Discover

Eijsden () is a municipality and region in the south of the Netherlands province Limburg. Limburg is the most southerly province, extending the Netherlands border south like a peninsula, with the French-speaking Wallonia region of Belgium on the west and Germany on the east. Thus, Eijsden is one of the most southern places in the Netherlands.

Contents

History

Village or town?

Population centres

Sights

Music

Famous Natives of Eijsden

External links

History

Eijsden is one of the oldest communities in the country. It's name may come from the Germanic word for aspen forest. Excavations have revealed a Roman settlement. In the middle ages, this settlement developed to a village. After the (feudal) middle ages, in the seventeenth century Eijsden gained in economic strength because of its position near the Durch-Belgian frontier on the Meuse river. It's function as a trading and shipping center attracted settlement well-to-do merchants from Holland. This period of prosperity ended in the Napoleonic era when, for a time, the area ceased to be a frontier.
Apart from trading and shipping, the Eijsden economy has had an agricultural character, with a focus on fruit growing. At one time, Eijsden was the Netherland's largest fruit producer.
In 1870, a zinc-white factory brought increased industrial activity to the region, bringing jobs and air pollution. Zinc-white manufacture originally employed 700 workers, and today employs around 300).
In the second half of the 20th century, many orchards were replaced by housing, dairy farming, and industry. Modern Eijsden is largely residential.

Village or town?

The Eijsden municipality is composed of several population centers, of which the one named Eijsden is the largest, with 7000 inhabitants.
Most of the other population centers are still separated from the main one, and are rather small, so it seems more correct to describe the municipality as a village, or collection of villages than as a town.

Population centres

★ Eijsden

★ Breust

★ Gronsveld

★ Mariadorp

★ Mesch

★ Oost-Maarland

★ Rijckholt

★ Withuis

Sights

★ The seventeenth century Renaissance style castle of Eijsden is one of the top hundred buildings in the country, according to the Unesco-list.

★ Other castles are in Gronsveld, in Rijckholt and in Oost.

Music

In the municipality of Eijsden two military bands are based ('the blue' and 'the red'), that belong both to the highest national division.
The region is home to two military bands, ,the Blue and the Red, both both belonging to the highest national division.

Famous Natives of Eijsden

★ Eugène Dubois- Anatomist/Anthropologist

★ Jo Maas, former cyclist, stage winner and seventh in end-classification of 1997 Tour de France.

External links

★ Official Website

★ Website Gronsveld en Rijckholt