NOORD-BRABANT - Geography and history
The province of Noord-Brabant is situated in the southern part of the country; it is the second largest province (in km²) in the Netherlands and is, accordingly, of a very varied nature. On the one hand there are five large cities which constitute the 'row of cities', i.e. Breda, Tilburg, Eindhoven, Helmond and 's-Hertogenbosch, the latter being the capital of the province. On the other hand the predominant geographical features are rural areas, consisting of farmland, woodland and rivers. In the sandy areas in the south-east are fens, moorland and woodland, just as Vincent van Gogh painted them in his early period. The province borders on four other Dutch provinces and the Flemish-speaking part of Belgium, with which Noord-Brabant has always had very strong links.
Up until well after the Second World War the expression 'south of the rivers' was synonym for a part of the Netherlands with its own culture and traditions. In the predominantly protestant Netherlands, the southern provinces were a Roman Catholic bastion. The dominance of the Church over family and social relationships was very marked, resulting in large families and strong relations between families.
Until the 1960's traditional labour-intensive industrial sectors, such as the leather and clothing industry and small-scale farming, were the main means of livelihood.
In the past few years new industries, particularly high-tech and service industries, have made North Brabant the most industrialised province of the Netherlands. Over the same period the agricultural sector has also undergone great changes and developed into a specialised and high value-added sector (intensive animal production, mainly pigs). These beneficial economic developments are particularly due to the strategic position of North Brabant.
The future of the Noord Brabant economy is influenced by the competition from the Far East and the worldwide economic developments. A large part of the industrial production, electronics and informatics, which is an important industry in North Brabant, is exported worldwide. As a result of the growth in intensive animal production in particular, parts of the province are vulnerable to rapid contamination with animal diseases.
Uniformity in variety
Both the population and economic activity are evenly spread. The five large cities in North Brabant are all of approximately the same size, and are important centres with a supra-regional function. Nevertheless, they all have their own character, and the emphasis is on different economic activities.
In Breda and the surrounding district - situated centrally between the Randstad and Belgium - the accent is on the transport and distributive trades sector. Tilburg, the seat of Tilburg University, has a wide range of economic activities, with an accent on (modern) industry. The capital, 's-Hertogenbosch, an 800-year old mercantile city and ecclesiastical centre, has rather more high-tech industry and service industries (both commercial and public). Eindhoven, the fifth largest city in the Netherlands, is the home of the multinational Philips, and has expanded into an international centre for advanced technology. The city also has several other innovative firms and is the seat of the Technical University of Eindhoven. Helmond, neighbouring Eindhoven, can be characterised by large industrial employment.
In the rural areas around these cities there are many subcontracting firms, farms and large-scale tourist/recreational facilities.
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