folk band
 * Heideroosjes (active 1989-2012) punk rock band

Sport

 * Dirk Marcellis (born 1988 in Horst) a former Dutch soccerplayer with 259 club caps
 * Dominique Janssen (born 1995 in Horst) Dutch soccerplayer

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Hunsel

Hunsel is a village in the south-eastern Netherlands.

History
The village was first mentioned in 1400 as Hunsel. The etymology is unclear. Hunsel developed along the Uffelse beek.

The Catholic St Jacobus de Meerdere is a single aisled church with the tower on the side. The tower dates from around 1300. In 1839, was built next to the tower. Between 1925 and 1926, it was expanded by Joseph Cuypers. In 1944, the tower was blown up. The damage to the church was repaired in 1946, and in 1955, a new tower was built according to the old design.

The watermill Uffelse Molen is a grist mill from around 1800. In 1961, it went out of service. In 2008, it was restored.

Hunsel was home to 236 people in 1840. Until it became a part of Leudal on 1 January 2007, Hunsel was a separate municipality, covering also the villages of Ell, Haler, Ittervoort and Neeritter

Hunsel has its own football club, RKHVC. It has been founded in 1943.

Born in Hunsel

 * Antonius Bouwens (1876–1963), Dutch sport shooter who won a bronze medal at the Summer Olympics

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Kerkrade

Kerkrade (Ripuarian: Kirchroa; Kirkraoj; Kerkrade or Kirchrath) is a town and a municipality in the southeast of Limburg, the southernmost province of the Netherlands. It forms part of the Parkstad Limburg agglomeration.

Kerkrade is the western half of a divided city; it was part of the German town of Herzogenrath until the Congress of Vienna in 1815 drew the current Dutch-German border and separated the towns. This means that the eastern end of the city marks the international border.

The two towns, including outlying suburban settlements, have a population approaching 100,000, of which nearly 47,000 are in Kerkrade.

History
The history of Kerkrade is closely linked with that of the adjacent town of Herzogenrath, just across the German border. Herzogenrath began as a settlement, called Rode, near the river Worm (or Wurm in German) in the 11th century. In 1104 Augustinian monks founded an abbey, called Kloosterrade, to the west of this settlement.

It was called  's-Hertogenrode or  's-Hertogenrade (Dutch: the Duke's Rode) after the duchy of Brabant took control over the region; in French it was called Rolduc (Rode-le-duc). As is the case for many parts of the Southern Netherlands, the place changed hands several times in the last few centuries. It was under Spanish control from 1661, Austrian between 1713 and 1785 and French between 1795 and 1813. In 1815, when the kingdom of the Netherlands was formed (see Vienna Congress), the border was drawn through Herzogenrath, the western part being Kerkrade.

In the 18th century the monks of Rolduc began small-scale coal mines. More modern exploitation by others started in 1860, causing Kerkrade to grow significantly, especially as a consequence of the permanent settlement of mainly Southern-European miners in this Northern-European place. When the Willem Sophia mine was opened around 1900, the town grew even more rapidly, absorbing old villages like Chèvremont. In the decades following 1960, all the mines in Limburg were closed.

One of the oldest buildings in the municipality is Erenstein, a castle the origins of which lie in the 14th century.

The border along Nieuwstraat/Neustraße
One part of the border between the Netherlands and Germany runs along the middle of the street Nieuwstraat/Neustraße. The border was heavily fortified by the Germans during World War I and World War II, but because of relatively unrestricted cross-border travel within the European Union, following World War II marked only with a low wall, about 30 cm high, running along the length of the street (borders were at that time designed to be unpassable by vehicles, except at border crossing, but no fence for pedestrians). There was a separate 2-way road on each side, and cars had to pass through the official crossing points, but pedestrians could readily step over the wall (although there were signs informing of the border). In 1995, the wall was removed completely as part of the new Schengen Area agreement. Nieuwstraat/Neustraße is now a single two-way road, with the extra space now occupied with trees and bicycle lanes. The border is unmarked, and is crossed even when going round a roundabout or overtaking a vehicle.

The two towns now share some of their public services, and promote themselves as a binational "City of Eurode" for economic development purposes. They share a binational office complex which uses the Eurode name, and is built so that the border passes directly through the centre of the building's main lobby, with one wing of the building in Kerkrade and the other in Herzogenrath.

Population centres

Kerkrade's outlying neighborhoods and housing developments include:

 * Bleijerheide
 * Chevremont
 * Eygelshoven
 * Gracht (Kerkrade)
 * Haanrade
 * Holz
 * Hopel
 * Kaalheide
 * Mucherveld
 * Nulland
 * Ondernemend gedrag
 * Rolduc
 * Rolduckerveld
 * Spekholzerheide
 * Terwinselen

Music
Every fourth year the World Music Contest, a competition for amateur, professional, and military bands, is held in Kerkrade. Also, for the last three years, the Drum Corps Europe championships have been held here.

Transportation
Kerkrade has 4 railway stations:

 * Kerkrade Centrum
 * Chevremont
 * Eygelshoven
 * Eygelshoven Markt

Another station, Kerkrade West or Spekholzerheide, closed for public rail in 1988, and since 1992 it is in use by a museum-railway company, ZLSM.

Reservoir
The building of a dam in the Anstel, a brook flowing west of Kerkrade, has led to the formation of a reservoir with an area of about 20 ha. This and its surroundings are very rich in flora and fauna. It is the only reservoir in the Netherlands.

Sports

 * Roda JC (soccer)
 * Powerarea (racing kartcircuit)

Notable people

 * Gabriël Grupello (1644–1730) a sculptor who produced religious and mythological sculptures, portraits and public sculptures
 * Jozef Weidmann (1899–1962) a Dutch-Surinamese Catholic priest, politician and union leader
 * Louk Hulsman (1923–2009) a Dutch legal scientist and criminologist
 * Frans Wiertz (born 1942) a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, Bishop of Roermond 1993-2017
 * Thijs Wöltgens (1943-2008) a Dutch politician, Mayor of Kerkrade 1994-2000
 * Gerd Leers (born 1951) a Dutch politician, Minister for immigration, Mayor of Maastricht 2002-2010
 * Heintje Simons (born 1955) a Dutch schlager singer and actor
 * Yvonne Timmerman-Buck (born 1956) a Dutch politician and jurist, President of the Senate 2003-2009
 * Hubertus van Megen (born 1961) a prelate of the Catholic Church, diplomat in the Holy See
 * Janine Kitzen (born 1978) a soprano singer in opera and musical theatre
 * Emma Kok (born 2008) a singer and winner of The Voice Kids in 2021

Sport

 * Wiel Coerver (1924-2011) a footballer and manager
 * Willy Brokamp (born 1946) a former footballer, with about 400 club caps
 * Pierre Vermeulen (born 1956) a retired Dutch footballer with about 400 club caps
 * Gène Hanssen (born 1959) a former Dutch football player with about 400 club caps
 * René Trost (born 1965) a former Dutch footballer with 323 club caps and football manager
 * Sieb Dijkstra (born 1966) a Dutch retired football goalkeeper with over 200 club caps
 * Jörg Müller (born 1969) a Dutch-born German BMW factory driver
 * Mark Flekken (born 1993) a Dutch footballer
 * Joshua Brenet (born 1994) a Dutch footballer
 * Jannah Sonnenschein (born 1996) a Dutch–Mozambican swimmer, competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics
 * Jade Suvrijn (born 1995) a French tennis player

title: Kerkrade


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Landgraaf

Landgraaf (Lankgraaf ) is a municipality in southeastern Limburg, Netherlands, forming part of the Parkstad Limburg agglomeration. Snow World is the largest indoor ski piste in Europe.

Population centres

 * Nieuwenhagen
 * Schaesberg
 * Ubach over Worms

Topography

Dutch topographic map of the municipality of Landgraaf, June 2015

Special information
A pop music festival called Pinkpop is held annually on the Pentecost weekend in Schaesberg, a town in Landgraaf.

Landgraaf is home to the largest indoor ski piste in Europe, called Snow World.

Notable natives

 * Johan Kremers (born 1933 in Nieuwenhagen) a Queen's Commissioner of Limburg from 1977 to 1990
 * Harry Kempen (1937 in Nieuwenhagen – 2000) a cultural psychologist and academic
 * Joep Lange (1954 in Nieuwenhagen – 2014) a Dutch clinical researcher in HIV therapy, International AIDS Society from 2002 to 2004
 * Annemarie Mol (born 1958 in Schaesberg) a Dutch ethnographer, philosopher and academic
 * Henk Blezer (born 1961 in Schaesberg) a Dutch Tibetologist, Indologist, and scholar of Buddhist studies
 * Sharon Walraven (born 1970 in Schaesberg) a Dutch wheelchair tennis player, silver medallist at the 2000 Paralympics and gold medallist at the 2008 Paralympics
 * Carach Angren (formed 2003 in Landgraaf) is a symphonic black metal band

title: Landgraaf


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Maasbracht

Maasbracht (Brach ) is a town in the southeastern Netherlands. It was a separate municipality until 1 January 2007, when it became a part of the new municipality of Maasgouw.

History
The village was first mentioned in 1265 as "de Bragth", and means "newly cultivated land near the river Maas." Maasbracht developed along the river Maas in the Early Middle Ages. In 1294, it became part of Ambt Montfort. In 1716, it became part of the Dutch Republic.

The Catholic St Gertrudis Church is a long church with double transept. The tower was built in the 14th century. It was severely damaged in 1944, and a new church was built between 1948 and 1949.

Maasbracht was home to 305 people in 1840. In 1934, the Juliana Canal was dug as a bypass for the unnavigable parts of the Maas. The canal transformed Maasbracht in a main harbour and it started to industrialise. Maasbracht has the largest inland harbour of the Netherlands.

It was an independent municipality until 2007 when it was merged into Maasgouw. It is the capital of the municipality of Maasgouw.

Notable people

 * Mark van Bommel (born 1977), football player

title: Maasbracht


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Maasbree

Maasbree (Bree) is a former municipality and a town in southeastern Netherlands. Until 1818, the municipality was just called Bree in Dutch too.

Population centres

 * Baarlo
 * Maasbree

History
In the Middle Ages Maasbree and Baarlo belonged to the duchy of Guelders. Around 1702, at the time of the War of the Spanish Succession, Maasbree was occupied by Prussia and remained Prussian until 1814. In 1815 Maasbree became part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Maasbree used to be a fiefdom with a castle called Huis Bree, which has now disappeared.

The punk rock group Sex Pistols performed at Maf Centrum on 11 December 1977, as part of their Dutch Tour. This would be the last date of the tour, as the final 2 dates in Winschoten and Rotterdam were cancelled.

title: Maasbree


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Margraten

Margraten (Mergraote) is a village and a former municipality in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.

On 1 January 2011 this former municipality merged with a neighbouring one, which resulted in the new Eijsden-Margraten municipality.

Preceding developments
Until 1982 the municipality with this name comprised, beside Margraten, the hamlets Groot Welsden, Klein Welsden, Termaar and 't Rooth.

In 1982 this municipality was extended with a number of neighbouring municipalities: Cadier en Keer, Mheer, Noorbeek and Sint Geertruid. Also the village Scheulder, that until then was part of another municipality, was added.

As a result, from 1982 until 2011 the municipality of Margraten comprised the following population centres, that from 2011 on are all part of nowadays municipality of Eijsden-Margraten.

American Cemetery
At Margraten the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial is situated. Established in 1960, it is Europe's third largest war cemetery for unidentified soldiers who died in World War II. 8,301 soldiers are buried there under long rows of white crosses and stars of David. All graves are adopted by locals, who attend the graves and lay flowers.

This cemetery is the final resting place for, among others, Lt. Colonel Robert G. Cole, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for action during the Normandy campaign in June 1944.

President George W. Bush visited the cemetery on 8 May 2005, the first American president to do so.

People

 * Jean Bessems (1945), (Cadier en Keer), billiards; worldchampion artistic in 1985 en 1988.
 * Pierre Lardinois (1924-1987), (Noorbeek), politician
 * Fons van Wissen (1933-2015), (Margraten), footballer (30 caps)

title: Margraten


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Meerlo-Wanssum

Meerlo-Wanssum (Mieëldere-Wânsem) was a municipality in Limburg, the Netherlands. The municipality ceased to exist as of January 2010.

Population centres

 * Blitterswijck, now part of municipality: Venray
 * Geijsteren, now part of municipality: Venray
 * Meerlo, now part of municipality: Horst aan de Maas
 * Swolgen, now part of municipality: Horst aan de Maas
 * Tienray, now part of municipality: Horst aan de Maas
 * Wanssum, now part of municipality: Venray

title: Meerlo-Wanssum


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Meerssen

Meerssen (Meersje ) is a town and a municipality in southeastern Netherlands.

History
The Treaty of Meerssen was signed in Meerssen in 870. The Treaty of Meerssen was an agreement of the division of the Carolingian Empire by the surviving sons of Louis I, Charles II of the West Franks and Louis the German of East Franks.

Around the middle of the 10th century the allodium Meerssen was the property of queen Gerberga, the daughter of king Henry I. She was the spouse of Louis IV of France. In 968 she donated all her property to the abbey of Saint Remigius in Reims.

Population centres
• Bunde

• Geulle

• Meerssen

• Rothem

• Ulestraten

Transportation
Railway station: Meerssen

Twin towns - Sister cities
Meerssen is a founding member of the Douzelage, a town twinning association of 24 towns across the European Union. This active town twinning began in 1991 and there are regular events, such as a produce market from each of the other countries and festivals. Discussions regarding membership are also in hand with three further towns (Agros in Cyprus, Škofja Loka in Slovenia, and Tryavna in Bulgaria). • 🇪🇸 Altea, Spain - 1991

• 🇩🇪 Bad Kötzting, Germany - 1991

• 🇮🇹 Bellagio, Italy - 1991

• 🇮🇪 Bundoran, Ireland - 1991

• 🇫🇷 Granville, France - 1991

• Holstebro, Denmark - 1991

• 🇧🇪 Houffalize, Belgium - 1991

•  Meerssen, Netherlands - 1991

• 🇱🇺 Niederanven, Luxembourg - 1991

•  Preveza, Greece - 1991

•  Sesimbra, Portugal - 1991

•  Sherborne, United Kingdom - 1991

• 🇫🇮 Karkkila, Finland - 1997

• 🇸🇪 Oxelösund, Sweden - 1998

• 🇦🇹 Judenburg, Austria - 1999

• 🇵🇱 Chojna, Poland - 2004

• 🇭🇺 Kőszeg, Hungary - 2004

• 🇱🇻 Sigulda, Latvia - 2004

• 🇨🇿 Sušice, Czech Republic - 2004

• 🇪🇪 Türi, Estonia - 2004

• 🇸🇰 Zvolen, Slovakia - 2007

• 🇱🇹 Prienai, Lithuania - 2008

• 🇲🇹 Marsaskala, Malta - 2009

• 🇷🇴 Siret, Romania - 2010

• 🇧🇬 Tryavna, Bulgaria - 2011

Notable people

 * Charles Eyck (1897 in Meerssen - 1983) a Dutch visual artist
 * Hubert Levigne (1905 in Meerssen - 1989) a Dutch artist
 * Gerard Kockelmans (1925 in Meerssen - 1965) a Dutch composer, conductor and music teacher
 * Jef Lahaye (1932 in Bunde – 1990) a Dutch professional racing cyclist
 * Maria van der Hoeven (born 1949 in Meerssen) a retired Dutch politician
 * Erik Meijer (born 1969 in Meerssen) a retired Dutch footballer with 462 club caps
 * Kyara Stijns (born 1995 in Bunde) a Dutch professional racing cyclist

title: Meerssen


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Meijel

Meijel (Méél) is a former municipality and a village in south-eastern Netherlands.

History
The village was first mentioned in 1303 as "Iohannes et Henricus fratres dicti van der Vloet de Meyele". The etymology is uncertain. It might mean "middle of the forest". Meijel developed on a sandy ridge in the raised bog of the Peel. It became a free heerlijkheid (no fief). In 1716, it became part of the Austrian Upper Guelders.

The Catholic St Nicolaas Church is a three-aisled church with a wide tower which was constructed from 1953 to 1955 to replace the church which was destroyed in 1944.

Meijel was home to 996 inhabitants in 1840. It was severely damaged during World War II. Meijel was an independent municipality until 2010 when it was merged into Peel en Maas.

title: Meijel


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Mook en Middelaar

Mook en Middelaar (Mook en Middelar) is a municipality in the upper southeastern part of the Netherlands, at the northern tip of the province of Limburg and is a part of Stadsregio Arnhem Nijmegen. The municipality is located about 100 km from provincial capital Maastricht and has an area of undefined km2 of which undefined km2 is water.

Population centres
• Middelaar

• Molenhoek

• Mook

• Plasmolen

History
The municipality is situated in wooded rolling moraine landscape, created during the last ice age, about 160,000 years ago.

In Plasmolen the remains of a Roman villa from the 2nd century AD were found and on the banks of the Meuse are the remains of a Roman bridge. These remains are from the 4th century.

The Mookerheide ("Mook Heath"), situated on the border of Mook, saw the Battle of Mookerheyde in 1574 which was fought as part of the Eighty Years War. Spanish forces under Sancho d'Avila defeated the rebel forces of Louis of Nassau, who was killed.

The Mookerschans and Heumense schans were defenses on the Mookerheide probably from the 17th century. (At that time the Mookerheide area extended all the way to the citywalls of Nijmegen) The historical Mookerheideschans (defense work) has been restored and offers a beautiful view over the Meuse valley.

Middelaar belonged to Overkwartier (Upper Quarter) of Guelders or Upper Guelders. During the War of the Spanish Succession Middelaar was occupied by Prussian troops, and it remained German for about a century (until 1814).

In the Second World War a fierce battle raged around this area. In May 1940 the invaders were stopped by large bunkers on the Brabant-side of the Meuse, the railway bridge between Mook and Katwijk was blown up. In September 1944 Mook, Plasmolen and Middelaar were in the front area and the war caused much devastation. While under fire of German guns that were shooting from the woods near Groesbeek, allied soldiers had to secure the Heumen bridge over the Maas-Waal canal that was an important hub for operation Market Garden. Fierce fighting caused the front to move so the little village, of which most houses were shot in this period, was liberated to fall back in German hands, to be liberated again. Soldiers killed in this vicinity during World War II found their final resting place in Mook War Cemetery Most inhabitants of Mook and Middelaar sought refuge elsewhere until the liberation.

To support the cement industry, sand was dug out in the fields next to the river Maas (known as 'Cuyksesteeg') which consequently lead to the forming of the Mookerplassen recreational lakes, between Middelaar and the Mookerheide. After a couple of floodings in the 80s and 90s a removable lock was built to save the area from flooding again.

Public transport
Mook and the municipality is served by three bus lines and has its own train station, Mook-Molenhoek railway station.

Notable residents

 * Karel Martens (born 1939) a Dutch freelance graphic designer, specialises in typography
 * Serge Daan (1940–2018) a Dutch scientist, contributed to the field of chronobiology
 * Arjen Teeuwissen (born 1971), equestrian, team silver medallist at the 2000 Summer Olympics
 * Marko Koers (born 1972) a retired middle distance runner, competed at three consecutive Summer Olympics from 1992

title: Mook en Middelaar


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Nederweert

Nederweert (Ni-jwieërt ) is a municipality and a town in southeastern Netherlands with a population of 0 as of and has an area of undefined km2 of which undefined km2 is water.

Nederweert lies at the intersection of three channels: the Zuid-Willemsvaart, the Noordervaart and the Wessem-Nederweert Canal. In the 19th century these channels provided transport routes to export peat that was harvested from the Peel. These channels connect Nederweert to Maastricht and 's-Hertogenbosch.

History
Nederweert was originally called 'Merefelt' which means 'amongst the lakes', though it was later named Weert van den nedersten eynde. A 'Weert' in old Dutch means a high place in the landscape. This latter name later changed into Nederweert as it is called today. Before the 14th century Nederweert was part of the municipality of Weert. The first reference which speaks of Nederweert as independent was in 1419.

Nederweert has been under rule of the Graven van Horn (the dukes of Horn) until 1701. Later in 1715 it became part of the southern states of the Netherlands.

In 1785 it was annexed by the French. During this era it was part of the Belgian departement of the Nedermaas.

Monuments
The most prominent monument of Nederweert is the Sint-Lambertus Kerk. It is a Brabantine Gothic-style church that was built in 1467.

Population centres
• Budschop

• Leveroy

• Nederweert

• Nederweert-Eind

• Ospel

• Ospeldijk

• Schoor

Notable people

 * Margriet Tindemans (1951 in Nederweert – 2014) a musician, specializing in medieval music
 * Marie Kessels (born 1954 in Nederweert) a Dutch poet and prose writer

title: Nederweert


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Nuth

Nuth (Nut ) is a village and a former municipality in the province of Limburg, situated in the southern Netherlands. In January 2019, the municipality merged with Schinnen and Onderbanken to form Beekdaelen.

The village of Nuth has 4,595 inhabitants (1 January 2021), and is with that the largest village of the municipality. The town hall of the municipality Nuth was also situated in the village Nuth. The other villages in the municipality were Hulsberg with 3972 inhabitants, Schimmert with 3184, Wijnandsrade with 1623 and Vaesrade with 997 inhabitants (data: 1-1-2021). The other population centres belong to one of the following villages.

Population centres
Aalbeek, Arensgenhout, Grijzegrubben, Helle, Hellebroek, Hulsberg, Laar, Schimmert, Swier, Terstraten, Vaesrade, Wijnandsrade.

Topography

Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of Nuth, June 2015

Transportation

 * Railway station: Nuth
 * Exit 5 of the A76 Motorway

Some facts about Nuth

 * The patron Saint of Nuth is St. Bavo, after which the parish is named.
 * The municipality expanded all the way from Hoensbroek to Meerssen.
 * From 2004 Nuth boasted a one Michelin star restaurant, In de'n Dillegaard, and Nuth made the international press when the restaurant owner returned the coveted star in 2009 over concerns of being too elitist.

Notable people

 * Hubert Bruls, politician, Mayor of Nijmegen (born 1966)
 * Hans Coumans, painter (1943–1986)
 * Jan Drummen, architect (1891–1966)
 * Karel van der Hucht, astronomer (born 1946)
 * Auguste Kerckhoffs, linguist and cryptographer (1835–1903)
 * Joseph Kerckhoffs, physician (1789–1867)
 * Joep Packbiers, archer, Olympic champion (1875–1957)
 * Jos Schreurs, Roman Catholic priest and Dutch senator (1934–2022)
 * Frans de Wever, general practitioner (1869–1940)

title: Nuth


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Onderbanken

Onderbanken (Óngerbenk) was a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. In 2019, it merged with Nuth and Schinnen to form Beekdaelen.

Population centres
Bingelrade, Douvergenhout, Etzenrade, Jabeek, Merkelbeek, Op den Hering, Quabeek, Raath, Schinveld, Viel.

Topography

Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of Onderbanken, June 2015.

title: Onderbanken


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Roerdalen

Roerdalen (Roerdale ) is a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands, in the province of Limburg. As of, it had about  inhabitants and borders Germany.

Roerdalen is the renaming of the municipality of Melick en Herkenbosch in 1993.

Population centres
• Herkenbosch

• Melick

• Montfort

• Posterholt

• Reutje

• Sint Odiliënberg

• Vlodrop

Topography

Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of Roerdalen, June 2015

Notable people

 * Hubert Biermans (1864 in Herkenbosch - 1953) a Dutch and Canadian businessman
 * Connie Palmen (born 1955 in Sint Odiliënberg) a Dutch author
 * Geert Chatrou (born 1969 in Sint Odiliënberg) a professional whistler
 * Jos Verstappen (born 1972 in Montfort) a Dutch former racing driver
 * Joeri Verlinden (born 1988 in Melick) a Dutch swimmer, competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics

title: Roerdalen


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Roermond

Roermond (Remunj or Remuunj ) is a city, municipality, and diocese in the Limburg province of the Netherlands. Roermond is a historically important town on the lower Roer on the east bank of the river Meuse. It received town rights in 1231. Roermond's town centre has become a designated conservation area.

Through the centuries, the town has filled the role of commercial centre and a principal town in the duchy of Guelders. Since 1559, it has served as the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Roermond. The skyline of the town is dominated by the towers of its two churches, St. Christopher's Cathedral and Roermond Minster ("Munsterkerk" in Dutch). In addition to the churches, the town centre has many significant buildings and monuments.

History
Celtic inhabitants of this region used to live on both sides of the river Roer. Invading Romans built a bridge (now called the Steene Brök, or stone bridge) and founded the first town at Roermond, now a suburb called Voorstad Sint Jacob.

Guelders
Around 1180–1543, Roermond belonged to the Duchy of Guelders. In 1213 Roermond was destroyed by Otto IV of Brunswick, the Holy Roman Emperor and German King. By 1232 the town had been rebuilt and was given its own seal, reign, mint, and court.

The first mention of the monastery of the Franciscan Friars Minor, the Minderbroederklooster, was in 1309. In 1361, the Chapter of the Holy Spirit moved from Sint Odiliënberg to Roermond. In 1376 Roermond Charterhouse was founded.

Around 1350, Roermond became the capital of the "Overkwartier van Gelre" (Upper Quarter of Gelre). In 1388, during the Hundred Years' War, it was besieged by the French. A battle for the outer fortifications Buiten Op, destruction of these fortifications, and the old parish church followed.

In 1441, Roermond became a member of the Hanseatic League, and by 1472 acquired the right to mint its own coins.

Spanish Netherlands

Between 1543 and 1702 the area was part of the Spanish Netherlands, known in Spanish as Ruremunda.

On 23 April 1568 the Battle of Rheindalen occurred near Roermond, which signalled the start of the Eighty Years' War. In 1572, Roermond was occupied by the Dutch William the Silent. On 23 July 1572, 13 Catholic clerics were murdered in the town of Roermond by militant Dutch Calvinists (Martyrs of Roermond). Roermond was recaptured by the Spanish duke Fadrique Álvarez de Toledo.

Under Spanish rule, Roermond became a bastion of the Counter-Reformation. On behalf of the Inquisition, people were encouraged to report suspects of witchcraft and heresy. In 1613, 64 witches were burnt on Galgeberg hill near the Kapel in 't Zand in Roermond, the largest witch trial in the Netherlands ever.

In 1632 the Dutch Stadhouder Frederik Hendrik conquered Roermond along with Venlo and Maastricht during his famous "March along the Meuse". Attempts in the next few years to annex Antwerp and Brussels failed, however. The northern Dutch were disappointed by the lack of local support. The Counter-Reformation had firmly reattached the local population to Roman Catholicism, and they now distrusted the Calvinist Northerners even more than they loathed the Spanish occupiers.

Between 1632 and 1637, Roermond was under the control of the Dutch Republic, and again from 1702 to 1716. Between 1716 and 1794, it was part of the Austrian Netherlands within the Habsburg monarchy.

French period
On 11 December 1792, during the French Revolutionary Wars, the French under General De Miranda conquered Roermond, but by 5 March 1793, the city was under Habsburg control again. The city was again occupied by the French on 5 April 1794 and officially became part of the French département Meuse-Inférieure from 1795 to 1814. In 1814, during the War of the Sixth Coalition, Roermond was liberated by the Russians.

Kingdom of the Netherlands
After the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814, Roermond became part of the new Kingdom of the Netherlands. The new province was to receive the name "Maastricht", after its capital. King William, who did not want the name Limburg to be lost, insisted that the name be changed to Limburg. As such, the name of the new province derived from the old Duchy of Limburg that had existed until 1648 within the triangle Maastricht – Liège – Aachen.

When the Netherlands and Belgium separated in 1830, there was support for adding Limburg to Belgium, but in the end (1839) the province was divided in two, with the eastern part going to the Netherlands and the western part to Belgium. From then on, Dutch Limburg was, the new Duchy of Limburg, also part of the German Confederation.

During World War II, the Germans occupied Roermond from 1940 to 1945. On 1 March 1945 the town was liberated by the Recce Troop of the 35th US Infantry Division during Operation Grenade. By the time of liberation, 90% of all buildings were either damaged or destroyed. Restoration returned the old town centre to its full glory.

On 1 May 1988 the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) killed three British airmen and injured three others in a double attack. IRA members opened fire on a car in Roermond with Royal Air Force airmen, killing Ian Shinner. Half an hour later, a second attack elsewhere, in Nieuw-Bergen, killed two British airmen and injured another.

In a separate attack two years later two Australian nationals were killed. The two men were lawyers on holiday, whom the IRA shot believing they were off-duty British Army soldiers. Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke denounced the IRA explanation saying 'This sort of warped logic of war casualties adds insult to a mortal injury,' and a later Prime Minister John Howard refused to meet Gerry Adams from Sinn Féin on a visit to Australia in 2000.

On 13 April 1992, a magnitude 5.4 earthquake occurred near the town of Roermond at a focal depth of about 17 km. This earthquake was the strongest seismic event in Western Europe since 1756. Following this earthquake, the water levels of numerous wells located in the Lower Rhine Embayment showed significant coseismic anomalies. The Roer Valley, which crosses three countries (Belgium, The Netherlands, and Germany), is bounded by two north-northwest, south-southeast trending Quaternary normal fault systems. The eastern boundary is defined by the Peel boundary fault, along which the 1992 Roermond earthquake occurred, and the western boundary is defined by the Feldbiss fault zone, which is partly located in Belgium. Evidence of recent tectonic activity along the Feldbiss fault zone is visible on seismic profiles that show more than 600 m of offset in Neogene deposits. Although Ahorner demonstrated the existence of the Rhenish seismic zones and recommended a comprehensive analysis of Quaternary structures and background seismicity, coseismic movements were considered to be improbable and active faults remain largely unidentified.

Geography
Roermond is situated in the middle of the province of Limburg, which is bordered by the river Maas to the west and Germany to the east.

Population centres
The community of Roermond consists of the following population centres:

• Roermond

• Asenray

• Asselt

• Boukoul

• Herten

• Leeuwen, Roermond

• Maasniel

• Merum (Roermond)

• Ool

• Swalmen

Nature and recreation
Roermond is encircled by a green belt, which offers many opportunities for hiking and cycling. To the east, nature reserves, such as the Meinweg National Park, the valley of the Leu (Leudal), and the Swalm and Roer rivers provide woodlands, heath and meadows. The Meinweg also contains a small amount of wildlife, including a small group of vipers, the only venomous snake to live in the Netherlands. To the west, the river Meuse and its lake area, known as "Maasplassen", offer opportunities for water recreation.

Floods
As a town near to and surrounded by water and close to two rivers, the Meuse and the Roer, Roermond often has to defend itself against floods. The worst floods were in 1993 and 1995.

Economy
Though Roermond grew and expanded steadily over the years, it was not until the start of the 21st century that Roermond saw another economic boost. This recent growth was mainly caused by the construction of the highway A73 circling Roermond on the east side. The highway was planned to open in January 2007 with the 2.5 km long Roertunnel leading traffic underneath a part of the city and the shorter Swalmertunnel underneath Swalmen. However, due to delays the tunnels only opened with a single carriageway available and frequent closures. The tunnels grew infamous during the first weeks when numerous closures due to technical problems caused constant traffic jams. The tunnels are now fully operational. Another highway connection under construction is the German autobahn A52. The last 6 km stretch from Düsseldorf to the German-Dutch border was recently completed. The highway leads from Roermond straight to Düsseldorf.

, the city itself had a fairly high unemployment rate of 10.7% and the average income was lower than the national average, despite an above-average economy in the region and an influx of new residents.

Designer Outlet Roermond
Since 2001, Roermond is home to a McArthurGlen Designer Outlet, which has become one of the largest and most successful designer outlets in Europe with an average of almost six million customers per year, making it one of the biggest tourist attractions in the Netherlands. In 2017 it reached 200 shops following its latest expansion. The Designer Outlet attracts many shoppers from France, Germany, Belgium and China.

Crime
In 2007, Roermond was ranked as the third most criminal place in the Netherlands, outscoring Amsterdam. In 2007, Roermond managed to improve its reputation, dropping to 9th place (though this figure is combined with the district of Swalmen, which had its own score in 2006). Efforts are being put in place to limit petty crime (especially car break-ins and house burglaries). In 2013, Roermond was in 13th place.

Events
Roermond hosts several festivals, including a Liberation Day festival on 5 May and the dance festival Solar Weekend.

Anthem
Roermond has had its own anthem since 1912. The text was written by A. F. van Beurden, the music is by H. Tijssen, who also composed the Limburg Anthem (Waar in 't bronsgroen eikenhout).

In everyday life in Limburg around 1900, the Dutch language was of less importance. Everything was done in Limburgs. Newspapers in the 19th century were sometimes written in German, and in some parts of Limburg German was the language used in church and education. In this time Maastricht still had a very strong connection with French-speaking areas around Liège. Van Beurden's poem was used to force the people of Limburg into speaking Dutch. Proof of this is the very un-Limburg part in the anthem, the reference to the Dutch Royal family. In 1900 the people in Limburg had to swear their allegiance to the Dutch royal family of the House of Orange-Nassau in a "aanhankelijkheidsverklaring aan het Oranjehuis" and had to start using Dutch instead of Limburgs.

Attractions
Roermond's old town centre is home to several historic monuments, including: • Carolus Chapel

• Cuypershuis

• Kapel in 't Zand

• Kasteel Hattem

• Munsterkerk

• National Indiëmonument

• Rattentoren

• Roermond City Hall

• St. Christopher's Cathedral

Infrastructure
Access roads to Roermond have been upgraded recently, providing direct access to the Dutch and German highway networks. From north to south the A73 (Maastricht-Nijmegen) passes east of the city, partly through tunnels. Eastwards the German A52 leads to Düsseldorf. Westbound the provincial road N280 leads towards Weert and connects to the A2 towards Eindhoven.

Roermond has a train station with quarter-hourly fast trains across the country to: In addition, there are commuter trains with half-hourly service to:
 * Southbound: Sittard-Maastricht-Heerlen
 * Northwestbound: Weert-Eindhoven onwards to Amsterdam.
 * Northeastbound: Venlo-Nijmegen
 * Southbound: Sittard-Maastricht

The municipality of Swalmen also has a railway station serving commuter trains on the line Roermond-Venlo twice hourly.

For regional transport, there is a bus station with municipal and regional lines to nearby villages and towns. There used to be a bus service to Heinsberg in Germany, which was terminated in December 2008. There are no long-distance coach services.

Public thinking & public service

 * Richardis of Bavaria (1173–1231), a German noblewoman and abbess, daughter of Otto I, Duke of Bavaria and mother of Gerard III, Count of Guelders
 * Gerard III, Count of Guelders (1185–1229), a Count of Guelders and Zutphen
 * Denis the Carthusian (1402–1471), a Roman Catholic theologian and mystic
 * Johannes Murmellius (ca.1480–1517), a teacher and humanist
 * Jacob Chimarrhaeus (1542–1614), grand almoner to Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor
 * François Vincent Henri Antoine de Stuers (1792–1881), a Dutch general, commander of the Indies army
 * Hubert Joseph Jean Lambert de Stuers (1788–1861), a soldier in the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
 * Pierre Cuypers (1827–1921), an architect
 * Eduard Cuypers (1859–1927), a Dutch architect in Amsterdam and the Dutch East Indies
 * Richard Schoemaker (1886–1942 in Sachsenhausen), a Dutch Olympic fencer, engineer in the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army, academic architect and executed resistance group leader
 * Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck (1873–1936), Prime Minister of the Netherlands 1918/1925
 * Louis Beel (1902–1977), Prime Minister of the Netherlands 1946/1948 & 1958/1959
 * Jo Cals (1914–1971), Prime Minister of the Netherlands 1965/1966

The arts

 * Christoffel Puytlinck (1640–1680), a still life painter
 * Jan Baptist Herregouts (1640–1721), a painter
 * Jan Frans van Douven (1656–1727), a painter
 * Maximilian Herregouts (fl. 1674), a painter
 * Henri Linssen (1805–1869), a painter
 * Henry Luyten (1859–1945), a Dutch-born Belgian painter
 * Louis Raemaekers (1869–1956), a painter and editorial cartoonist
 * Jacob Hiegentlich (1907–1940), a gay Dutch poet
 * Leo Ketelaars (1903-1992), violinist and baritone
 * Willem Hofhuizen (1915–1986), a Dutch expressionist painter
 * Margriet Windhausen (born 1942), a sculptor and painter
 * Marleen Gorris (born 1948), a writer and film director
 * Claudy Jongstra (born 1963), artist and textile designer
 * Erik Kessels (born 1966), an artist, designer and curator; creative director of KesselsKramer
 * Samantha van Wissen (born 1970), a Dutch dancer
 * Jo Luijten (born 1978), a Dutch comedy video artist & video game developer
 * Stefanie Joosten (born 1988), a model, singer and actress living in Japan
 * Timor Steffens (born 1987), a dancer and choreographer

Sport

 * Pierre Massy (1900–1958), a Dutch footballer
 * Joop Campioni (1901–1962), a Dutch footballer
 * Roger Reijners (born 1964), a Dutch football coach and former player with 326 club caps
 * Anna Wood (born 1966), a Dutch-born Australian sprint canoeist competed in four Summer Olympics, won bronze medals at the 1988 (for NL) and 1996 Summer Olympics (for Aus)
 * Asker Jeukendrup (born 1969), a Dutch sports nutrition scientist and an Ironman triathlete
 * Rogier Wassen (born 1976), a tennis player
 * Harrie Gommans (born 1983), a footballer with 262 club caps
 * Rico Vonck (born 1987), a former darts player

Celebrities

 * Jelle van Vucht (born 1996), a large YouTuber with over 23 million subscriptions on YouTube

title: Roermond


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Roggel en Neer

Roggel en Neer is a former municipality in the Dutch province of Limburg. It covered the villages of Roggel, Neer, and Heibloem. Since January 1, 2007, the area has been a part of the new municipality of Leudal.

Roggel en Neer is the renaming of the municipality of Roggel in 1993.

title: Roggel en Neer


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Schinnen

Schinnen (Sjènne ) is a village and a former municipality in the province of Limburg, the Netherlands. It was home to US Army Garrison Schinnen, a support base for US personnel assigned to nearby Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum. It is also the location of Alfa Brewery, the only brewery in the Netherlands that uses an officially certified underground spring. In 2019, it merged with Nuth and Onderbanken to form Beekdaelen.

Cities and towns

 * Amstenrade
 * Doenrade
 * Oirsbeek
 * Puth
 * Schinnen
 * Sweikhuizen

Topography

Dutch topographic map of the municipality of Schinnen, June 2015

Notable people

 * Hans Erkens (born 1952), AFC Ajax footballer
 * Frans Körver (born 1937), footballer
 * Henk van der Linden (1925–2021), film director
 * G. M. Nijssen (born 1938), computer scientist
 * Henri Ritzen (1892–1976), painter
 * Theo Rutten (1899–1980), politician and minister
 * Julie Zwarthoed (born 1994), ice hockey player

title: Schinnen


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Sevenum

Sevenum (Zaerem) is a town in the province of Limburg in southeastern Netherlands. Until 2010, it was also the name of the municipality comprising the towns of Sevenum, Kronenberg and Evertsoord. Amusement park Toverland is located in Sevenum.

Location
Sevenum's neighbour towns are (clockwise, starting from East): Blerick, Venlo, Maasbree, Kronenberg, Grubbenvorst, Hegelsom, Horst, Grubbenvorst.

Sevenum-town and Kronenberg are tangented by highway E34, provincial road N277 (Middenpeelweg), and the railroad track Eindhoven-Venlo; Evertsoord lies on the edge of the Peel, a former peatland.

Dialect
Sevenum's dialect, "Zaerums", is transitional between Limburgish, North-Limburgish (see Low Rhenish), and Brabantian, which all have tentative borders within a larger dialect continuum.

The overview of town names in Limburgish at Streektaal.net lists "Zaerum" (Sevenum) and "De Kroeënenberg" (Kronenberg), but it does not include "De Pieël" (Evertsoord), considering it to be in the North-Limburgish area.

title: Sevenum


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Simpelveld

Simpelveld (Zumpelveld ) is a municipality and a town in the southeastern Netherlands. It is part of the municipal cooperative unit Parkstad Limburg.

Simpelveld is part of the Mergelland, named after the presence of chalk (mergel), hill country popular with tourists. The Mergellandroute passes through the town.

The population centre of Simpelveld has 28 national monuments, amongst which are the Oude Molen and the Saint Remigius Church. Simpelveld has a heritage railway station and is the home base of the South Limburg Railway Company. On one weekend in October there is a Day Out with Thomas from the children's television series Thomas and Friends.

Population centres

 * Bocholtz
 * Simpelveld

Besides these official centres there are other hamlets which fall under the municipality: • Baaks-Sweijer

• Baneheide

• Bocholtzerheide

• Bosschenhuizen

• Broek

• Bulkemsbroek

• In de Gaas

• Huls

• Molsberg

• Prickart

• Vlengendaal

• Waalbroek

• Zandberg.

Religion
The municipality has two churches within its borders:

 * James the Greater Church in Bocholtz
 * Saint Remigius Church in Simpelveld

The city also has two monasteries, these are
 * the Loreto monastery and
 * Huize Damiaan, which has been home to The International Butler Academy since 2015.

Regional language
Simpelveld is part of The Netherlands and therefore the official language is Dutch. A lot of people also speak Simpelvelds, a regional language that depending on the definition belongs to Ripuarian or Limburgish. It is also referred to as Southeast Limburgish.

Notable people

 * Step Vaessen (born 1965) a Dutch broadcast journalist, currently working as a Moscow correspondent for Al Jazeera English
 * Ralph Hamers (born 1966) a Dutch businessman, the chief executive officer (CEO) of UBS Group
 * Jolanda Jetten (born 1970, Simpelveld) a Dutch social psychologist and academic

title: Simpelveld


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Sittard-Geleen

Sittard-Geleen (Zittert-Gelaen ) is a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It was formed in 2001 from the former municipalities Sittard, Geleen and Born.

The combined municipality has approximately 92,518 inhabitants (March 2019) and is thus the third most populated municipality in Limburg (after Maastricht with 125,000 and Venlo with 103,000 inhabitants). Since February 2020, the city has been governed by a coalition of CDA (Christian Democrats), GroenLinks (Green) and the local parties GOB and Stadspartij.

The highway connecting the centres of Sittard and Geleen, the Rijkswegboulevard, has been rebuilt to be a main route for cycling and walking. The cycling and walking provision is both generous and continuous. Side road junctions, or crossroads, are made 'subordinate'. The carriageways have been narrowed to one 3m lane in each direction. Parking places have been made, in small groups, at the side of the carriageways. These are made to be 'not easy to use for larger vehicles' and so the road centre is marked as a place for delivery vehicles to stop. Information supplied by the highway engineers: Büro für Stadt und Verkehr (BSV), Aachen, Germany.

To the west, Sittard-Geleen borders on Belgium, while to the east, it borders on Germany.

Population centres
Abshoven, Born, Broeksittard, Buchten, Einighausen, Geleen, Graetheide, Grevenbicht, Guttecoven, Holtum, Limbricht, Munstergeleen, Windraak, Obbicht, Papenhoven, Schipperskerk and Sittard.

Topography

Dutch topographic map of the municipality

Notable people

 * Saint Charles of Mount Argus (1821 in Munstergeleen – 1893) a canonized Dutch Passionist priest
 * Frederic Adolph Hoefer (1850 in Sittard – 1938) a Dutch lieutenant-general, militaria collector and archivist
 * Godfrid Storms (1911 in Sittard – 2003) a Dutch professor of Old and Middle English Literature
 * Willy Dols (1911 in Sittard – 1944) a Dutch linguist, dialectologist and phonologist
 * Toon Hermans (1916 in Sittard – 2000) a Dutch comedian, singer and writer
 * Settela Steinbach (1934 in Buchten – 1944) a Dutch girl who was gassed in Auschwitz-Birkenau
 * Thea Fleming (born 1942 in Sittard) a Dutch film actress
 * Rein Willems (born 1945 in Geleen) President of Royal Dutch Shell 2003–2007
 * Paul Derrez (born 1950 in Sittard) a visual artist, a jewelry designer, gallery owner and collector
 * Jan Cremers (born 1952 in Limbricht) a former Dutch politician and sociologist
 * Wim Heldens (born 1954 in Sittard) a Dutch realist painter
 * Francine Houben (born 1955 in Sittard) a Dutch architect
 * Mike van Diem (born 1959, grew up in Sittard) a Dutch film director
 * Rineke Dijkstra (born 1959 in Sittard) a Dutch portrait photographer
 * Laurence Stassen (born 1971 in Sittard) an independent politician and a former freelance TV presenter
 * Caspar Poyck (born 1973 in Sittard) a Dutch-American actor, public speaker and chef
 * Myrthe Hilkens (born 1979 in Geleen) a Dutch journalist, non-fiction writer and politician
 * Mo'Jones (formed 2000 in Sittard) is a funk, soul and pop band

Sport

 * Leo Horn (1916 in Sittard – 1995) an international football referee, newspaper columnist and textile manufacturer
 * Jan Krekels (born 1947 in Sittard) a retired cyclist, 1968 Olympic champion in the 100 km team time trial
 * Huub Stevens (born 1953 in Sittard) a football manager and former defender with 397 club caps
 * Wilbert Suvrijn (born 1962 in Sittard) a retired Dutch footballer with 341 club caps
 * Lambert Schuurs (born 1962 in Sittard) a retired handball player and ultra-long-distance runner
 * Arnold Vanderlyde (born 1963 in Sittard) a former Dutch boxer, who participated in three Summer Olympics (1984, 1988 and 1992) and won three bronze medals
 * Wil Boessen (born 1964 in Sittard) a Dutch retired football player with 397 club caps and manager
 * Ton Caanen (born 1966 in Geleen) a Dutch football manager.
 * Rens Blom (born 1977 in Munstergeleen) a Dutch pole vaulter, competed in the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics
 * Maartje Paumen (born 1985 in Geleen) a former Dutch field hockey player, twice gold medallist at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics, silver medallist at the 2016 Summer Olympics
 * Benjamin van den Broek (born 1987 in Geleen) a New Zealand international footballer with 275 club caps
 * Rob Bontje (born 1981 in Grevenbicht) a volleyball player, competed at the 2004 Olympic Games
 * Sjoerd Winkens (born 1983 in Geleen) a former professional footballer with over 300 club caps
 * Dominick Muermans (born 1984 in Geleen) a Dutch racing driver
 * Perr Schuurs (born 1999 in Nieuwstadt) a Dutch football player, playing for Ajax Amsterdam

title: Sittard-Geleen


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Stein, Limburg

Stein is a municipality and a town in the southeastern Netherlands. The municipality had a population of 0 in and covers an area of undefined km2 of which undefined km2 is water.

The municipality of Stein makes part of the region of South Limburg and lies between the city of Geleen in the east and Beek in the southeast, and lies furthermore west of interchange Kerensheide and the chemical industries of Chemelot. To the west lies the Belgian border, across the Meuse river. In comparison to other cities and villages in the area, Stein is fairly big. It is also the capital city of the municipality with the same name. It has i.a. three Roman Catholic churches, an abandoned mediaeval castle, and a port to the Juliana Canal which used to be the second largest inland port in all of Europe.

On 29 October 2009, the shopping mall of Stein suffered a severe fire. As a result of the calamity, the town subsequently lost 40 shops, 2 banks, 1 restaurant and 6 houses. The adjacent, iconic, 11-story apartment building 'De Stevel', remained intact.

Population centres

 * Berg aan de Maas (Berg)
 * Catsop (Katsep)
 * Elsloo (Aelse)
 * Maasband (Maasbendj)
 * Meers (Meas)
 * Nattenhoven (Nattenoave)
 * Stein (Stein)
 * Urmond (Uermend, Wermend)

(Local language in parentheses.)

Notable people

 * Sjefke Janssen (1919 in Elsloo – 2014) a Dutch professional road bicycle racer
 * Manfred Naumann (born 1933) a German marathon runner, competed at the 1964 Summer Olympics
 * René Lotz (born 1938) a retired Dutch cyclist, competed at the 1960 Summer Olympics
 * Mia Gommers (born 1939) a retired Dutch athlete, who competed mainly in the 800 metres; bronze medallist at the 1968 Summer Olympics
 * Harry Steevens (born 1945 in Elsloo) a retired Dutch cyclist
 * Henk Temmink (born 1952 in Elsloo) a Dutch chess player
 * Frank Dikötter (born 1961) a Dutch historian who specialises in modern China
 * Silvia Pepels (born 1975) is a triathlon athlete, competed at the first Olympic triathlon at the 2000 Summer Olympics

title: Stein, Limburg


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Susteren

Susteren (Zöstere ) is a city in the Dutch province of Limburg. It is located in the municipality of Echt-Susteren, about 7 km northwest of Sittard. It was a separate municipality until 2003, when it was merged with Echt. Susteren received city right in 1276.

Susteren harboured the Benedictine Abbey Susteren, that was founded in the 8th century and was closed at the end of the 18th century. Its Romanesque church was raised to the status of a basilica in 2007 by pope Benedict XVI. There is a museum ‘t Stift next to the church. Other sights are the Cannon on the market, castle Eyckholt, the mill Dieterdermolen and typical River Meuse valley farms like the Hommelhof.

In 1865, Susteren railway station opened on the Maastricht to Venlo railway line.

title: Susteren


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Swalmen

Swalmen (Zjwame ) is a town in the south-eastern Netherlands. The town is situated between the German border and the river Meuse (Maas in Dutch).

Until 1 January 2007, Swalmen was a separate municipality, covering the villages Swalmen, Asselt and Boukoul. These are now part of the municipality of Roermond.

Many monuments are found in Swalmen, most notable the Hillenraad castle, the romanesque 'Rozenkerkje' church in Asselt, and castle farms Graeterhof and Zuidewijk Spick. The area attracts tourists for its peaceful surroundings, asparagus, the Groenewoud forest and forestrial swimming pool de Bosberg.

In 1863, the Swalmen railway station opened on the Maastricht to Venlo railway line. In 2003, the railway line was moved to make room for the A73 motorway and the railway station is now detached from the rails. The building was scheduled for demolition, however it has remained.

The only physical Max Verstappen shop is located in Swalmen.

title: Swalmen


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Vaals

Vaals (Ripuarian: Vols ) is a town in the extreme southeastern part of the Dutch province of Limburg, itself in the southeast of the Netherlands.

The municipality covers an area of undefined km2.It is situated in the western foothills of the Ardennes–Eifelrange and lies some 23 km east of Maastricht and 5 km west of the German city of Aachen.

Vaals directly adjoins both Belgium and Germany. As such three national borders meet at a point known as the Drielandenpunt and very near the highest point in the Netherlands, the Vaalserberg. The Vaalserberg was previously known as "Hubertusberg", so named for the eighth century St.Hubertus.

History
Vaals' name is derived from Latin, one of very few such geographical names in the Netherlands. The south of the Dutch province of Limburg, which included 'Vallis', was previously part of the Roman Empire, the local region having been centred on the present day German city of Cologne (Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium).

Vaals is first mentioned in historical documents in the year 1041. The village was referred to as either Vals or Vallis, meaning valley. In that time Holy Roman Emperor Henry III donated land to the Abbey of St. Adalbert. To distinguish this from any land closer to the nearby city of Aachen, it is specifically referred to as being "in the valley" – in Vallis.

Vaals' geographical location in Europe meant that it eventually came to lie on the boundary between traditional Catholic and emerging Protestant powers. Commencing in the 16th century Catholic Spain sought to suppress a Protestant uprising in its Dutch territories. During the resulting war a force loyal to Protestant William of Orange in 1568 passed through Vaals and looted the Catholic St. Paul's Church.

In 1661 Vaals became a part of the Republic of the United Netherlands. As such it attracted entrepreneurs who developed it into a prosperous manufacturing hub. One prominent industrial family of the era were the Von Clermonts, who moved from then Prussian Aachen to Vaals in 1761. They established a prosperous linen factory which went on to attract custom from as far afield as Prussia, Austria, Poland and even Russia. In 1717 Tsar Peter the Great had supposedly visited the Von Clermonts. In 1803, Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France, and his wife Josephine de Beauharnais visited Vaals and stayed in the family's recently constructed Bloemendal Castle.

The Conference of Vienna in 1815 determined that the city of Aachen was to be assigned to Prussia while Vaals went to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Belgium declared its independence from the Netherlands in 1830, the new nation including Vaals within its boundaries. In 1839 Vaals was reassigned by the Treaty of London to the Netherlands.

This treaty also created the small Neutral Territory of Moresnet, the new borders of which met up with those of Belgium, the Netherlands and Prussia at a point just outside Vaals. While Moresnet had a flag (Black-White-Blue), it had no head of state or government. It was created by neighbouring European powers wanting to regulate the mining of deposits of tin, then a notably scarce metal, that existed within its boundaries. The Viergrenzenweg ("Four-Borders-Road") still exists in Vaals, a reminder of the era lasting from 1839 to 1919, after which Moresnet was absorbed into Belgium.

Expanding industrialization and protectionist policies outside the Netherlands during the 19th century directly contributed to the notable decline of manufacturing in Vaals after 1840. Thereafter a regional resort town gradually emerged, catering mainly to the neighbouring Germans. Vaals came to be referred to as 'Vaalser Paradies', even acquiring several casinos during the period. To further cross border economic activity a tram line was constructed joining Aachen to Vaals by 1922 and extending across southern Limburg to Maastricht in 1924.

Despite Dutch neutrality being declared long before World War II, Vaals was occupied by German forces on May 10th 1940, the first day of hostilities in western Europe. German occupation lasted for over four years, Vaals being liberated by advancing Allied forces in September 1944.

Post-war recovery was initially slow and was responsible for a viable smuggling trade. The 'Owls of Vaals', as the cross border night-time smugglers came to be known, prospered, dealing in such commodities as coffee, chocolate and tobacco.

To this day Vaals is a tourist site, gathering its income mostly from German, Belgian and Dutch tourists as well as being a retail centre, especially for the Germans. As such the town of Vaals can be seen as the Dutch suburb of the German city of Aachen. Approximately a quarter of the inhabitants are German. Vaals is also well integrated into Aachen's public transport system.

The German dialect spoken in Vaals is a form of Middle German and only distantly related to Standard Dutch. Together with a number of other dialects spoken in western Germany it is a part of the Ripuarian language family.

Population
The municipality of Vaals comprises four villages and nine townships. Vaals' vicinity to Germany has resulted in a present day population that is approximately one quarter German in origin.

Villages
Number of inhabitants on 1/1/2005:

Hamlets
As well as the official villages and towns, the Vaals municipality also includes a number of townships: • Camerig

• Cottessen

• Harles

• Mamelis

• Melleschet

• Raren

• Rott

• Wolfhaag

Economy
Tourism is regarded as the main source of income for Vaals. The neighbouring coal and textile industries were largely lost starting from the 1960s. Most inhabitants commute today to the larger neighbouring cities of Heerlen, Kerkrade and Maastricht as well as to Aachen and surroundings. A sixth of the population is classified as poor in the current national poverty monitor of the Netherlands.

Notable people

 * John Bröcheler (born 1945 in Vaals) a bass baritone opera singer
 * Eddy Verheijen (born 1946 in Vaals) a retired speed skater, competed at the 1972 Winter Olympics
 * Ronald Waterreus (born 1970 in Lemiers) a Dutch former football goalkeeper with 423 club caps

title: Vaals


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Valkenburg aan de Geul

Valkenburg aan de Geul (Valkeberg ) is a municipality situated in the southeastern Dutch province of Limburg. The name refers to the central town in the municipality, Valkenburg, and the small river Geul passing through it.

History
Sieges and conquests have been the recurrent theme in the history of Valkenburg, especially in connection with Valkenburg castle, seat of the counts of Valkenburg (or Falkenburg). In December 1672 the castle was once again destroyed by Dutch troops led by William III, trying to prevent the armies of Louis XIV of France from capturing it, this time not to be rebuilt.

In the 19th century, because of the natural environment of the area, Valkenburg became a holiday destination for the well-to-do in the Netherlands. Tourism developed, especially after in 1853 the railway from Maastricht to Heerlen and Aachen opened. Valkenburg railway station is the oldest surviving station in the Netherlands. In the beginning of the 20th century, Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers lived in Valkenburg for several years. He helped develop tourism by designing a hotel, an open-air theater and a copy of the catacombs of Rome. He also restored the medieval church and designed several tombs and a chapel in Gothic Revival style in a graveyard situated on Cauberg, a steep hill outside the town center.

During the Second World War Valkenburg was occupied by Nazi-Germany for four years, four months and one week. The town was liberated on 17 September 1944 by the American 30th Infantry Division. They were greeted with tulips and bread. For an overview of the resistance movement in Valkenburg during the war, see Valkenburg resistance. Valkenburg is no longer a fortified town but it has largely retained its historical charm, although the town suffered heavily from mass tourism in the 1960s, 70s and 80s. The municipality of Valkenburg aan de Geul still hosts more than 1 million overnight stays a year. The present aim of the council of Valkenburg is to move away from mass tourism and emphasize "the natural and historical beauty of the town". In order to attract more "quality tourism" a plan was made called Vestingstad Valkenburg (Fortification Town Valkenburg). Included in the plan were the restoration of two surviving city gates, the rebuilding of Geulpoort, a 14th-century city gate that was demolished along with the castle in the 17th century, and the reconstruction of the defensive moat along the Medieval wall in Halderpark. More or less simultaneously initiated was the redevelopment of the town's shopping district, finished around 2017.

The river Geul flooded its banks on 15 July 2021, causing considerable damage to bridges and buildings in the entire town centre.

Main sights
These days Valkenburg is known for its tourist attractions, chalk houses (locally called mergel or marl) and the hilly countryside. The main sight are: Valkenburg is situated in a part of the Netherlands that is known for its natural environment and historical buildings. The area, although quite hilly, is perfectly suited for walks or (mountain) bike tours.
 * Valkenburg castle, of which only a ruin remains;
 * several other castles, castle farms and stately homes, mostly situated along the Geul river;
 * Oud-Valkenburg, a small village along the Geul with a particularly picturesque ensemble of a gothic church, two castles (Genhoes and Schaloen) and several historic farmsteads, all in local marlstone;
 * several watermills, two in the old town;
 * parts of the city walls and two of three city gates survived (Berkelpoort and Grendelpoort; the third gate, Geulpoort was rebuilt in 2014);
 * old court building (Spaans Leenhof);
 * Saint Nicolas church, a Gothic church in Valkenburg with some late Medieval wood carvings;
 * Saint Gerlachus church in nearby Houthem Sint-Gerlach, with Baroque frescos by Johann Adam Schöpf, painted on marl;
 * several former marl quarries (locally called 'caves', although they are largely man-made), offering guided tours; some have interesting charcoal drawings and marl sculptures, one has been recreated as the catacombs of Rome (designed by Pierre Cuypers), another one as a coal mine; in the winter Christmas markets are held in some quarries;
 * a 30 m viewing tower (Wilhelminatoren) atop a hill, connected to the town below by aerial lift;
 * Thermae 2000, a sauna and wellness resort;
 * a Holland Casino branch, as well as a large park around it (Kuurpark);
 * two amusement parks; one focusing on popular fairy tales (Sprookjesbos);

Cycling
Valkenburg aan de Geul is famous for its cycling events. The city has hosted the UCI Road Cycling World Championship a record five times, in 1938, 1948, 1979 and 1998 and again in 2012. Since 2003, the city's Cauberg hill has been the finish of the Amstel Gold Race, and since 2017 is in the last 10km distance from the finish. The Tour de France had a stage finish in Valkenburg in 1992 and in 2006.

The Cauberg Cyclo-cross is a cyclo-cross race and a part of the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup.

Population centres
Apart from the city of Valkenburg (including the neighbourhood of Broekhem), the municipality of Valkenburg aan de Geul comprises the following villages and hamlets: Berg en Terblijt, Vilt, Geulhem, Houthem, Sibbe, IJzeren, Oud-Valkenburg, Schin op Geul en Walem.

By car
Valkenburg aan de Geul is served by the A79 motorway, this motorway runs from Maastricht to Heerlen.

By train
Valkenburg aan de Geul has three train stations Valkenburg, Houthem-Sint Gerlach and Schin op Geul, operated by Arriva.

By bus
Valkenburg aan de Geul is served by Arriva buses

Notable residents

 * Saint Gerlach (died c. 1170), hermit
 * Beatrice of Valkenburg (c. 1254 - 1277), queen of Germany
 * Pierre Cuypers (1827 – 1921), architect; spent a few years in Valkenburg
 * Erich Wasmann (1859 - 1931), Austrian-born entomologist
 * Jan Hanlo (1912 - 1969), poet and writer, grew up in Valkenburg
 * Raymond Barion (born 1946) a Dutch artist, made in the form of paintings, sculptures and on paper
 * Gerlach Cerfontaine (born 1946), business leader, CEO of Schiphol Group
 * Marjon Lambriks (born 1949), soprano
 * Rob Delahaye (born 1959) a Dutch former professional footballer with 359 club caps
 * Camiel Eurlings (born 1973), politician, business leader, corporate director for KLM
 * Rob Ruijgh (born 1986), racing cyclist

title: Valkenburg aan de Geul