Alphen is a village in the municipality of

Alphen-Chaam Alphen-Chaam () is a municipality in the southern Netherlands. Population centres Towns: * Alphen (4,000) * Chaam (3,810) * Galder (1,190) Hamlets (the population data of these hamlets is included in the population data of the towns near whic ...

, in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. It is located about 12 km southwest of

Tilburg Tilburg () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands, in the southern Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. With a population of 22 ...

History

Alphen was first mentioned in 709, when a nobleman named Engelbrecht sold "Alfheim" to Saint

Willibrord Willibrord (; 658 – 7 November AD 739) was an Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon monk, bishop, and missionary. He became the first Diocese of Utrecht (695–1580), Bishop of Utrecht in what is now the Netherlands, dying at Echternach in Luxembourg, and ...

. In 739, it was sold on to the

Abbey of Echternach The Abbey of Echternach is a Benedictine monastery in the town of Echternach, in eastern Luxembourg. The abbey was founded in the 7th century by St Willibrord, the patron saint of Luxembourg. For three hundred years, it benefited from the pat ...

. Alphen was originally a collection of hamlets which started to concentrate around the church. The Catholic St Willibrord Church was built in 1954 to replace a church from 1909-1910 which was destroyed in 1944. The earliest church dated from the 16th century and had a tower which was built around 1559. The emergency church, which was built in 1945, is still located next to the St Willibrord Church. In 1542, Alphen was burned to the ground by the army of

Guelders The Duchy of Guelders (; ; ) is a historical duchy, previously county, of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries. Geography The duchy was named after the town of Geldern (''Gelder'') in present-day Germany. Though the present pr ...

under

Maarten van Rossum Maarten van Rossum ( 1478 – June 7, 1555) was a military tactician of the duchy of Guelders who became field marshal in the service of Charles, Duke of Guelders. He was greatly feared outside his home country for the ruthless manner in wh ...

, and in 1944, it suffered from destruction and looting as well. Alphen includes the hamlets of 't Zand, Alphen-Oosterwijk, Druisdijk, Looneind, Boslust, Hondseind, Het Sas, Terover, Boshoven and Kwaalburg. Alphen was home to 431 people in 1840. Until 1997, Alphen was the main village of the municipality of Alphen en Riel.

Notable people

* Jelle Klaassen

Gallery

File:Alphen Goedentijd 2010-0922-1257a.JPG, Former

tannery Tanning, or hide tanning, is the process of treating skins and hides of animals to produce leather. A tannery is the place where the skins are processed. Historically, vegetable based tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound derived fr ...

File:De Kloostertuin Alphen P1140135.jpg, Monastery garden File:Den Heuvel Alphen P1140137.jpg, Restaurant in Alphen File:P1070695Gemeentekantoor.JPG, Town hall

References

{{Authority control Populated places in North Brabant Alphen-Chaam