Venlo

Venlo, on the Maas, is the cultural, administrative and economic center of northern Limburg. As
an important traffic junction point between Rotterdam and the Ruhr, Venlo has been well placed,
particularly since the end of the Second World War, for the development of industry and the
establishment of international commercial firms handling the produce of the market gardens in
the surrounding area. The main branches of industry are engineering, the production of optical
apparatus, wire-drawing, electrical engineering, textiles, building materials and woodworking.
Venlo, originally a little trading town of no particular importance, was granted a municipal
charter in 1343. In 1481 it became a member of the Hanseatic League. Lying as it did in a
frontier area, it was strongly fortified, but in spite of this it was compelled to surrender on a
number of occasions - in 1543 to Charles V's forces, in 1543 to Alexander Farnese, in 1632 to
Prince Frederick Henry and in 1702 to Marlborough. In 1713 it was incorporated in the United
Netherlands. The development of industry and a rapid increase in population began after the
demolition of the old fortifications in 1868. Venlo suffered heavy destruction during the Second
World War but was rapidly rebuilt, to become the modern town it is today.