Breukelen () is a town and former municipality in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, in the province of

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

. It is situated to the north west of

, along the river Vecht and close to the lakes of the Loosdrechtse Plassen, an area of natural and tourist interest. It is located in an area called the

Vechtstreek The Vechtstreek () (Dutch for "Vecht area") is a region in the Dutch provinces of Utrecht and North Holland along the Vecht River between the towns of Utrecht and Amsterdam. Located in the economic heartland of the Netherlands, it is known for its ...

. It is the namesake of the borough of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

History

During the 17th century, many wealthy

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

merchant families built their

mansions A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property la ...

along the river Vecht. In Disaster Year 1672 the village and no less than 8 castles and mansions near Breukelen were severely damaged by warfare. Most of them were burned down by the French. On January 1, 2011, Breukelen merged with

Loenen Loenen () is a former municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. It was in the ''Vechtstreek'' area. On January 1, 2011, Loenen merged with Breukelen and Maarssen to form Stichtse Vecht. Population centres The former municipa ...

and

Maarssen Maarssen () is a town in the middle of the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht, along the river Vecht and the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal. The west of Maarssen is called Maarssen-BroekStatistics are taken from thSDU Staatscourant whereas the east ...

to form

Stichtse Vecht Stichtse Vecht is a municipality of the Netherlands and lies in the northwestern part of the province of Utrecht. The municipality has about 63,000 inhabitants and covers an area of about 107 km² (41 sq mi). Stichtse Vecht has been newly ...

. The

borough of

is named after Breukelen (see

History of Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, behin ...

Nyenrode Business University

The town is most well known for the being where

Nyenrode Business University Nyenrode Business Universiteit (abbreviated as ''NBU''; nl, Nyenrode Business Universiteit) is a Dutch business university and one of the five private universities in the Netherlands. Founded in 1946, it is located on a large estate in the town ...

is located. Founded in 1946, Nyenrode University is a university that offers business and finance-related higher education.

Transportation

Breukelen railway station Breukelen is a railway station located in Breukelen, Netherlands. The station was opened on 18 December 1843 and is on the Amsterdam–Arnhem railway The Amsterdam–Arnhem railway, also referred to as the Amsterdam–Elten railway or ''Rhijnspo ...

* Bus services 120, 130, 143, 524 and 526

Population centres

The former municipality of Breukelen consisted of the following villages: Breukelen,

Kockengen Kockengen is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Stichtse Vecht, and lies about 11 km northeast of Woerden. The name of the village is a reference to Cockaigne, a medieval fictional land of plenty ...

, and

Nieuwer Ter Aa Nieuwer-Ter-Aa is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht (province). It is a part of the municipality of Stichtse Vecht, and lies about 13 km northwest of Utrecht. History The village was first mentioned in 1556 as Aade, and refers to t ...

Gallery

File:Breukelen, Nijenrode foto5 2007-03-25 09.45.JPG, Breukelen, castle/university Nijenrode File:2007-03-25 10.04 Breukelen, ophaalbrug bij de Vecht.JPG, Breukelen, drawbridge across the Vecht File:2007-04-18 18.33 Breukelen, molen foto2.JPG, Breukelen, windmill

References