32-474: Heusden ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɦøːzdə(n)] ) is a municipality and a city in the south of the Netherlands . It is located between the towns of Waalwijk and 's-Hertogenbosch . The municipality of Heusden, including Herpt, Heesbeen, Hedikhuizen, Doeveren, and Oudheusden, merged with Drunen and Vlijmen in 1997, giving the municipality its current form. The middle part of national park
64-619: A mining engineer , undermined the eastern part of the tower, ensuring that it would collapse on the town hall, not on the street. Later, these events were investigated by the British Civil Affairs . However, this has never resulted in the trial and punishment of Pfühl, Bottnick, and their accomplices. A new town hall was erected in 1956. Designed and built in the style of the Bossche School , it has much less splendour than its late-gothic predecessor. A memorial tablet in
96-562: A certain degree of independence in their policy decisions. Municipalities are responsible for a wide variety of public services , which include land-use planning , public housing , management and maintenance of local roads, waste management and social security . After the Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010 three special municipalities (officially public bodies ) were formed. These municipalities function
128-478: A density of 6,868/km (17,790/sq mi). As a second level administrative division municipalities are the third tier of public administration in the Netherlands after the central government and the provinces . The Netherlands is a decentralized unitary state , which means that the central government is supreme and delegates certain tasks to lower levels of government by law. The different levels do, however, make work agreements, which give municipalities
160-419: A land area of 7.01 km (2.71 sq mi) and Súdwest-Fryslân the largest with a land area of 522.7 km (201.8 sq mi). Schiermonnikoog is both the least populated, with 972 people, and the least densely populated municipality at 23/km (60/sq mi). Amsterdam has the highest population with 931,298 residents as of January 2024, whereas The Hague is the most densely populated with
192-530: A shelter for civilians during artillery fire. The German Wehrmacht used the building as a communication centre and hospital. A few weeks after Operation Market Garden , the allied Operation Pheasant started on 20 October 1944. The First Canadian Army (advancing from Belgium) and the 2nd British Army (advancing from the east) fought to liberate central and western North Brabant. On Saturday 4 November, under heavy artillery fire, two Scottish Highlander regiments advanced, and 170 civilians sought shelter in
224-410: A time by the crown and the alderman are elected by the municipal council, typically after each municipal election. The mayor is responsible for public order and is the first in command during emergencies, all other tasks are distributed freely between mayor and aldermen. The exact portfolio for each person differs between each municipality. Official municipal boundaries were first drawn up in 1832 in
256-487: Is commemorated every year. With the fusion of the municipalities of Heusden, Drunen and Vlijmen in 1997, the town hall had lost its original function. Since 2005, the building has housed a visitors centre. Municipalities of the Netherlands Since 1 January 2023, there have been 342 regular municipalities ( Dutch : gemeenten ) and three special municipalities ( Dutch : bijzondere gemeenten ) in
288-405: Is elected every four years. Municipal mergers have reduced the total number of municipalities by two-thirds since the first official boundaries were created in the mid 19th century. Municipalities themselves are informally subdivided into districts and neighbourhoods for administrative and statistical purposes. These municipalities come in a wide range of sizes, Westervoort is the smallest with
320-801: The Gordon tartan when in kilts and the Seaforth Mackenzie when in trews . The battalion's pipers and drummers wear kilts in the Cameron of Erracht tartan. The battalion recruits from the Hebrides , the Northern Isles , the mainland counties of Inverness-shire , Ross and Cromarty , Sutherland , Caithness , Moray and Nairnshire , and from the traditional Gordon heartlands in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire . The Battalion Headquarters
352-525: The Loonse en Drunense Duinen is located in the municipality of Heusden. Before 1997, Heusden was a municipality in itself, that included the communities of Herpt, Heesbeen, Hedikhuizen, Doeveren, and Oudheusden. The settlement of Heusden on the river Meuse (Maas) started with the construction of Heusden Castle , which replaced an earlier castle destroyed by the Duke of Brabant in 1202. This fortification
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#1732779712551384-541: The Netherlands . The latter is the status of three of the six island territories that make up the Dutch Caribbean . Municipalities are the second-level administrative division, or public bodies ( Dutch : openbare lichamen ), in the Netherlands and are subdivisions of their respective provinces . Their duties are delegated to them by the central government and they are ruled by a municipal council that
416-505: The 5th battalion of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders from the 51st Highland Division liberated Heusden. Witnesses have stated that on 4 November German soldiers carried explosives into the town hall tower, and also into two churches , a windmill , and dairy factory in Heusden. NCO ( non-commissioned officer ) Bottnick , who was probably following orders from commander Pfühl ,
448-605: The Netherlands after a cadastre was formed. The Municipalities Act of 1851, written by prime minister Thorbecke , led to the disappearance of small municipalities. Throughout the years, less populous municipalities have been merged . They were either added to the larger neighbouring cities or multiple smaller municipalities merged into a larger new municipality with a new name. The number of municipalities reduced from 1,209 in 1850 to 537 in 2000; since 2024 there have been 342 municipalities. During this time, multiple mergers occurred simultaneously in large parts of individual provinces;
480-551: The United Kingdom, the battalion was deployed to Bosnia in 2003. In 2004, as part of the restructuring of the infantry , it was announced that The Highlanders would be amalgamated with the other Scottish infantry regiments into the single large Royal Regiment of Scotland . The amalgamation took place on 28 March 2006. As with the other Scottish regiments, the Highlanders were permitted to retain their former name as
512-619: The battalion moved from Germany to Bourlon Barracks in Catterick Garrison , where they became a heavy protected mobility battalion forming part of 20th Armoured Infantry Brigade . As a result of Army 2020 Refine restructure, the battalion joined the Strike Experimentation Group in 2020. While the 4 SCOTS now wear the Government 1A pattern tartan , prior to amalgamation in 2006 the regiment wore
544-672: The districts are called Dutch : stadsdelen , as well as Rotterdam , where the districts are called Dutch : deelgemeenten , consist of such formal subdivisions. The Hague , Almere , Breda , Eindhoven , Enschede , Groningen , Nijmegen , Tilburg and Utrecht have instituted Dutch : stadsdelen as well, although they do not have the same legal submunicipal status. For administrative use by municipalities and data collection by Statistics Netherlands all municipalities are subdivided into districts ( Dutch : wijken ), which in turn are subdivided into neighbourhoods ( Dutch : buurten ). These subdivisions have, in contrast to
576-552: The early nineteenth century, the defence works fell into disrepair and were dismantled. In 1968, however, extensive restoration works started, and fortifications were carefully rebuilt, based on and inspired by a 1649 map of the city of Heusden by Johannes Blaeu , son of the famous Dutch cartographer Willem Blaeu . In 1980, the city of Heusden received the European Urbes Nostrae restoration prize. Heusden currently draws over 350 thousand tourists every year who visit
608-579: The forecourt still remembers the lives that were lost in the night of 4 to 5 November 1944. Its inscription: " Wandelaar, waar gij staat vielen vijf november 1944 honderd vier en dertig burgers den oorlog ten offer. " (" Passer-by, where you are, on five November 1944 one hundred and thirty four civilians fell victim to the war. ") Inscriptions on one of the larger bells in the tower " Nabestaanden, als ik luid, weet: Uw vele, vele doden zijn niet oorlogs droeve buit, maar aan 't Gastmaal Gods genoden. " (" Relatives, when I ring, know: Your many, many decedents are not
640-518: The historic town centre and walk the walls that once made it a formidable stronghold. In October 1944, towards the end of World War II , the cities of Tilburg and 's-Hertogenbosch ( Den Bosch ) were liberated by the Allied forces . The bridge across the river Meuse made Heusden, then still occupied by the Germans, strategically significant. The cellars of the old town hall , built in 1588, were
672-466: The municipal boundaries were basically redrawn in these regions. In the 19th and large parts of the 20th century, municipal mergers were forced by the central government. This policy changed in the end of the 20th century; local support for the merger is now a large part of the decision-making process. The larger, merged municipalities are intended to handle an increasing workload because more public services are delegated from higher levels of government to
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#1732779712551704-439: The municipalities. Another reason for municipal mergers is the assumption that larger municipalities are more efficient in performing their tasks than smaller ones. Municipalities have the right to decentralise themselves and form submunicipalities as an additional level of government. This right and the submunicipalities will cease to exist in the near future to reduce the number of levels of government. Only Amsterdam , where
736-864: The new battalion 's primary title, with the battalion number as a subtitle. They therefore became The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland . Prior to amalgamation, the battalion moved to the Bergen-Hohne Garrison , Bad Fallingbostel , in Germany, as part of 7 Armoured Brigade , the descendants of the Second World War 's Desert Rats , equipped with the Warrior Infantry Vehicle . From here they undertook six-month tours of Iraq in 2005–06 and 2008, and Afghanistan in April 2011. In September 2015
768-432: The sad spoils of war, but the guests of God's banquet. "), and an epitaph " 5 November 1944. Hier staat in steen geschreven geen daad of droom, geen leven, maar slechts het blijvend feit van hun afwezigheid " (" 5 November 1944. Here is written in stone no act or dream, no life, but only the permanent fact of their absence ") in the building itself are also dedicated to the memory of the victims. The massacre ("Stadhuisramp")
800-479: The same as regular municipalities and are grouped together as the Caribbean Netherlands and are not part of a province. The municipalities are governed by both a board of mayor and aldermen and a municipal council. The municipal council , which is titled island council in the special municipalities, is elected every four years. The number of members in the council ranges from nine members for
832-414: The smallest municipalities to forty-five members for the largest. It is the highest administrative body in the municipality and controls public policy. The executive power lies with the executive board , which consists of a mayor , titled lieutenant governor in the special municipalities, and multiple aldermen, titled island deputies in the special municipalities. The mayor is appointed for six years at
864-550: The submunicipalities, no formal status. Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland ( 4 SCOTS ) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland . Prior to 28 March 2006, the Highlanders was an infantry regiment in its own right; The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) , part of the Scottish Division . The regiment
896-415: The town hall cellars. In the early morning of 5 November, three German army engineers detonated explosive charges they had placed earlier in the 40-metre tower. It collapsed, killing 134 people. Heusden was decimated. One tenth of the town's population died that night in the town hall cellars. Seventy-four victims, i.e. more than half of the total number, were children aged 16 or younger. Only hours later,
928-527: Was occupied by the Spanish. In 1577, however, following the Pacification of Ghent , the people of Heusden allied with William, Prince of Orange . William consolidated the town's strategic position near the river Meuse, and ordered fortification works to be constructed. Work started in 1579 with the digging of moats and the construction of bastions , walls, and ravelins , and was completed in 1597. By
960-931: Was one of only two in the British Army with a Gaelic motto – Cuidich 'n Righ which means "Help the King". (The other is the Royal Irish Regiment .) The regiment was formed on 17 September 1994 as part of the Options for Change defence review, by the amalgamation of the Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons) and the Gordon Highlanders . The new regiment undertook a two-year tour of Northern Ireland from April 1995, and were stationed at Ebrington Barracks in County Londonderry . After being based in various locations around
992-406: Was quickly expanded with water works and a donjon (castle keep). The city of Heusden received city rights in 1318. Heusden's castle had belonged to successive dukes of Brabant; in 1357 it passed into the hands of the counts of Holland . Ramparts and moats were constructed, bringing the castle within the city's fortifications and resulting in the loss of its function as a stronghold. The donjon
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1024-496: Was then used as a munition depot. On 24 July 1680, a terrible thunderstorm hit Heusden, and lightning struck the donjon. Sixty thousand pounds of gunpowder and other ammunition exploded, destroying the castle. It took seven weeks to clear the rubble and debris. The castle was never fully rebuilt. However, outlines of the main features were restored in 1987. At the beginning of the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), Heusden
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