Brielle
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Brill Brielle |
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| Municipality | |||
Historic city centre
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.svg) Location in South Holland |
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| Coordinates: 51°54′N 4°10′E / 51.900°N 4.167°ECoordinates: 51°54′N 4°10′E / 51.900°N 4.167°E | |||
| Country | Netherlands | ||
| Province | South Holland | ||
| Government | |||
| • Body | Municipal council | ||
| • Mayor | Gregor Rensen (PvdA) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 31.14 km2 (12.02 sq mi) | ||
| • Land | 27.56 km2 (10.64 sq mi) | ||
| • Water | 3.58 km2 (1.38 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 2 m (7 ft) | ||
| Population (May 2014) | |||
| • Total | 16,350 | ||
| • Density | 593/km2 (1,540/sq mi) | ||
| Demonym(s) | Briellenaar | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Postcode | 3230–3232 | ||
| Area code | 0181 | ||
| Website | www |
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Brielle (
pronunciation ), also called Den Briel (Brill in English) is a town, municipality and historic seaport in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland, on the north side of the island of Voorne-Putten, at the mouth of the New Maas. The municipality covers an area of 31.14 km2 (12.02 sq mi) of which 3.58 km2 (1.38 sq mi) is water. In 2014 its population was 16,350.
The municipality of Brielle also includes the communities Vierpolders and Zwartewaal.
Brielle is a very old, fortified town. Its name is derived from the Celtic word brogilo (meaning "closed area" or "hunting grounds"). The oldest writings about Brielle indicate that the current location is the "new" Brielle. Den ouden Briel (Old Brill) must have been situated somewhere else on the Voorne-Putten Island. It received city rights in 1306. The city was for a long time the seat of the Count of Voorne, until this fiefdom was added to Holland in 1371. It had its own harbour and traded with the countries around the Baltic Sea. Brielle even had its own trading colony in Sweden.
During the Eighty Years' War between the Netherlands and Spain, the Capture of Brielle on April 1, 1572, by Protestant rebels, the Watergeuzen, marked a turning point in the conflict, as many towns in Holland then began to support William of Orange against the Spanish Duke Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba who was sent to pacify The Netherlands. This event is still celebrated each year on April 1 and the night before (known as Chalk Night (kalknacht) when the city is defaced with chalk - and now also white paint). Dutch students are taught a short rhyme to remember this fact, which rhyme refers to April Fools' Day:
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Wikipedia