Maastricht
This article refers to the municipality in the Netherlands. For the political treaty, see Maastricht Treaty. Dutch municipality 3 | name=Maastricht | province=
Limburg | map=LocatieMaastricht.png |
area=60.06 | land=56.80 | water=3.26 |
population=121,573 | population_year=(2005) | density=2,140 |
dn=50 | mn=51 | de=5 | me=41}}
Maastricht (
Dutch:
Maastricht;
Limburgish and city dialect:
Mestreech) is a
municipality, and
capital of the province of
Limburg. The city is situated on both sides of the
Meuse river (
Maas in Dutch) in the south-eastern part of the
Netherlands between
Belgium and
Germany. The name of city is derived from its
Latin name
Trajectum Ad Mosam (Meuse-crossing), referring to the bridge built by the
Romans under the reign of
Augustus Caesar.
For years, the city has been in a debate with
Nijmegen over being the oldest city of the Netherlands. Nijmegen was the first city with Roman
city rights in what is now the Netherlands. Maastricht was the first with Medieval city rights, a system which evolved to the current system and, thanks to the Romans, the first settlement with city allure.However, Maastricht was without a doubt the first settlement in the Netherlands.Roman sources mention a
Celtic (probably inhabited by the
Eburones ) settlement at the location they used for the bridge. Other sources mention a
Celtic settlement at a rivercrossing near where now Wyck is located.
Institutions located in Maastricht include the
Universiteit Maastricht (Maastricht University), the
Administration of the Dutch province of
Limburg and the
Bonnefanten Museum of art. Other large employers include
ENCI (First Dutch Cement Industry)
Vodafone,
Mercedes-Benz,
Sappi,
Hewlett-Packard (previously Indigo) and Pie Medical.
To the south of the city is the
hill of
St. Pietersberg which has an old
fort and a network of caves within. The caves maintain a constant temperature of 10°C and are a
hibernation place for
bats. The caves were formed by digging out the
Marl that was used to build houses. This led to a very extensive network of caves that were used as hiding places during
World War II. Later, the marl was used by ENCI to make cement. In the process a large chunk was removed from one side of the hill. The unused material was used to make a new hill,
d'n Observant.
In the process of carving out the marl, fossils were found, most notably one of a
mosasaur in
1780 (which, contrary to popular belief, was not a
dinosaur). The find was so famous it led to naming a 6-million-year epoch after the city: the
Maastrichtian.
In
football, Maastricht is represented by
MVV, currently playing in the Dutch first division.
 |
map showing location of Maastricht with respect to the Belgian border |
|
Saint Servatius bridge, the oldest bridge of Maastricht |
|
A main shopping street in Maastricht, decorated with EU flags. |
Old stone age remains have been found to the west of Maastricht, between 80.000 and 250.000 years old. At least 500 years before the Romans came,
Celts lived here, at a spot where the river
Meuse was shallow and therefore easy to cross. The Romans later built a bridge and a large road to connect the capitals of the Nervians and Tungri, Bavay and
Tongeren, with the capital of the Ubians,
Cologne.
 |
Basilica of Saint Servatius |
Saint Servatius was the first
bishop of the Netherlands.His tomb, in the crypt at the
Basilica of Saint Servatius, is a favoured place of pilgrimage:
Pope John Paul II visited it in 1984. The golden gilt shrine containing some of the saint's relics is carried around the town every seven years. During the medieval period these processions caused such rioting that they were forbidden. The city remained an early
Christian bishopric until it lost this position to nearby
Liège in the
8th century.
Maastricht developed in the
Middle Ages into a city of dual authority, with both the Prince-Bishopric of
Liège and the
Duchy of Brabant holding joint sovereignty over the city. It received
city rights in
1204. The role of the Dukes was occupied by the Dutch
States General from
1632 onwards when the city was taken from the
Spanish by
Frederik Hendrik. This duality remained in force until the conquest and annexation of the city by the
French in
1794.
Skeletons uncovered in a front garden in Maastricht in May
2004 may be the remains of
musketeers who died during a fierce
17th century battle between French attackers and Dutch defenders.
On
14 June 1673,
Louis XIV's troops started to surround the city of Maastricht. Under the leadership of Captain-Lieutenant
Charles de Batz-Castelmore, Comte d'Artagnan, the First Company of "Mousquetaires du Roi" prepared to storm a rampart located in front of one of the city's gates. The assault on the bulwark took place not far from where the seven skeletons were found. D'Artagnan was killed by a musket shot on
25 June 1673 during a night attack on the
Tongerse Gate (this event was portrayed by
Alexandre Dumas in his novel
The Vicomte de Bragelonne).
Maastricht surrendered to French troops on
June 30. The French troops occupied the Dutch city from
1673 to
1679. It was subsequently restored to Dutch rule.
After the
Napoleonic era, Maastricht became a part of the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands in
1815. When the southern provinces sought independence from the North to form
Belgium in
1830, the garrison in Maastricht remained loyal to the Dutch king and occupied the city despite anti-Dutch feelings amongst the population. Maastricht was neither
Dutch nor
Belgian between 1830 and
1839. In 1839 the
Treaty of London was imposed on the
Belgians and the city and the eastern part of
Limburg, despite being geographically and culturally closer to Belgium, were permanently added to the Netherlands. Because of the resulting eccentric location Maastricht was often more focused on Belgium and
Germany than on the rest of the Netherlands, adding to the distinct non-Dutch character of the city.Even now, the people of Maastricht (and the rest of
Limburg ) hold on to their language and culture, and some even hope to be re-united with
Limburgian areas in
Germany and
Belgium.
On
September 14,
1944, Maastricht was the first Dutch city to be liberated by
allied forces during
World War II.
In
1976, Maastricht became part of the
Euregio Maas-Rhine.
In
1992, the
Maastricht treaty was signed here, leading to the creation of the Euro.
Especially under current
mayor Gerd Leers, Maastricht attracted many summits, like the
OCSE-summit in
2003, and several gatherings during the Dutch EU-chairmanship in the second half of 2004.
The mayor of Maastricht is the
Christian Democrat Gerd Leers. His party, the
CDA, became the largest party in the
city council after the 2002 municipal elections, when they made up the coalition together with PvdA, VVD and GroenLinks.
The
2006 municipal elections saw a political landslide from right to left all over the Netherlands, and Maastricht was no exception. The present coalition still kept its majority, but the shift to the left made Maastricht one of the 39 Dutch municipalities in which an all-left-wing coalition of PvdA, GroenLinks and SP has become possible. After the success of such a coalition in
Nijmegen and possibilities for it nationally expectations are high-strung. On 26 March 2006 negotiations were still underway.
One issue that brought Maastricht in the news in 2005 and 2006 was the
cannabis supply of
coffeeshops. Under the
gedoogbeleid the sale of cannabis is allowed under certain conditions, but the supply is not, resulting in an impossible situation. The police keep on tracking down plantations, but that just results in more and more plantations being set up, including many in attics of houses in 'ordinary streets', thus bringing small children in contact with illegal activities. Mayor Leers therefore proposed to let the government take over the growing, striking, in his opinion, a blow to the criminal scene. But the Netherlands are bound by international laws and a complication for Maastricht is its proximity to neighbouring countries, making it a major destination for drug tourism.
* By car; Maastricht is served by the
A2 and the
A79 highways. The city can be reached from
Brussels within 2 hours and from
Amsterdam within 3 hours.
* By train; the
Nederlandse Spoorwegen serves both the general station of Maastricht and the station located near the business district (Maastricht Randwyck). A
railway branch passes through Maastricht that runs south to
Liege,
Belgium and north into the rest of
The Netherlands, where it has a branch to
Heerlen. Another railway line to
Hasselt,
Belgium is no longer in use, although plans exist to restore it.
* By airplane; Maastricht is served by
Maastricht Aachen Airport with scheduled flights to
Amsterdam,
Berlin and
Bucharest as well as popular holiday destinations during the Summer season.
*
Jewish MaastrichtGeneral*
City of Maastricht, official site (Dutch)
*
City of Maastricht, official site (English)
*
Map of Maastricht*
Wikimaas Wiki on Maastricht
Tourism*
Tourist Board, Dutch, English, French or German
*
Hotels in Maastricht*
Sights in Maastricht*
Restaurants in Maastricht*
MaastrichtNet, Agenda for Maastricht with English Section Highlights of the Week*
Maastricht360.nl, 360° view of Maastricht
*
Bonnefanten MuseumHistory*
Maastricht in Roman times*
Churches of Maastricht*
News Reports of Musketeer Skeletons found*
Webpage about the fortificationsHigher education and research*
Maastricht University *
Academie van Bouwkunst Maastricht (Academy of Architecture) [
1]
*
Maastricht Economic and social Research and training centre on Innovation and Technology - United Nation University [
2]
*
Maastricht School of Management [
3]]
*
Center for European Studies (CES) [
4]
*
Conservatorium Maastricht (Academy of Music)
*
Toneelacademie Maastricht (Academy of Dramatic Arts)
*
Academie Beeldende Kunsten Maastricht (Academy of Fine Arts)
*
Jan van Eyck Academie [
5]
Other*
Vastelaoftrap Kickoff of the carnival days
*
Crossroads English-language website for expatriates in Maastricht, published by the
European Journalism Centre 
