Timeline of Breda

Last updated December 06, 2025

The following is a timeline of the history of the municipality of Breda, Netherlands.

Prior to 20th century

1252 - Breda granted city status.^[1]
1267 - Begijnhof (Breda) [ nl ] founded.
1321 - Tuesday market begins.^[1]
1330 - Building of the city wall started.
1350 - Breda Castle built.^[2]
1351 - Polanen Castle besieged.^[2]
1394 - Polanen Castle demolished.
1410 - Grote Kerk (Breda) begun.^[2]
1534 - Fortification of the city began.^[2]
1536 - "Poor relief" established.^[3]
1547 - Grote Kerk finished.^[2]
1566 - Iconoclasm by Protestants.^[1]
1575 - Spanish-Dutch Breda peace conference [ nl ] held in city.^[2]
1581 - Capture of Breda by Spanish troops.^[2]
1590 - 4 March: Capture of Breda (1590) by Maurice, Prince of Orange ^[2] and Dutch-English forces.^[4]
1624 - 28 August: Siege of Breda begins.
1625 - 5 June: Siege of Breda ends; Spanish in power.^[4]^[2]
1637
- 21 July: Siege of Breda by Dutch forces begins.
- 10 October: Siege of Breda ends; Breda taken by Dutch forces of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange.^[5]^[2]
- Grote Kerk (church) becomes Protestant.
1648 - Breda becomes part of Holland per Treaty of Westphalia.^[2]
1650 - 1 May: English-Scottish treaty signed in Breda.
1660 - April: Charles II of England proclaims the Declaration of Breda while passing through town.^[6]^[2]
1667 - 31 July: Anglo-Dutch treaty signed in Breda.^[5]
1696 - Breda Castle built by William, prince of Orange.^[2]
1746/48 - British-French bilateral negotiations at the Congress of Breda.^[2]
1768 - Breda Town Hall [ nl ] remodeled.^[1]
1793 - Siege of Breda; French in power.^[6]
1813 - Siege of Breda; French military ousted.^[6]
1817 - Breda coat of arms [ nl ] adopted.
1828 - Royal Military Academy established.^[2]
1837 - St. Anthony of Padua Cathedral built.
1845 - Synagogue built on Schoolstraat.^[7]
1853 - Roman Catholic Diocese of Breda established.^[8]
1855 - Breda railway station opens.
1863 - Breda–Eindhoven railway begins operating.^[9]
1870 - City directory begins publication.^[10]
1883 - Ginnekensche Tramweg Maatschappij [ nl ] tram begins operating.^[11]
1886 - Breda courthouse [ nl ] and Koepelgevangenis (prison) built.
1890 - Breda-Oudenbosch tram line [ nl ] begins operating.
1893 - Breda Haagpoort-Breda SS tram line [ nl ] in operation.
1894 - Population: 24,397.^[12]
1900 - Population: 26,296.^[2]

20th century

1901 - Tram Breda-Mastbosch begins operating.^[11]
1907 - Eppo Paul van Lanschot [ nl ] becomes mayor.
1912 - NAC Breda football club founded.
1919
- Population: 30,044.^[13]
- Willem van Sonsbeeck [ nl ] becomes mayor.
1920 - Gemeentetram Breda (tram) begins operating.^[11]
1921 - NAC Breda wins its first Dutch football championship.
1940 - German occupation during World War II begins.
1942 - Ginneken and Princenhage become part of Breda.^[1]

1944
- City liberated by the 1st Polish Armoured Division of General Stanisław Maczek.
- De Stem newspaper begins publication.^[14]
1952 - Breda flag [ nl ] design adopted.^[1]
1953 - Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, Breda [ nl ] built.^[15]
1955 - Mirabelle (Breda restaurant) in business.
1963 - Polish cemetery in Breda [ nl ] established in Princenhage.^{[ citation needed ]}
1966 - Breda University of Applied Sciences established
1975 - Breda railway station rebuilt.
1981 - Generaal Maczek Museum [ nl ] established.^[16]
1990 - Ed Nijpels becomes mayor.
1991 - Sister city partnership signed between Breda and Wrocław, Poland.
1995 - Chassé Theater [ nl ] built.^[15]
1996
- Rat Verlegh Stadion opened.
- Chris Rutten [ nl ] becomes mayor.
1998 - BN DeStem newspaper in publication.
2000 - Population: 160,650.^[17]

21st century

2001
- City joins regional BrabantStad group.^[18]
- Moooi in business.
2004 - Peter van der Velden [ nl ] becomes mayor.
2007 - Redhead Day begins.
2014 - Population: 179,665.^[17]
2015 - Paul Depla [ nl ] becomes mayor.

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 "Historie". Breda.nl (in Dutch). Gemeente Breda. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Britannica 1910.
↑ Ole Peter Grell; Andrew Cunningham, eds. (1997). Health Care and Poor Relief in Protestant Europe 1500-1700. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-80860-1.
1 2 "Timeline Dutch History". Rijksmuseum. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
1 2 Joop W. Koopmans; Arend H. Huussen Jr. (2007). Historical Dictionary of the Netherlands (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-6444-3.
1 2 3 Haydn 1910.
↑ "Breda". Four Hundred Years of Dutch Jewry. Amsterdam: Joods Historisch Museum . Retrieved 30 October 2015.
↑ "Chronology of Catholic Dioceses: The Netherlands". Norway: Roman Catholic Diocese of Oslo . Retrieved 30 October 2015.
↑ W. J. M. Leideritz (1978). De tramwegen van Noord-Brabant (in Dutch). Brill. ISBN 90-04-05706-4.
↑ "Collecties". Stadsarchief Breda (in Dutch). Gemeente Breda. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
1 2 3 J.W. Sluiter (1967). Beknopt overzicht van de nederlandse sppor en tramwegbedrijven [Brief overview of Dutch railway and tramway companies] (in Dutch). Brill.
↑ "Netherlands". Statesman's Year-Book. London: Macmillan and Co. 1896. hdl:2027/nyp.33433081590543.
↑ "Netherlands". Statesman's Year-Book. London: Macmillan and Co. 1921. hdl:2027/njp.32101072368440 – via HathiTrust.
↑ Jan van de Plasse (2005). Kroniek van de Nederlandse dagblad- en opiniepers (in Dutch). Otto Cramwinckel. ISBN 978-90-75727-77-7. (timeline)
1 2 Hans van Dijk (1999). Twentieth-century Architecture in the Netherlands. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers. ISBN 978-90-6450-347-4.
↑ "The start and history of the General Maczek Museum in Breda". Archived from the original on 2 August 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
1 2 "Feiten en Cijfers". Breda.nl (in Dutch). Gemeente Breda. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
↑ "BrabantStad Facts & Figures". Archived from the original on 10 September 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

This article incorporates information from the Dutch Wikipedia.

Bibliography

in English

Thomas Nugent (1749), "Breda", The Grand Tour, vol. 1: Netherlands, London: S. Birt, hdl:2027/mdp.39015030762598
Abraham Rees (1819), "Breda", The Cyclopaedia, London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Brown, hdl:2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t4vh5t74q
"Breda". Galignani's Traveller's Guide through Holland and Belgium (4th ed.). Paris: A. and W. Galignani. 1822. hdl:2027/njp.32101073846667.
William Henry Overall, ed. (1870). "Breda". Dictionary of Chronology. London: William Tegg. hdl:2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t9m32q949.
"Breda", Handbook for Travellers in Holland and Belgium (20th ed.), London: John Murray, 1881, hdl:2027/hvd.hn2ha2
"Breda". Chambers's Encyclopaedia. London. 1901. hdl:2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t81j9pj6k.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
"Breda", Holland: its Rail, Tram, and Waterways (3rd ed.), London: A. and C. Black, 1908
"Breda", Belgium and Holland (15th ed.), Leipzig: Karl Baedeker, 1910, hdl:2027/uc1.b3129294
"Breda" . Encyclopædia Britannica . Vol. 4 (11th ed.). 1910. p. 486.
Benjamin Vincent (1910), "Breda", Haydn's Dictionary of Dates (25th ed.), London: Ward, Lock & Co., hdl:2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t41r6xh8t

in Dutch

Thomas Ernst van Goor (1744), Beschryving der stadt en lande van Breda (in Dutch), Hague: Jacobus van den Kieboom, OCLC 19063210, OL 6970701M
Abraham Jacob van der Aa (1840). "Breda". Aardrijkskundig woordenboek der Nederlanden[Geographical dictionary of the Netherlands] (in Dutch). Vol. 2. Gorinchem: Jacobus Noorduyn. hdl:2027/mdp.39015039363968 – via HathiTrust.
Henri Zondervan, ed. (1915), "Breda", Winkler Prins' Geillustreerde Encyclopaedie (in Dutch), vol. 4 (4th ed.), Amsterdam: Uitgevers-Maatschappy „Elsevier“, hdl:2027/mdp.39015068310153
G. van Herwijnen, ed. (1978). "Noord-Brabant: Breda". Bibliografie van de stedengeschiedenis van Nederland[Bibliography of Urban History in the Netherlands] (in Dutch). Brill. pp. 279+. ISBN 90-04-05700-5.

External links

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[Historie-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Historie". Breda.nl (in Dutch). Gemeente Breda. Retrieved 30 October 2015.

[FOOTNOTEBritannica1910-2] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Britannica 1910.

[Grell2002-3] Ole Peter Grell; Andrew Cunningham, eds. (1997). Health Care and Poor Relief in Protestant Europe 1500-1700. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-80860-1.

[rijksmuseum-4] 1 2 "Timeline Dutch History". Rijksmuseum. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.

[koopmans2007-5] 1 2 Joop W. Koopmans; Arend H. Huussen Jr. (2007). Historical Dictionary of the Netherlands (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-6444-3.

[FOOTNOTEHaydn1910-6] 1 2 3 Haydn 1910.

[jewry-7] "Breda". Four Hundred Years of Dutch Jewry. Amsterdam: Joods Historisch Museum . Retrieved 30 October 2015.

[katolsk-8] "Chronology of Catholic Dioceses: The Netherlands". Norway: Roman Catholic Diocese of Oslo . Retrieved 30 October 2015.

[Leideritz1978-9] W. J. M. Leideritz (1978). De tramwegen van Noord-Brabant (in Dutch). Brill. ISBN 90-04-05706-4.

[10] "Collecties". Stadsarchief Breda (in Dutch). Gemeente Breda. Retrieved 30 October 2015.

[sluiter1967-11] 1 2 3 J.W. Sluiter (1967). Beknopt overzicht van de nederlandse sppor en tramwegbedrijven [Brief overview of Dutch railway and tramway companies] (in Dutch). Brill.

[12] "Netherlands". Statesman's Year-Book. London: Macmillan and Co. 1896. hdl:2027/nyp.33433081590543.

[13] "Netherlands". Statesman's Year-Book. London: Macmillan and Co. 1921. hdl:2027/njp.32101072368440 – via HathiTrust.

[Plasse2005-14] Jan van de Plasse (2005). Kroniek van de Nederlandse dagblad- en opiniepers (in Dutch). Otto Cramwinckel. ISBN 978-90-75727-77-7. (timeline)

[Dijk1999-15] 1 2 Hans van Dijk (1999). Twentieth-century Architecture in the Netherlands. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers. ISBN 978-90-6450-347-4.

[16] "The start and history of the General Maczek Museum in Breda". Archived from the original on 2 August 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

[Feiten-17] 1 2 "Feiten en Cijfers". Breda.nl (in Dutch). Gemeente Breda. Retrieved 30 October 2015.

[18] "BrabantStad Facts & Figures". Archived from the original on 10 September 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

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v t e Years in the Netherlands (1815–present)
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1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
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