Eindhoven

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History

The written history of Eindhoven started in 1232, when Duke Hendrik I of Brabant granted city rights to Eindhoven, then a small town right on the confluence of the Dommel and Gender streams. At the time of granting of its charter, Eindhoven had approximately 170 houses enclosed by a rampart. Just outside the city walls stood a small castle. The city was also granted the right to organize a weekly market and the farmers in nearby villages were obliged to come to Eindhoven to sell their produce. Another factor in its establishment was its location on the trade route from Holland to Liège. Around 1388, the city's fortifications were strengthened further. And between 1413 and 1420, a new castle was built within the city walls. In 1486, Eindhoven was plundered and burned by troops from Guelders. The reconstruction of Eindhoven was finished in 1502, with a stronger rampart and a new castle. However, in 1543 it fell again, its defence works having been neglected due to poverty. A big fire in 1554 destroyed 75% of the houses but by 1560 these had been rebuilt with the help of William I of Orange. During the Dutch Revolt, Eindhoven changed hands between the Dutch and the Spanish several times during which it was burned down by renegade Spanish soldiers, until finally in 1583 it was captured once more by Spanish troops and its city walls were demolished. Eindhoven did not become part of the Netherlands until 1629. During the French occupation, Eindhoven suffered again with many of its houses destroyed by the invading forces. Eindhoven remained a minor city after that until the start of the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution of the 19th century provided a major growth impulse. Canals, roads and railroads were constructed. Eindhoven was connected to the major…

Geography

The villages and city that make up modern Eindhoven were originally built on sandy elevations between the Dommel, Gender and Tongelreep rivers. Beginning in the 19th century, the basins of the rivers themselves have also been used as housing land, resulting in occasional flooding in the city centre. Partly to reduce flooding, the bed of the Gender stream, which flowed directly through the city centre, was dammed off and filled up after the War, and the course of the Dommel was regulated. New ecological and socio-historical insights have led to parts of the Dommel's course being restored to their original states, and plans to have the Gender flow through the centre once again. The large-scale housing developments of the 20th century saw residential areas being built on former agricultural lands and woods, former heaths that had been turned into cultivable lands in the 19th century. The city is currently divided into seven districts: {| | * 1. Centrum * 2. Woensel-Noord * 3. Woensel-Zuid * 4. Tongelre | * 5. Stratum * 6. Gestel * 7. Strijp |} Eindhoven has an oceanic climate with slightly warmer summers and cooler winters than the coastal parts of the Netherlands. Its all-time record is set on 25 July 2019 and set on 13 January 1968, while winter lows have dipped below during extreme cold snaps. Although frosts are frequent in winter, there is no lasting snow cover in a normal winter due to the mild daytime temperatures.