Bocholtz (;
Ripuarian: is a town in the
Dutch province of
Limburg. It is a part of the municipality of
Simpelveld, and lies about 7 km southwest of
Kerkrade
Kerkrade ( Ripuarian: ; li, Kirkraoj; german: Kerkrade or ''Kirchrath'') is a town and a municipality in the southeast of Limburg; the southernmost province of the Netherlands. It forms part of the Parkstad Limburg agglomeration.
Kerkrade is th ...
. Until 1982, it was a separate municipality.
History
Bocholtz dates back to the
Roman era. A Roman
villa
A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became s ...
was found in the Vlengendaal, a street of Bocholtz, in 1911. A farmer plowing his land found a Roman
sarcophagus
A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Gre ...
in October 2003.
Architecture and buildings
Castle De Bongard
The Castle De Bongard dates from the 16th century. The current building only represents 1/4 of the original building. The rest was destroyed during the invasion by the French during the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
.
Hoeve Overhuizen
Hoeve Overhuizen is a fortified farm with roots dating back as far as the 13th century.
From 2015
Rabobank
Rabobank (; full name: ''Coöperatieve Rabobank U.A.'') is a Dutch multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands. The group comprises 89 local Dutch Rabobanks (2019), a central organisation (Raboban ...
moves in after redecorating the interior of the building to make it their regional headquarters.
Church
The
James the Greater Church was built between 1869 and 1873 by architect
Pierre Cuypers. Construction workers expanding the church in 1953 found the remains of a building from the late medieval period on the same site. The patron saint of the church is
St. James, son of Zebedee.
Regional language
Bocholtz is part of the Netherlands and therefore the official language is Dutch. A lot of people also speak Bocholtzer, a
Southeast Limburgish dialect that is linguistically
Ripuarian but commonly perceived as a
Limburgish
Limburgish ( li, Limburgs or ; nl, Limburgs ; german: Limburgisch ; french: Limbourgeois ), also called Limburgan, Limburgian, or Limburgic, is a West Germanic language spoken in the Dutch and Belgian provinces of Limburg and in the neig ...
dialect.
Gallery
Image:Kasteel de bongard bocholtz.jpg, Castle De Bongard, Bocholtz
File:Bocholtz-kombord (2).jpg, Bocholt in winter
File:Bocholtz-Romeinse villa Bocholtz-Vlengendaal-Orsbacherweg (1).jpg, Location of the Roman villa Vlengendaal
File:Bocholtz-Oude gemeentehuis.JPG, Former town hall
References
{{Authority control
Populated places in Limburg (Netherlands)
Former municipalities of Limburg (Netherlands)
Simpelveld