Limburg

Capital: Maastricht
Website: http://www.limburg.nl/

Description

Limburg takes its name from the fortified castle known as Limbourg, situated on the small river Vesdre in the Ardennes.
It was the seat of a medieval princedom which extended into the Meuse region north of Li�ge. After the Napoleonic era, the great powers united the region with the new Kingdom of the Netherlands, of which Belgium was also part. The first King, William I, gave the region the name of Limburg. After Belgium gained its independence, Limburg was split and divided between the two countries in 1839. For centuries, Limburg's strategic location made it a much- coveted region among Europe's major powers.
Romans, Spaniards, Prussians, Austrians and Frenchhave all ruled Limburg as lord and master. In 1673, Louis XIV, the Sun King, personally commanded the siege of Maastricht by French troops. During the siege, one of his brigadiers, Count Charles d'Artagnan, perished; he subsequently became known as one of the musketeers in the novel of the same name by Alexander Dumas (1802-1870). Limburg was also the scene of many a bloody battle during the Eighty Years' War (1568-1648), in which the Netherlands threw off Spanish rule. At the battle of Mookerhei (14 April 1574), two brothers of Prince William of Orange-Nassau and thousands of "Dutch" mercenaries lost their lives.
The Second World War cost the lives of many civilians in Limburg, and a large number of towns and villages were destroyed by bombings and artillery battles. Various cemeteries, too, bear witness to this dark chapter in Limburg's history. Almost eight and a half thousand U.S. soldiers who perished during the liberation of the Netherlands lie buried at the American Military Cemetery in Margraten. A cemetery was also constructed in IJsselstein in the Municipality of Venray for the 31 thousand German soldiers who lost their lives.
Limburg is both a Dutch province and a European region with a highly distinct character. The social and economic trends which affected the province in recent decades generated a process of change and renewal which has enabled Limburg to transform the drawbacks of its national peripheral location into advantages inherent in its European settings.
Today, Limburg is a European province par excellence and is the metaphorical hand which the Netherlands extends towards Europe. Limburg has acquired a strong position in the "Europe without frontiers" and the province is doing well, both from a national and a European perspective. Thanks to its broad international approach to a variety of issues, Limburg has the edge on other Dutch provinces. The fact that the province has proved to be an excellent location for many foreign businesses and companies targeting international markets is of increasing significance to Limburg's economy and employment. In the field of education, Limburg has again succeeded in benefiting from its strategy European location. Within a 25 kilometre radius of Maastricht, there are live universities of which two are in the Netherlands. Maastricht University and Maastricht University Hospital enjoy a transborder reputation thanks to the nature of their medical training programmes and medical-technological qualities. The Jan van Eyck Akademie for fine arts, the Conservatory of Music, the Maastricht Theatre School and the National Academy for Transport and Logistics in Venlo are also accessible to students from the German and Belgian border regions.
Parts of Limburg belong to one of the three Euroregions: the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, the Rhine-North Meuse Euroregion and the Rhine-Waal Euroregion. Within these forums, cross-border cooperation is developing in various policy, public administration and social fields. Limburg's European identity was enhanced by the Maastricht Treaty, which was drawn up and signed in 1992 at the Provincial Government Buildings in Maastricht. If the future of the Netherlands lies in Europe then Limburg is already a European province.

Key Statistics

Area : 2,211 km²
Total population : 1,136,695 inhabitants

Population density : 528 inhabitants per km²
Working population : 417,100 people
GDP per inhabitant: 26,571�

Further statistics on the demographic change in Netherlands

Contact Information

Postal address:
Postbus 5700
6202 MA Maastricht

Visiting address:
Limburglaan 10
6226 GA Maastricht
mon-fri 9.00-17.00
Phone: 043 - 389 99 99

E-Mail: s dot verstappen at prvlimburg dot nl

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