Venlo (Dialect: Venlo) is a city in the northern part of the
Dutch province of Limburg and the urban core of the eponymous
municipality. The city has 68,385 inhabitants (as of 2020, source:
CBS). Together with the districts of Blerick and Tegelen, Venlo
forms an urban area in the municipality. The agglomeration has
86,885 inhabitants (as of 2017, source: CBS). However, Blerick has
always been a separate village, which was only included in the
municipality of Venlo during the Second World War. The same applies
to Tegelen, which was added to the municipality in 2001 together
with the village of Belfeld. The city of Venlo only includes the
part of the municipality between the A73, the German border, the A67
and the Maas. Other church villages within the municipality of Venlo
are: 't Ven, Hout-Blerick, Boekend, Steyl, Belfeld, Arcen, Velden
and Lomm.
Venlo is a trading, transport and industrial city.
The city is the center for the wider area as well as a shopping
center for the neighboring German Ruhr area. The municipality of
Venlo borders directly on the German districts of Kleef and Viersen.
Venlo is located on a bend in the Maas and has a historic center,
although the Second World War caused a lot of damage.
Language
Venlo has a characteristic urban dialect, which is
basically Limburgish, but also has some characteristics of the
Brabant-Limburg transitional dialects. It thus forms a transition
dialect. Linguistically, this transition area is referred to as the
North Limburg mich quarter. The residents cherish this Venloos,
which is generally used. The rich carnival tradition, which has made
songs in Venloos very popular, keeps Venloos alive.
The
Tegels clearly distinguishes itself from the Venloos. I was standing
under a tree near the school, sounds in Tegels as ich sjting ónger
einen boum near the shoeël and in Venloos as I stand under einen
boum near the schoeël. The Venloos has supplanted the Blericks in
Blerick, which can now only be heard in Hout-Blerick and Boekend.
The Velden dialect has developed in the direction of Venloos and is
now relatively close to Venloos. The old Blericks and Veldens were
in various respects between the Tegels and the Venloos: I stóng
ónger einen boum near de schoeël. Arcen is the northernmost place
where Limburgish is spoken; above Arcen, the concrete line and the
du (dich) / ye border enter Germany. Arcens is still just within the
mich range, but it also has a bit more the timbre of the Horster
dialect; Arcens: I am standing beneath everyone else in the shoe.
Venlo is strategically located at an important road junction near a crossing over the Maas. The settlement was already inhabited in the early Roman period (50 BC-70 AD). Various finds of pottery, coins and jewelery have been found that indicate occupation by Roman soldiers and Romanized traders. Archaeological research in and along the Maas has not shown that a bridge was located here. After the third century, the settlement near the current city center of Venlo remains uninhabited for several centuries. No traces of late Roman times are known. Traces of habitation until the seventh century have been found on the west side of the Maas, in Blerick, along the north-south connection Nijmegen-Maastricht-Tongeren.
In the Middle Ages, the city of Venlo was an important trading place on the Maas, even comparable to German places such as Cologne, Spiers and Worms. Venlo belonged to the Gelderse Overkwartier and in 1481 Venlo joined the Hanseatic League. Although the Hanseatic League had already passed its peak by then, Venlo's membership nevertheless meant recognition as a trading city.
At the fall of
Venlo in 1543, the Duchy of Guelders was de facto in the hands of
Emperor Charles V, who united it with the rest of his Dutch
possessions. From 1590, Gelre was split into a northern and a
southern part and the southern part, the Overkwartier, belonged to
the Southern Netherlands. In the 17th century, Venlo was alternately
Spanish and State property. The War of the Spanish Succession
subsequently led to the Barrier tract, in which the Overkwartier was
divided between Prussia, Austria and the Dutch Republic during the
Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. The city became part of the Republic and
came to lie in the Generality Land of Staats-Opper-Gelre.
All
of Staats-Oppergelre was conquered by the French in 1794. After
their departure, Venlo became part of the newly formed province of
Limburg, within the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Unlike the
rest of Limburg, Venlo (like the area of the city of Maastricht)
did not become a member of the German Confederation. During the
Belgian Revolt, almost all of Limburg, and also Venlo, sided with
the Belgians, but with the peace settlement, Limburg was split and
Venlo joined the Netherlands. In the mid-19th century, the city
walls were demolished and the city expanded considerably over the
outlying areas and along the access roads.
The 21 oldest
photos of Venlo date from 1857-1861 and are in an album of the
military doctor Petrus Jan van der Grijp that was acquired by the
Venlo Municipal Archives at the beginning of 2020.
On November 9, 1939, the Venlo incident took place in
Venlo, in which two British agents were captured by the German
Gestapo.
At the end of the Second World War, Venlo suffered a
lot of damage, partly because the front line ran through the center
for three months. Until October 1944 Venlo was hardly affected by
the war, but that changed when the battle fronts approached Limburg.
Heavy Allied bombing raids on the strategic Maas bridge and the
nearby German airfield partially destroyed the city center and many
civilians died. The city was liberated on March 1, 1945 by the
Americans of the 9th Army during Operation Grenade.
Due to the bombings during the Second World War, many historic
buildings have disappeared from the Venlo city center, such as the
medieval houses near the Maasbrug (Kwartelenmarkt), the synagogue
and the monastery complexes on the south side. In addition, a number
of (late) medieval buildings were demolished around the Second World
War. After extensive architectural research, Venlo appears to own a
number of houses with a medieval core. These are hidden behind
mostly newer facades and are mainly located in Gasthuisstraat,
Vleesstraat and Lomstraat.
At the time of this writing, Venlo city has 93 national
monuments. In total, the entire municipality has 236 national
monuments and the municipality also has 234 municipal monuments.
Sint-Martinusbasiliek, the historic main church of
Venlo
Sacred Heart Church, from around 1922, at Veldenseweg 2
Holy Spirit Church, 1966, later demolished.
Holy Family Church,
from 1939, at Belletablestraat 21
Sint-Jacobs chapel, from 1533,
at Maasschriksel, not in use as a chapel
Sint-Joriskerk, from
1509 and later, at Sint Jorisstraat 16, is a Protestant church
building
Minderbroederskerk or Jongerenkerk, from 1612, at
Minderbroedersstraat 1
Our Lady Immaculate Conception Church, at
Sinselveldstraat 35, from 1915.
Sint-Nicolaaskerk in Genooi, at
Van Postelstraat 53, from 1960.
St. Michael's Church, in 't Ven,
on the Straelseweg, 1966-2006 and 2007.
Chapel of Our Lady of
Genooi, in Genooi
Maria meadow
Monastery of
the Mariadal
Holy Spirit Monastery, demolished in 1928
Huize
Manresa, former retreat home of the Jesuits
Convent of the
Dominican nuns of Bethany
Monastery Maria Auxiliatrix, founded in
1911 by the Sisters of Our Lady of Tegelen
Nazareth monastery in
the hamlet of 't Ven, at Straelseweg 329.
Monastery of Our Lady
of Loreto, on Monseigneur Zwijsenstraat, from 1960.
Monastery Op
Stalberg, at Stalbergweg 1.
Sint-Martinusklooster at
Sint-Martinusstraat 2-54.
Trans-Cedron, destroyed in 1944, on Rue
Neuve.
The town hall of Venlo (1597) on
the Markt
Huize Schreurs, renaissance house at Grote Kerkstraat
19021
Romerhuis, late Gothic house on the corner of
Kwartelenmarkt / Wijngaardstraat
Huize Ottenheym, late Gothic
house at Vleesstraat 7
Parade 62-64, late Gothic twin house from
around 1550.
Ald Weishoès, at Grote Kerkstraat 31, renaissance
building from 1611
House Stalberg, at Stalbergweg 268,
traditionally a farm
See: Fortifications of Venlo for the main article on this subject. Only a few small parts of the defenses have survived: In the garden of Mariaweide Monastery and De Luif near the Havenkade.
Limburgs Museum,
cultural-historical museum, at Juliana Park.
Museum van Bommel
van Dam, museum of modern art, on Deken van Oppensingel
Jean
Laudy Museum chapel, museum for Venlo painters, at 29 Grote
Kerkstraat
Jan Klaassens Museum, memories of a Venloos soccer
player, Parade 67a
Police Museum Venlo, at Dokter
Blumenkampstraat 1
Jocus Museum Venlo, Domicanenplein