Veghel () is a town and a former municipality in Southern Netherlands. On 1 January 2017 Veghel, together with Schijndel and Sint-Oedenrode, merged into a new municipality called Meierijstad. This created the largest municipality of the province of North Brabant in terms of land area.
History
The first known settlements date to
Roman Empire and were established near the River Aa. The oldest written record of Veghel dates from 1225. It is a document of the
Berne Abbey, written in
Latin on a piece of
parchment, and describes several properties owned by the abbey. Among those is an estate located in the settlement of "Vehchele".
In 1310, John II of Brabant granted the inhabitants the right to use common grounds. For some decades in the 16th and 17th century, the municipality was ruled by the Lords Van Erp; they resided at their castle of Frisselsteijn in Veghel.
In 1648 Veghel became part of the Dutch Republic. As a former part of the Duchy of Brabant, Veghel is situated in the Meierij of 's-Hertogenbosch.
Like all the other areas of Brabant and Limburg which were transferred to the Netherlands by the Peace of Westphalia), Veghel was a Catholic town. It suffered economic and religious oppression from the Protestant Dutch and was part of the military buffer zone of the Dutch Republic.
In 1719 Veghel became a market town, when it was granted town privileges by the States General of the Netherlands. This gave it the privilege of holding weekly markets and four fair. However, it was not until the French wars of 1795 that Veghel formally received freedom of religion again and received a guarantee of full common rights from the Dutch government.
In 1810 Veghel became part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. From the middle of the 19th century, the agrarian market town began to industrialize as a consequence of the opening of the South Willem's Canal. The wealth generated by new industries helped support the construction of large-scale buildings, such as the neogothic church by Pierre Cuypers and the neoclassical town hall, dates from that period. Monastic orders developed Veghel as a regional centre of health care and education, which it remains to this day.
In 1940 Veghel was occupied by Nazi Germany troops. With the beginning of Operation Market Garden in 1944, Veghel was one of the dropping-sites for Allied paratroops owing to its strategic location.
The period since the 1950s has seen much growth, with the development of new industries. Also several international companies (e.g. Mars, Incorporated, FrieslandCampina, DMV International, Agrifirm, Kuehne + Nagel, DHL Supply Chain, Alliance Healthcare, ThyssenKrupp and Vanderlande) have established centers in Veghel.
Its shopping centre and marketplace earned the town the name of "Pearl of the Meierij". Veghel is an educational centre for the surrounding district: it has several secondary schools, a senior secondary vocational school, and the Pedagogic Academy, founded in 1872 and one of the oldest higher vocational schools in the area.
Since 1994, Veghel and the neighbouring town of Erp have formed a single municipality.
Demographics
Towns
Population figures as of 1 January 2015, ranked by size:
Population centres
Population figures as of 1 January 2015, ranked by size:
| Density |
| 1063/km2 |
| 239/km2 |
| 173/km2 |
| 355/km2 |
| 387/km2 |
| 112/km2 |
| 157/km2 |
Language
The language spoken by the native population is North Meierijs (an
East Brabantian dialect, which is very similar to colloquial
Dutch language).
[Jos & Cor Swanenberg: Taal in stad en land: Oost-Brabants, ]
Nationalities
Compared to other towns in the region, the ethnic makeup of Veghel is relatively diverse.
More than 22% of the town's population, or 17% of the municipality's population, is of foreign origin.
In total, Veghel is home to people of more than a hundred different nationalities.
About 90% of the municipality's total foreign population lives inside the
city proper of Veghel.
Local festivals
Every November sees the celebration of the entry of St Nicholas (
Sinterklaas).
Every two years in June or July, the Slokdarmfestival takes place.
On 1 September the harbour festival takes place.
In February or March the traditional carnival is held.
Attractions
Notable residents
-
Anky van Grunsven, dressage champion.
-
Dillianne van den Boogaard, former Netherlands international field hockey player.
-
Earnie Stewart, former United States international soccer player.
-
Theo Lucius, former professional footballer for PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord.
-
Theo Maassen, comedian and actor.
-
Glenn van Berlo, racing driver.
-
Frits van Eerd, former general manager of Jumbo and racing driver and founder of Racing Team Nederland.
Twin towns - sister cities
Veghel is twinned with:
Gallery
File:Gemeentehuis Veghel, Stadhuisplein 1.JPG|Town Hall of Veghel
File:Villa Klondike - Veghel, 2014.jpg|Villa Klondike, former headquarters of the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment (101st Airborne Division)
File:Heilig Hartplein, Binnenhaven Veghel.jpg|Statue of the Sacred Heart at the Marina
File:West-zijde toren - Veghel - 20239979 - RCE.jpg|Saint Lambert Church
File:Overzicht voorgevel en linker zijgevel - Veghel - 20347829 - RCE.jpg|Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Mother of God nunnery
File:Graansilo CHV, J.G. Wiebenga - Het Nieuwe Bouwen.jpg|Modernist silo by J.G. Wiebenga, part of the New Objectivity movement
File:Binnenhaven Veghel, Zuidkade, Zuid-Willemsvaart.jpg|Inland port of Veghel
File:Langshaven Veghel, De Heus Voeders & Inland Terminal Veghel - Zuid-Willemsvaart+N279.jpg|Inland port of Veghel
File:Duits-lijntje-in-veghel-07.jpg|Boxtel-Wesel Railway
File:T.T Aa-Brug Veghel (5).JPG|Railroad crossing the Aa river
File:Binnenhaven Veghel - 2.jpg|Marina of Veghel
File:Binnenhaven Veghel - 3.jpg|Marina of Veghel
File:Intocht van Sinterklaas in Veghel 2014 - 2.JPG|Marina of Veghel during the entry parade of Sinterklaas, 16 November 2014
External links
