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Turnhout is a city in the north of Belgium located in the province of Antwerp. Turnhout is the capital of the Kempen and is also called the "playing card city". The city has approximately 40,000 inhabitants, of which 1448 inhabitants (3.36%) are of Dutch nationality. This makes it the third largest city in the province and one of the 13 Flemish central cities.
Turnhout has a number of hamlets, including Schorvoort, Parkwijk and Zevendonk. Turnhout borders the following municipalities: Ravels, Oud-Turnhout, Kasterlee (sub-municipalities of Tielen and Lichtaart), Vosselaar, Beerse, Merksplas, Baarle-Hertog (village Zondereigen) and, over a short distance, also the Dutch municipality of Baarle-Nassau.
Together with the municipalities of Beerse, Oud-Turnhout and Vosselaar, the city of Turnhout has been part of the Project Association Regional Urban Area Turnhout since 1999. In 2008 this collaboration was given a new name: Turnhout City Region.
Info
History
Turnhout was created at the crossroads of two major trade routes and in the protection of the hunting castle of the Dukes of Brabant that would have existed before 1110. This hunting past is still reflected in the city's coat of arms. In about 1212 the small community received its city rights from Duke Henry I of Brabant. In 1338, the privilege was granted to organize a market on Saturdays, a tradition that is still honored today. In 1466 a traveler described the well-built houses and counted five churches.
By the 16th century, Turnhout had become a rich commercial center, but the end of the century brought war, fire, confiscations and epidemics. The oppression and the Inquisition caused many progressives to flee to the Netherlands, leaving the area around Turnhout impoverished. The city and its environs have been the scene of several battles, and two major battles have been named after Turnhout: one in 1597 and one in 1789. Both are called the Battle of Turnhout.
In 1830 Belgium became independent, and Turnhout fell just below the new border with the Netherlands. In the period of peace between 1831 and 1914, the Dessel-Turnhout-Schoten Canal (1844-1846) and the railway line were constructed (1855).
On January 1, 1859, Turnhout lost part of its territory to Oud-Turnhout, which has existed as an independent municipality from then on. The plan to merge Turnhout with Vosselaar, Oud-Turnhout and Beerse from 1 January 1977 at the merger of municipalities ultimately fell through.
In the late Middle Ages, Turnhout was a well-known center for the weaving of bed linen and the trade in linen. At the beginning of the 19th century, these industries were supplanted by those based on paper. Philippus Jacobus Brepols is considered the founder of that industry. Much of that industry continues to this day with several graphics companies and Cartamundi, the world leader in playing cards.
Arrive
Travel around
To look at
- beguinage Beguinage 56 open from Tues to Sat from 2 to 5 p.m. and Sun from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. It was founded in the thirteenth century in De Warande, the former park of the castle. It once housed 100 beguines. A beguinage museum can also be visited. The Baroque beguinage church and the chapel of the Holy Face date from 1665.
- Castle of the Dukes of Brabant, medieval castle, now a court of justice.
- National Museum of the Playing Card18 Grape Street. [1]
- the Turnhout station
- the Theobaldus Chapel'
- the St. Peter's Church - from the 15th and 18th centuries with a 19th-century pulpit, a choir stalls (1713) and confessionals from 1740
- the Church of the Sacred Heart
- the neoclassical town hall.
Museums
- Playing Cards Museum
- it (historian) Taxandria Museum.
To do
- Cultural center De Warande is the frontrunner for cultural activities.
- For sporting activities there is the Kempisch IJsstadion and the Municipal Swimming Pool in the Stadspark.
- To the cinema
To buy
Food
Going out
stay overnight
all around
