Misplaced Pages

#106893

106-532: The Zuid-Willemsvaart is a canal in the provinces Limburg (Netherlands) , Limburg (Belgium) , and North Brabant . Several important canals are connected to it, e.g. the Campine Canals and the Wilhelmina Canal . On its 122 km route it passes cities like Maastricht , Maasmechelen , Bree , Weert , Helmond , and 's-Hertogenbosch . Nowadays most commercial shipping activity on the canal

212-569: A condominium , sovereignty over this city was held jointly by the Prince-Bishopric of Liège and the Duchy of Brabant . Also, the central and northern part of present-day Limburg belonged to different political entities, notably the Duchy of Jülich and the Duchy of Guelders . By the late Middle Ages most of the present day territory of Limburg had been partitioned to the Duchy of Brabant,

318-453: A canal became available. The Zuid-Willemsvaart was planned as a shortcut of the river Meuse between the cities of Maastricht and 's-Hertogenbosch . It shortened the distance of shipping traffic from 233 km to 122 km, but that was not a primary goal of constructing the canal. The canal was dug with little regard for connecting local communities. The problem of the Meuse river was

424-461: A cargo capacity of 600 tons, of which only 450 tons could be used due to the depth restrictions of the canal. The size limits of the canal only became problematic after World War II. In 1960 the average cargo capacity of ships on the canal was 190 ton. By 1974 this average was 325 tons. Details at Sluis 0 showed that by this time vessels of up to 200 tons were becoming obsolete. From 1968 to 1975 their number at Sluis 0 decreased by two-thirds. In 1982

530-421: A derivation from a Germanic word "lint" meaning "dragon". Ironically the area under the direct lordship of the old Duchy did not overlap at all with the modern Belgian and Dutch provinces named after it today, though the medieval Duchy was a high status title in the region. On the other hand, while the Duchy's effective power was limited, the Duchy and what is now South Limburg (referred to as Overmaas) did have

636-414: A far more reliable waterway. It would always have enough water and would allow easy transport upstream. On 23 February 1818 Inspector General A.F. Goudriaan got orders to design the canal from Maastricht to 's-Hertogenbosch. On 15 May 1819 he presented his design. It called for a canal of 2.1 m deep, 10 m wide at the floor and 18 m wide on the water level. Practical draught for ships would be 188 cm. On

742-411: A flood lock. It was also a double flood lock, and therefore it could be used to lift ships, which came in handy if it caused or maintained a flood. However, in normal circumstances the flood lock would be open, and therefore it was not in the numbered list of locks. When it later began to permanently function as a lock, it was named Sluis 0 , or Lock 0, because it was just downstream of Lock 1. The canal

848-450: A height of 322.4 metres (1,058 ft) above NAP , rising approximately 110 metres above the village Vaals, where three countries ( Netherlands , Belgium and Germany ) border each other at the so-called " Three-country-point ". Limburg's main river is the Meuse , which passes through the province's entire length from south to north. Limburg's surface is largely formed by deposits from

954-669: 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 8,500 American soldiers, who perished during the liberation of the Netherlands, lie buried at the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial in Margraten . Other big war cemeteries are to be found at Overloon ( British soldiers) and

1060-671: A long history of connection under the lordship of the Dukes of Brabant . During this long period, from the Middle Ages until the French Revolution , they were sometimes referred to collectively under one name (Overmaas or Limburg). After 1794, it was the French Republic which unified the region, along with Belgian Limburg, and removed all ties to the old feudal society (the ancien regime ). The new name, as with all

1166-643: A loss of economic importance. Limburg was the scene of many bloody battles during the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), in which the Dutch Republic threw off Habsburg Spanish rule. At the Battle of Mookerheyde (14 April 1574), two brothers of Prince William of Orange-Nassau and thousands of " Dutch " mercenaries died. Most Limburgians fought on the Spanish side, being Catholics and being opposed to

SECTION 10

#1732765019107

1272-521: A major character in The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, père (1802–1870). The modern boundaries of Dutch Limburg, along with its neighbour, Belgian Limburg, were basically set during the period after the French Revolution , which erased much of the " ancien regime " of Europe, with all its old boundaries and titles. These two provinces were part of a new French département , named (like many départements ) after

1378-472: A paper factory (today: Sappi ), a rubber factory (today: Hercorub) and a factory for synthetic fibers ( Celanese ), among others. In 2006, four 100 meter high wind turbines were built to provide electricity to the Celanese factory. Later on 8 more have been built. The South African pulp and paper company Sappi operates a large mill on the outskirts of the town and is an important source of employment for

1484-615: A result of the Battle of Worringen , then in the 15th century under the Duchy of Burgundy . By 1473, the Lands of Overmaas and the Duchy of Limburg formed one unified delegation to the States General of the Burgundian Netherlands . Both the terms Overmaas and Limburg came to be used loosely to refer to this sparsely populated province of the so-called Seventeen Provinces . Maastricht was never part of this polity: as

1590-583: A single lock, Sluis Helmond (Lock Helmond). Also the many crossings over the new section could be constructed so high that they would not have to be opened to allow ships to pass. All this would save much time for ships, and make transport over water more competitive. Work on the Helmond detour started on 11 December 1981. By 1986 the overall project to upgrade the Zuid-Willemsvaart was delayed by financial difficulties, and budget overruns on e.g.

1696-418: A whole. Dialects in the north, nearby Venray and Gennep , are classified as Kleverlandish and are closely connected to the dialects in the northeast of Brabant (Land van Cuijk) and the region of Nijmegen . Dialects in the southeast (near Aachen ) are closer to Ripuarian and are sometimes classified as Southeast Limburgish . Dialects in the western part of Limburg, surrounding Weert , are influenced by

1802-454: Is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg . On January 1, 2007, the municipality of Lanaken had a total population of 24,724. Its area is 59.00 km which gives a population density of 415 inhabitants per km . Lanaken is located on the Belgian - Dutch border, bordering Maastricht directly. In the 2006 census, some 20 percent of the inhabitants turned out to have

1908-647: Is appointed by the King and the cabinet of the Netherlands. Since December 2021 Emile Roemer ( SP ) has been holding the office of governor. Since the 2011 elections the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) was the largest party in the council, although the Party for Freedom (PVV) won the most votes during the election. However, two members of the PVV left the party, taking their seats with them, which lost

2014-652: Is cut off from Smeermaas and the Maas basin by the Briegden-Neerharen Canal . Lanaken itself lies at an altitude of about 60 meters, to the northwest one finds steep edges to the plateau, which reaches heights of up to 100 meters, and the deeply cut valleys of the brooks Asbeek and Ziepbeek. This part, which is part of the Hoge Kempen National Park , has marshy lowlands, heaths, and forests, consisting of coniferous forest, once planted for

2120-554: Is local. Previous to the construction of the Zuid-Willemsvaart, there were many plans for making a canal from 's-Hertogenbosch towards the Belgian border. Most of these centered on canalizing the Aa , the stream bed of which is closely followed by the Zuid-Willemsvaart for most of its route. The geographical proximity to the Aa indicates a relation between these older plans and the construction of

2226-639: Is located in the municipality. Archaeological finds on the territory of Lanaken are known from the Neolithic , Roman and Merovingian periods. There were several Gallo-Roman cemeteries and in Smeermaas was the Gallo-Roman villa of Smeermaas was located. In the Middle Ages , the domain of Lanaken probably belonged to the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire . From the 12th century Lanaken

SECTION 20

#1732765019107

2332-685: Is located on the Chemelot campus in Sittard-Geleen , which is bounded by the Chemelot Industrial Park, one of Western Europe's biggest industrial sites. At this moment 8000 people work at Chemelot, of which 1000 are active at the Campus. The innovation and licensing division Stamicarbon of DSM was sold in 2009 to Maire Tecnimont, the parent company of an engineering, main contracting and licensing group that operates worldwide in

2438-550: Is the official language and the one most used, Limburgish is currently considered a regional language as described in the a page of the Dutch Government. It has been an official regional language since 1997 and it receives moderate protection under Chapter 2 of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages . The German and Belgian governments do not recognise it as an official language. Before

2544-470: Is the southernmost of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands . It is bordered by Gelderland to the north and by North Brabant to its west. Its long eastern boundary forms the international border with the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany . To the west is the international border with the similarly named Belgian province of Limburg , part of which is delineated by the river Meuse . To

2650-907: The Calvinist Hollanders . In the early modern era, Limburg was largely divided between the Spanish Netherlands (the Austrian Netherlands after 1714), Prussia , the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Prince-Bishopric of Liège and many small independent fiefs . In 1673, Louis XIV personally commanded the siege of Maastricht by French troops. During the siege, one of his brigadiers, Charles de Batz-Castelmore d'Artagnan , perished. He subsequently became known as

2756-666: The European Community (now European Union ) held a summit in Maastricht. At that summit, the "Treaty on European Union" or so-called Maastricht Treaty was signed by the European Community member states. With that treaty, the European Union came into existence. Limburg mijn Vaderland (Limburg my Fatherland) is the official anthem of both Belgian and Dutch Limburg. Although standard Dutch

2862-568: The Oosterscheldekering . However, the detour was still planned to be finished in 1993. By 1988, while about 100 of the 160 million guilder cost had already been spent, the government wanted to delay the opening until 1995. In 1990 construction of the Helmond Lock started. In the end, the detour was opened on 11 December 1993. By 1988 the overall maintenance situation of the canal was problematic. Locks 2 until 13 still dated from

2968-748: The Ysselsteyn German war cemetery was constructed in the Municipality of Venray for the 31,000 German soldiers who died. According to the research of Herman van Rens, the residents of Limburg were especially active in hiding local and refugee Jews during the Holocaust , to the extent that the Jewish population even increased during the war. Jews in hiding were three times as likely to survive in Limburg as in Amsterdam. In December 1991,

3074-664: The 10th century, the Eastern kingdom consolidated its control of Lotharingia and became the Holy Roman Empire . In the first decades of this empire the founding imperial family had close ties to areas in what is today northern Limburg. The emperor Otto III for instance was born in 980 in Kessel , practically on the current border between Limburg and North Rhine-Westphalia , just east from Gennep . In 1080 in Genneperhuis  [ nl ] , just north of Gennep, Norbert of Gennep

3180-680: The 20th century, most newspapers were in French or in German, and schools in Maastricht taught French, as the city has historic ties with the Belgian city of Liège . Other parts of the province taught German. Limburgish is spoken by an estimated 1.6 million people in Dutch Limburg, Belgian Limburg , and Germany. There are many different dialects of Limburgish; almost every town and village has its own. A lot of isoglosses cross through Limburg. No single dialect can fully represent Limburgish as

3286-587: The Duchy of Gelderland, the Duchy of Jülich, the Prince-Bishopric of Liège or the Electorate of Cologne . These dukes, prince-bishops and prince-electors were nominal subordinates of the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, but in practice acted as independent sovereigns who were often at war with each other. These conflicts were often fought in and over Limburg, contributing to its fragmentation and

Zuid-Willemsvaart - Misplaced Pages Continue

3392-555: The Dutch nationality. A number of neighbourhoods in Lanaken is characterized by these immigrants' numerous villas and exclusive landhouses. Lanaken consists of the following villages: Lanaken proper, Rekem , Neerharen , Gellik , Veldwezelt , Smeermaas and Kesselt . Also located in Lanaken are the hamlets Briegden and Herbricht and the old village centre Oud-Rekem . The Veldwezelt-Hezerwater Palaeolithic archaeological site

3498-517: The Grand Canal du Nord on the stretch that was part of the Zuid-Willemsvaart, and the construction or completion of some of its infrastructure. Building six locks, 10 drawbridges and a number of culverts. On 16 March 1824 a sixth part was tendered. It consisted of: Digging the basin, or city harbor in Maastricht, with a lock on the Meuse. Executing a lot of works to lead the canal through the fortification of Maastricht, including three tunnels through

3604-557: The Hasselt-Maastricht railroad line, which was closed to passenger traffic in 1954. On October 4, 1914, during World War I , the center of Lanaken was set on fire by the Germans, partly in retaliation for the resistance of a Belgian volunteer group led by Mayor Edgard de Caritat de Peruzzis. The castles of de Caritat de Peruzzis and Alicebourg were then blown up. On May 10, 1940, during World War II , German planes bombed

3710-453: The Helmond detour, locks 10 - 13 were replaced earlier. The replacement of Lock 11 and Lock 13 by longer locks was finished in 2003. Locks 10 and 12 were replaced in 2007. The section of the canal which ran through the city center of 's-Hertogenbosch posed a serious problem for the plans to upgrade the canal. It was situated in an area with very much street traffic, and was surrounded by buildings on both sides. There were three options: Widening

3816-476: The House of Representatives this was unacceptable. Local companies had already invested about 10 million guilders to improve their facilities in anticipation of the widening, and 30 million had already been granted for Schijndel Lock from an environmental budget. Their actions proved effective. In the second half of 1990 construction of Schijndel Lock was underway. Schijndel Lock was taken into use in 1995. Even while

3922-478: The Kingdom of the Netherlands, was reincorporated into the latter with the 1867 Treaty of London , though the term "Duchy of Limburg" remained in some official use until February 1907. Another idiosyncrasy survives today: the head of the province, referred to as the "King's Commissioner" in other provinces, is addressed as "Governor" in Limburg. The Second World War cost the lives of many civilians in Limburg, and

4028-491: The Maas valley became more culturally and politically one of the most important regions in Europe. In 714 Susteren Abbey was founded, as far as is known the first proprietary abbey in the current Netherlands. The main benefactor was Plectrude , the consort of Pepin of Herstal . Charles Martel was born in nearby Herstal . Charlemagne made Aachen , today a German city which has suburban sprawl stretching into South Limburg,

4134-618: The Meuse after the Congress of Vienna, the Dutch province of Limburg (excluding the cities of Maastricht and Venlo because without them Limburg's population equalled that of the Province of Luxembourg, 150,000 ), was joined to the German Confederation between 5 September 1839 and 23 August 1866 as the Duchy of Limburg . On 11 May 1867, the Duchy, which from 1839 on had been de jure a separate polity in personal union with

4240-413: The Meuse were given by the manager of the mines of SA John Cockerill . He gave an example of shipping between Liège and Venlo over the Meuse. A Meuse ship Maasschip had an empty draught of 23 cm, and had a cargo space of about 150-160 ton ( tonnage ). This meant that it could load about 100 wagonloads of coal. With 100 wagonloads of coal on board, the Meuse ship had a draught of 110–120 cm. If

4346-739: The Meuse, consisting of river clay, fertile loessial soil and large deposits of pebblestone, currently being quarried for the construction industry. In the north of the province, further away from the riverbed, the soil primarily consists of sand and peat. Limburg makes up one region of the International Organization for Standardization world region code system, having the code ISO 3166-2:NL -LI. The province of Limburg has 31 municipalities. From North to South: Gennep , Venray , Venlo , Weert , Roermond , Thorn , Sittard , Geleen , Heerlen , Valkenburg , Kerkrade , Maastricht , Vaals . The Gross domestic product (GDP) of

Zuid-Willemsvaart - Misplaced Pages Continue

4452-408: The Meuse. In Helmond the canal had been dug just west of the town's center. In 1957 20,000 vessels passed Sluis 7 (Lock 7) and the center of Helmond. By 1960, motorized road traffic had quadrupled in ten years. It caused chaos near the bridges over the canal. These had to be opened often, and were anyhow unsuitable for the increased traffic. Rijkswaterstaat then made a plan to create a new course for

4558-421: The Netherlands only came into existence in 1839, after the finalization of the separation of Belgium from the Netherlands which had begun in 1830. The two Limburgs had been brought together under French revolutionary administration some decades earlier, but they and the surrounding region shared much of their history. For long periods of history however, the region was not united under the same rule. For centuries,

4664-597: The PVV their number one status. Since the 2015 elections the CDA (11 seats) has again been the largest party, followed by the PVV (9 seats) and the Socialist Party (SP) (8 seats). The province's daily affairs are taken care of by the Provincial-Executive ( Gedeputeerde Staten ), which are also headed by the King's Commissioner; its members ( gedeputeerden ) can be compared with ministers. Results of

4770-633: The Romans upon this route. The area became strongly Romanized. Bishop Servatius introduced Christianity in Roman Maastricht, where he died in 384. Maastricht appears to have taken over from Tongeren for some time as regional capital for the Romanized and Christian population, before the bishopric was re-established in Liège , 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of Maastricht. As Roman authority in

4876-538: The Treaty of Meerssen, effective Frankish power in the area of the current Netherlands more or less collapsed. For two or more years a large Viking army, operating from a place on or near the Meuse called Ascloa (or Hasloa or Haslon), wrought havoc in the neighbourhood. The damage was such that the emperor, Charles the Fat was forced to assemble a large multinational army, that in 882 unsuccessfully besieged this island . In

4982-479: The Wilhelmina Canal, and then returned. Furthermore, not much cargo was loaded along the Zuid-Willemsvaart. As regards the future of transport on the canal, the conclusion was that Water transport had successfully maintained its position against increased competition by road transport . This had been done by increasing productivity, i.e. ship size and engine power. A clear limit to a further increase were

5088-464: The Zuid-Willemsvaart, but the relation is only in the suitability of the drainage basin of the Aa for digging most of the Zuid-Willemsvaart. When the United Kingdom of the Netherlands was founded in 1815, its commercial center was formed by the harbors in the west, but its industrial center was near Liège . Communication between the two over the Meuse was difficult until the funds to create

5194-462: The area weakened, Franks took over from the Romans, but the area came to flourish under their rule, with Cologne continuing to be the most important local capital. The Maas valley, especially the middle and southern part of the current province, formed an important part of the heartland of Merovingian Austrasia . With the rise of the Carolingian dynasty, who were themselves from this region,

5300-575: The barracks of de Caritat de Peruzzis killing Captain-Commander Henri Giddelo and five other soldiers. In 1957, the Saint Barbara Hospital in Lanaken was established by the Limburg mines to enable research and combat occupational diseases, especially dust lung, which mostly affected the miners of the Kempen coal basin. On January 1, 1977, Lanaken merged with the surrounding municipalities of Gellik, Neerharen, Rekem and Veldwezelt to form

5406-447: The border between the Western- and Eastern Frankish kingdoms, placing most of the current Dutch province of Limburg on the western boundary of the Eastern Frankish kingdom, with Belgian Limburg in the Western Kingdom. In the Treaty of Ribemont of 888, the Eastern Kingdom was granted control of the whole of Lotharingia, including all of the modern Netherlands and Luxembourg, and most of modern Belgium. The region of Thorn, Netherlands

SECTION 50

#1732765019107

5512-462: The canal east of Helmond. The detour was about as long as the previous course, and though it was planned to start north of lock 9, in the end it would start south of it. The Helmond detour would be constructed first. It would lead to the strange situation that for many years the Helmond detour was the widest part of the canal, but was unreachable for larger vessels. The logic was that the existing section through Helmond could not be upgraded, and solving

5618-403: The canal up to Veghel. In 2014 the situation south of Veghel was that Lock 4, 5 and 6 were suitable for CEMT class IV, but the canal itself was not. Now a different solution came up, which consisted of up to 110 m long combinations. One was the pusher (boat) with two inline barges before it. The other the koppelverband of two class II ships, which could transport 900 tons, instead of

5724-494: The canal, but could not sail the Meuse upwards of Venlo. However, it is reasonable to suppose that in time, shipping lines designed ships that could take maximum advantage of the canal. In 1858 a statement about shipping on the canal said that two-thirds of the ships on the canal were smaller than 130-150 ton, and were drawn by one horse. One third was larger than 150 ton, and was mostly drawn by two horses. Finally, there were 5 or 6 ships of 300-400 ton, drawn by three horses. Perhaps

5830-418: The canal. A passing ship was reported to have lost an hour using the lock, because its skipper had to be so careful. In October 1982 the government decided to widen the Zuid-Willemsvaart up to NederWeert, the Wessem Nederweert Canal, and the Wilhelmina Canal between Son and Tilburg to CEMT class IV. A 1985 plan to realize this gave priority to the replacement of Locks 2 and 3 by a new lock near Schijndel. This

5936-404: The capital of the Frankish empire . After the death of Charlemagne, the Frankish dominions were again split between kings. While the Austrasian lands remained a separate "Middle Kingdom", sometimes now referred to as Lotharingia , in the treaties of Verdun (843), and Prüm (855), in the 870 Treaty of Meerssen , signed in South Limburg itself, Lotharingia was divided. The river Meuse became

6042-461: The cargo capacity of the Meuse ship of the example at about 80,000 kg, or 80 tonnes (100*800). The example ship is in line with the statement that ships on the Meuse measured 40-200 ton with a draught of 94–188 cm, with the biggest rarely sailing further upstream than Venlo. An example that shows the importance of transport cost for coal, dates from 1862. In Gent 1,000 kg of Belgian coal then cost 24 francs including transport. Ruhr coal

6148-433: The construction time of the canal, and looked extremely bad. Most of the lock chambers were kept together by metal sheeting to diminish the risk of collapse. A risk analysis showed increased wear and tear of the locks, and more collisions, because ships had become so much larger and used ever stronger engines. The situation was most serious at Lock 3, just east of where the current road between Schijndel and Heeswijk crosses

6254-408: The early 1960s there were plans to upgrade the canal. There was no intention to execute these plans on short notice, but some aspects were determined in order to ease later implementation. In 1974 an overview of traffic on the canal was made by collecting shipping data of Sluis 0 in 's-Hertogenbosch, and of Sluis 13, somewhat south of Someren , near Limburg. Overall, it showed that from 1960 to 1974

6360-412: The elections for the States-Provincial : The Provincial-Executive 2023–2027 consists of the following parties: BBB, CDA, VVD, PvdA and SP. Limburg is a salient of the Netherlands into Belgium. Compared to the rest of the Netherlands the southern part of Limburg is less flat, slightly undulated. The highest point in the continental Netherlands is the Vaalserberg (meaning 'mountain' of Vaals) with

6466-454: The existing section; digging a detour around the city; and upgrading the Wilhelmina Canal. The latter runs from the Meuse through Oosterhout and Tilburg to a point just north of Helmond, where it meets the northern end of the Helmond detour. In the end it was decided to dig a detour around 's-Hertogenbosch. Construction of the Máxima Canal started in 2007, and was completed in 2014. In the mid-nineteenth century some calculations for shipping on

SECTION 60

#1732765019107

6572-424: The first barge with a Belgian flag arrived in Helmond from Liège. It was loaded with iron goods and roof shingles . In 1841 over 4,000 ships and barges passed the canal. In 1846 the Eindhovensch Kanaal was opened. It connected Eindhoven to the canal just below Helmond. In the 1850s irrigation works in the Belgian Campine and surroundings dramatically increased the flow of water to the Zuid-Willemsvaart. This led to

6678-435: The first stretch between Maastricht and the lock at Hocht, this draught would later be only 157 cm in case of draught. The canal would have 19 locks. Each with a passage width of 7 m and a length of at least 50 m. In this perspective, the naming of the canal after King William I of the Netherlands on 11 November 1822 is justified. "South" was added to avoid confusion with two other canals commissioned by and named after

6784-416: The government decided to widen the Zuid-Willemsvaart up to NederWeert, and the connecting Wessem Nederweert Canal to CEMT class IV. Helmond Lock was opened in 1993, and Schijndel Lock was taken into use in 1995. Schijndel Lock has a lock chamber with useful dimensions of 110 * 12.50 m. Normal depth at the lower gate is 3.80 m. These first steps had little effect. Near the Meuse Engelen Lock limited

6890-490: The important section up to Veghel was getting upgraded to Class IV, plans for the central section between Veghel and Nederweert again came under discussion. in 1997 plans were made that would upgrade this section, which included the Helmond detour, to class III instead of class IV. In the end Sluis 4, 5 and 6 would get the same size lock chamber as Schijndel Lock, i.e. 110 * 12.6 m. Normal depth would be 3.5 m. Construction of these three locks started in 2008. Upstream of

6996-433: The junction, and a lock was built at the western end of the Noordervaart. The new lock 15 bridged a rise of 4.85 m. Lock 16, southwest of Weert was renovated. Both locks got an increased passage width of 7.50 m instead of 7 m. The cill of the locks was laid deeper, at 2.50 m below canal level. In 1964 there was more traffic on the Wessem-Nederweert Canal than on any part of the Zuid-Willemsvaart. Already in

7102-446: The king: the Willemskanaal near Zwolle and the Noord-Willemskanaal in Groningen province. The naming happened on 11 November 1822, when the first stone of the constructions on the canal (locks, bridges etc.) was laid in 's-Hertogenbosch at Lock 1 Sluis 1 . This was done by the governor of Limburg. The first part of the canal that was constructed, was the part from 's-Hertogenbosch to Veghel, and from there to Helmond. This part

7208-428: The length of ships to 90 m. In 's-Hertogenbosch Sluis 0 , still had the original passage width of only 6.8 m, and a depth of 2.1 m. For the moment, the advantage of these works was therefore limited to a substantial increase in allowed length, and a small increase in the allowed draft, of ships using the canal. The opening of the Máxima Canal in December 2014, actually allowed ships of CEMT class IV to use

7314-404: The medieval name to be lost, insisted that it be changed to " Province of Limburg ". As such, the name of the new province was derived from the old Duchy of Limburg that had existed until 1795 on the east bank of the Meuse river. When the Catholic and French -speaking Belgians split away from the mainly Calvinist northern Netherlands in the Belgian Revolution of 1830, the Province of Limburg

7420-408: The municipality was split into a Belgian and a Dutch part (Caberg). Caberg then became an independent parish. Smeermaas received its own church in 1870. The borough of Bessemer was later incorporated into the municipality of Zutendaal . From 1824-1829 the South Willemsvaart was built, and from 1930-1934 the Briegden-Neerharen canal. These canals cut through the territory of Lanaken. In 1856 followed

7526-410: The names of the départements , was based on natural features such as rivers, in this case Meuse-Inférieure or Neder-Maas ("Lower Meuse"). After the defeat of Napoleon the newly created United Kingdom of the Netherlands desired a new name for this province. It was decided that the historic connection to the duchy of Limburg was to be restored, albeit only in name. The current province Limburg of

7632-461: The neighbouring dialects of southeast Brabant , which means that the tone is more Brabantic than in the rest of Limburg. The provincial council ( States-Provincial - Provinciale Staten ) has 47 seats, and is headed by a King's Commissioner ( Commissaris van de Koning ) who unofficially is called the Governor . While the provincial council is elected by the inhabitants, the King's Commissioner

7738-405: The number and size of the original locks, and the small width (profile) of the canal. In 1975 the idea was that after modernization, the average size of vessels would double in twenty years. Transport speed would be increased by replacing the many old locks with a limited number of large modern locks. All this would lower transport cost, and again make the Zuid-Willemsvaart suitable as a shortcut of

7844-415: The number of ships had decreased, while the total amount of cargo had remained the same. At Sluis 0, almost all upstream vessels were loaded. By 1974 the vast majority unloaded at Veghel, some continued to Helmond, and only a tiny fraction continued further upstream with cargo. At Sluis 0 downstream cargo had decreased from about 5,000 vessels in 1960 to only a few hundred loaded vessels in 1974. At Sluis 13

7950-797: The oil, gas & petrochemicals, power, infrastructure and civil engineering sectors. Stamicarbon is based in Sittard-Geleen. VDL Nedcar in Born ( Sittard-Geleen ) is the only large-scale car manufacturer in the Netherlands, currently manufacturing MINIs and BMW X1s . Other industries include rockwool in Roermond, Océ copiers and printers manufacturers in Venlo and a paper factory in Maastricht. There are four large beer breweries in Limburg. Lanaken Lanaken ( Dutch pronunciation: [laːˈnaːkə(n)] ; Limburgish : Laoneke )

8056-454: The pain by moving several government offices (including Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP and CBS Statistics Netherlands ) to Heerlen. The state-owned corporation that once mined in Limburg, DSM , is now a major chemical company, still operating in Limburg. In 2002 DSM sold its petrochemical division (naphtha crackers and polyolefin plants) to SABIC of Saudi Arabia. In 2010, the agro and melamine business groups were sold to OCI Nitrogen . SABIC

8162-578: The population had taken place. At 10 o'clock in the evening the ball for the upper class started. It featured loaded tables, and continued until the early morning. The canal created new possibilities for development of the poor towns on the sandy grounds of North Brabant. In Helmond a textile manufacturing industry was developed. In Veghel the harbor attracted several industries. In Weert many fir were planted after transport to Maastricht and Liège became feasible. In many villages of North-Brabant it also became profitable to rear cattle for customers outside

8268-527: The present municipality of Lanaken. Lanaken was mentioned in 810 as Ludinaca and in 1106 as Lodenaken . This contains the personal name Hlodo or Ludo followed by the word haka , meaning sand plate. Lanaken is characterized by being located on the southern edge of the Kempen Plateau , separated from the more southern region of Haspengouw by the Albert Canal . To the southeast, Lanaken

8374-674: The previous 450 tons maximum. With only a few changes the canal up to the crossing with the Wilhelmina Canal was made suitable for these kind of ships. The same changes were applied westward to the Wilhelmina canal up to the Beatrix Canal, and to the Beatrix Canal itself. 50°52′N 5°41′E  /  50.867°N 5.683°E  / 50.867; 5.683 Limburg (Netherlands) Limburg ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈlɪmbʏr(ə)x] , Limburgish: [ˈlɪm˦ˌbʏʀ˦əx] ), also known as Dutch Limburg ,

8480-528: The production of mining wood, and mixed forest. The most famous areas are Pietersembos and Asbroek. Marked walks through this area start both at Pietersheim Castle and at the parking lot near the Saint-Barbara Hospital. Lanaken grew as a result of the presence of railroad and canals, there was commuter traffic to Maastricht, and jobs were created at the Eisden coal mine. Also established were

8586-560: The province was €44.5 billion in 2018, accounting for 5.7% of the Netherlands economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was €34,700 or 115% of the EU27 average in the same year. In the past peat and coal were mined in Limburg. In 1965–75 the coal mines were finally closed. As a result, 60,000 people lost their jobs in the two coal mining areas, Heerlen-Kerkrade-Brunssum and Sittard-Geleen. A difficult period of economic readjustment started. The Dutch government partly eased

8692-452: The province. One of the first activities on the canal was a regular service for passengers and freight between 's-Hertogenbosch and Maastricht. The journey took two days, with an overnight stay in Weert. The secession of the southern portion of the country in 1830 created an unexpected situation: the canal was closed for cross-border traffic. It led to a prolonged closure, but on 22 June 1839

8798-477: The relatively big height difference upwards of Venlo. This was 34 cm/km, or three times that of the Rhine near Emmerich. It caused that in summer there was often too little water in the Meuse for shipping. And in the winter there was often so much water that navigation became dangerous. Towing ships or barges upriver was difficult in all seasons. A canal that cut corners and went through a more flat terrain would be

8904-408: The reverse was true. Here almost all vessels heading north were loaded. Most went to the Wilhelmina Canal and only some to Veghel. At Sluis 13 most of the upstream vessels were empty. The overview showed that not many ships travelled the entire canal. Most of them went from the Meuse near 's-Hertogenbosch to Veghel or Helmond and then returned. A smaller amount came from the Meuse in Limburg, sailed to

9010-707: The river running through it, " Meuse-Inférieure ", meaning simply "lower Maas". Following the Napoleonic Era , the great powers (the United Kingdom , Prussia , the Austrian Empire , the Russian Empire and France ) left the region to the new United Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Congress of Vienna in 1815. A new province was formed which was to receive the name "Maastricht" after its capital. The first king, William I , who did not want

9116-437: The road between Someren and Asten to the provincial boundary between North Brabant and Limburg. It was tendered on 25 February 1824, together with 6 locks between Helmond and the provincial boundary as well as a drawbridge and culverts. On 2 March 1824 the fifth part was tendered. This consisted of: Digging the canal from the provincial boundary to its junction with the former Noorderkanaal, or Grand Canal du Nord. The renovation of

9222-418: The road traffic problem in Helmond could not be postponed as long as the general upgrade of the canal. Therefore, the decision about the Helmond detour was taken while the options for other parts of the canal remained open In May 1971 the route of the detour was determined. Other considerations to construct the detour were that it would bypass Locks 7, 8 and 9. Technological advances allowed their replacement by

9328-529: The south, Limburg is bordered by the Belgian province of Liège . The Vaalserberg is on the extreme southeastern point, marking the tripoint of the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. Limburg had a population of about 1,128,000 as of January 2023. Its main municipalities are the provincial capital Maastricht (population 120,837 as of January 2022), Venlo (population 102,176) in the northeast, as well as Sittard-Geleen (population 91,760, bordering both Belgium and Germany) and Heerlen (population 86,874) in

9434-483: The south. More than half of the population, approximately 650,000 people, live in the south of Limburg, which corresponds to roughly one-third of the province's area proper. In South Limburg , most people live in the urban agglomerations of Maastricht, Parkstad and Sittard-Geleen. Limburg's name derives from the Belgian fortified town of the same name, Limbourg-sur-Vesdre , now in the nearby Liège Province , immediately south of Limburg. The name of Limbourg-sur-Vesdre

9540-470: The strategic location of the current province, stretching along the Maas river route, made it a much-coveted region among Europe's major powers. Romans , Carolingians , Habsburg Spaniards , Prussians , Habsburg Austrians and France have all ruled parts of Limburg. The first inhabitants of whom traces have been found were Neanderthals who camped in South Limburg. In Neolithic times, flint

9646-627: The town's residents. In October 2023, Sappi announced the closure of their facility in Lanaken. Lanaken is part of the Albert Canal Economic Network together with 24 other municipalities through which the canal runs. The reactivation of the former railway Maastricht -Lanaken- Hasselt as a light rail known as the Hasselt – Maastricht tramway as part of the Belgian Spartacus plan was scheduled for 2014. It

9752-434: The up to 150 ton ships were built to the old model, while the over 150 and over 300 ton ships had been built for use on the canal. Nothing much was done to modernize the canal after it had been constructed. Some changes were made to the locks, but their maximum passage width remained the same. In 1975 the canal was suitable for ships of CEMT class II, but with a maximum draft of only 1.90 m. This translated to ships with

9858-409: The walls, and towards the basin. On 14 September 1825 the construction of the canal through 's-Hertogenbosch was tendered. This also included the construction of three bridges inside the city. A flood lock was planned on the eastern city walls. It had the peculiar characteristic of being mainly planned to cause or maintain a flood, instead of preventing it. However, the technique was the same as that of

9964-484: The water actually flowing over the lock doors of the canal. In the 1920s the Wessem-Nederweert Canal was constructed. It starts at the Meuse near Wessem, and connects to the Zuid-Willemsvaart just south of Nederweert, where the Zuid-Willemsvaart makes a 90 degree turn to the southwest. During construction, lock 14 and lock 15, north of the junction were demolished. A new Lock 15 was built just west of

10070-463: The water was only three feet deep, the ship could only carry 75 wagonloads. With 20 inch (57.5 cm) of water the ship could carry only 45 wagonloads. Therefore, a lower water level could raise the cargo price from 7.30 to 16.30 Belgian francs per wagonload. A wagonload of coal might be estimated at 800 kg. One wagonload contained 10-12 muds of coal. A mud of coal was 100 liter, weighing about 72 kg, so 11*72~800. This also allows to compute

10176-572: Was at first almost entirely under Belgian rule. However, by the 1839 Treaty of London , the province was divided in two, with the eastern part going to the Netherlands and the western part to Belgium, a division that remains today. With the Treaty of London, what is now the Belgian Province of Luxembourg was handed over to Belgium and removed from the German Confederation . To appease Prussia, which had also lost access to

10282-659: Was born as a son of the count of Gennep. He was the founder of the order of the Premonstratensians . South Limburg in the early Middle Ages was mainly made up of the lordships of Valkenburg  [ de ] , Dalhem , and Herzogenrath . All of these lands were, however, united with the Duchy of Limburg, under the rule of the Duchy of Brabant , when they were known collectively as the Lands of Overmaas  [ nl ; de ] . The Duchy of Limburg and its dependencies first came under Brabantian control in 1288, as

10388-532: Was cheaper at 20 francs. It was bought for 6 francs at the Ruhr, and transported to Gent via the Rhine, Dordrecht and the Ghent–Terneuzen Canal for 13-14 francs. The maximum size of ships that could navigate the Zuid-Willemsvaart was said to be bigger than that of a Meuse ship. For some time this was probably a general statement, indicating that in normal circumstances, ships of 188 cm draught could use

10494-519: Was drained and about 975 a swamp nearby the Roman road between Maastricht and Nijmegen . Bishop Ansfried of Utrecht founded a Benedictine nunnery. This developed from the 12th century into a secular Stift or convent . The principal of the Stift was the abbess . She was assisted by a chapter of at most twenty ladies of the highest nobility . During the period of West Frankish control under

10600-551: Was important to the region because it had been the seat of the medieval Duchy of Limburg . There are several proposals concerning the etymology of Limbourg. The second part, "bourg" or "burg" is common in placenames, and refers to a fortified town. The first part is often suggested to refer to lime or linden trees (species of Tilia ). The historian Jean-Louis Kupper has proposed that its founder Frederick, Duke of Lower Lorraine named it after Limburg Abbey in Germany. He favours

10706-606: Was mined in underground mines. Julius Caesar conquered the area in 53 BC, and wrote that he had extinguished the name of the Eburones , the inhabitants of most of the area of current Limburg, as a punishment for their revolt under Ambiorix . The north–south route along the Maas was crossed by the Via Belgica , a road crossing South Limburg and connecting the two local capitals of Tongeren and Cologne . Mosa Trajectum (Maastricht) and Coriovallum (Heerlen) were founded by

10812-462: Was motivated by the bad condition of all the old locks, and the severe damage that would result if the busy section between 's-Hertogenbosch and Veghel would be blocked by a failure of these locks. In 1986 the plan was postponed. In February 1990 minister Hanja Maij-Weggen planned to use the funding allotted for the canal to build the Maeslantkering instead. For North-Brabant province and

10918-407: Was opened in Maastricht on 24 August 1826. The opening was done by the governor of Limburg. After a speech, the dignitaries sailed down the canal to Smeermaas and disembarked near Hocht. They then continued to Pietersheim Manor ( Kasteel Pietersheim ) by carriage. After a splendid dinner the company arrived back in the basin of Maastricht near 8 o'clock in the evening. Meanwhile, many festivities for

11024-466: Was part of the seigniory of Pietersheim of Loon, whose lords founded the Abbey of Hocht around 1186. In 1106 the patronage right of the parish church was given to the Maastricht chapter of St. Servaas. In 1808 the present borough was formed, merging Lanaken with Smeermaas, Hocht, Pietersem, Ca(u)berg, Bessemer and Briegden. In 1839, as a result of the Belgian revolution and subsequent Treaty of London ,

11130-427: Was tendered on 10 April 1822. The digging was offered in six lots. Between 's-Hertogenbosch and Veghel it was to have three or four locks and a number of drawbridges and culverts . In November 1822 the construction of Lock 1 in 's-Hertogenbosch was started (cf. above). The second part ran from Helmond to a point on the road between Someren and Asten . On 19 March 1823 digging this stretch was offered in two lots, and

11236-483: Was tendered together with three locks on the already dug out stretch between Veghel and Helmond, and the drawbridges and culverts on that stretch. Also in 1823, a third part was tendered on 25 March. It was tendered in two lots and consisted of the already present waterway below Smeermaas , through the Caberg to the fortress of Maastricht. In 1824 a fourth, fifth and sixth part were tendered. The fourth part stretched from

#106893