Vlaardingen is a city in South Holland in the Netherlands. It is located on the north bank of the Nieuwe Maas/Nieuwe Waterweg river where it connects with the Oude Maas. On the east the city is separated from Schiedam by a motorway. Other places nearby are Maassluis to the west and Delft in the north. The city has a gemeente (local government) which as of January 1, 1999 administered an area of 26.71 km², of which 23.76 km² was land, with 74,058 residents (in 2004).

The "Haring en Bierfeest" (herring and beer festival) is held each year on the first Saturday of June. In 2003 the major decided to close this festivity. This, cause there was a lot of fighting in the city. At the moment this event is called "Vlaardings Loggerfestival".

The centre of the city is on the west side of the old harbour, which is a widened section of the canal (Vlaardingse vaart) which runs from Vlaardingen to the northwest. Two historical buildings in the centre are the Grote Kerk (big church) and the old city hall. The Grote Kerk was probably established between 1156 and 1164 and has been expanded, damaged and rebuilt over the centuries. To the north of the old harbour is the old windmill, which is still in operation and sells ground cereals. The harbour itself now seems to be occupied mainly by recreational and antique boats. Near the harbour is a fishing museum.

A Unilever research centre is located in Vlaardingen. There are still some ship repair business(es) in east Vlaardingen beside the Nieuwe Maas River.

History

The area around Vlaardingen was already settled by about 2900BC to 2600BC. In 1018 it was a stronghold of Count Dirk III , who defeated an army of Henry I, Holy Roman Emperor in the Battle of Vlaardingen . Vlaardingen later became a ship-building area and a significant harbour for the herring fishing industry. The fishing boats ceased to use Vlaardingen in the years after World War II.

It received city rights in 1273.

Policing

Vlaardingen is separated for policing in three suburbs, Centre, West and Holy.

External links

• Gemeente Vlaardingen -- http://www.vlaardingen.nl
• http://www.sdu.nl/staatscourant/gem/gem494zh.htm
• Detailed Cito-plan map
• Detailed Falkplan map