The city is surrounded by polders, such as the Purmer, Beemster and the Wormer. The city became the trade center of the region but the population grew relatively slow. Only after 1960 did the population start to grow from around 10.000 to the current 78.307 people (1 November 2007). From the 1960s onwards, Purmerend has seen major expansions. These expansions added new suburbs, providing homes for people working in Amsterdam. This expansion continues to the present date. Purmerend is part of the Randstad, one of the largest conurbations in Europe.[2]
[edit] History[edit] Early historyPurmerend was created out of the small fishing village Purmer, which lay on the land between the Purmermeer (Purmer lake), the Beemstermeer (Beemster lake) and the Wormermeer (Wormer lake). On the south bank of the river de Weere, which used to connect the former Purmer lake and Beemster lake. Purmerend was founded by a rich banker from Amsterdam, Willem Eggert. In 1410 he was allowed, by HRH Count William VI of Holland (Willem VI van Holland), to build his own fortified castle, Slot Purmersteijn. Construction on the castle was finished in 1413[3] and it remained standing until it was demolished in 1741 after it had fallen into decline.[4] In 1434 Purmerend was given city rights. And on 21 April 1484 (Some sources claim 14 April 1484) the city was given “marktrechten” (the right to organise two “jaarmarkten” annual markets and a “weekmarkt” weekly market) by Count Jan van Egmond.[3][5][6] This meant merchants from outside of Purmerend could now offer there merchandise for sale on the market. Before 1484 only food products for its own population were allowed to be sold.[7]
[edit] 15th centuryBy 1500 Purmerend had grown considerably, as can be seen on maps dating from that time period. They show that the town had a rectangular shape and was crossed by two roads: one leading north-south, the other east-west. The draining of the Beemster Lake in 1612 and the Purmer Lake in 1622 meant a great loss in fishing grounds to Purmerend. However, the new and fertile soil favoured agriculture and livestock breeding, making Purmerend prosperous again. Purmerend now became the centre of an agricultural region, the produce of which was sold on the markets of Purmerend. [edit] 20th centuryDuring World War II Purmerend was occupied by Axis forces on 14 May 1940 when the Kingdom of the Netherlands capitulated to Nazi Germany after the bombing of Rotterdam. World War II ended for Purmerend when it was finally liberated from the Axis invaders on Wednesday 9 May 1945 by allied soldiers. After almost 5 years of occupation.[8] [edit] 21st centuryPurmerend was named Kermisstad van Nederland.[9] (Funfair City of the Netherlands) in 2003. After the funfair Purmerend is most famous for its cattle market, the so called Koemarkt (Cattle market), where cattle are sold and/or traded, most commonly cows and sheep. After the many cattle diseases of the between 1995 and 2001 this has no longer been allowed. It was reinstated on a smaller scale on January 2002.[5] After 400 years, 2008 saw the last cattle auction at the original location in downtown Purmerend. The auction was moved to the "Baanstee Oost" industrial area, in the north of Purmerend. This was decided for various reasons: freeing up downtown traffic congestion, allow more parking area downtown, more room for auction grounds and ease of moving trucks around at new site. [edit] Geography and Climate[edit] GeographyPurmerend lies on a swampy and watery area known as Waterland. When the first settlers began cultivating the land, consisting mostly of turf (veen), they dug ditches that run parallel to each other to drain excess water. As a side effect of this process the land began to sink. This resulted in a never ending battle against the water. And made agriculture near impossible at the time. It also meant that any structure needed to be build on an artificial Terp or natural hill. The former being true for Purmerend which was build on the bank of the river de Where, that linked the former Beemster and Purmer lakes. [edit] DistrictsPurmerend is made up of the following districts.
The municipality of Purmerend also contains the towns/hamlets of Purmerbuurt and partially the Purmer. (The Purmer is shared with Edam-Volendam and Waterland) [edit] Climate
[edit] Public transportationPublic transportation is mainly focused on Amsterdam, with several bus services and a train service via Zaandam. There are 3 stations in Purmerend, one in the north, centre and south. These are: The bus station in Purmerend is called "Tramplein" (or, Tram Square), but not because any trams run in Purmerend today. History is that a tram ("'t Boemeltje") ran from Amsterdam Centraal to Purmerend, ending at the Tramplein location. Although the tram service discontinued years ago, the end stop has remained named Tramplein. In 1951, The Ramblers had a hit commemorating the tram service "'t Boemeltje van Purmerend". [edit] Local governmentThe municipal council of Purmerend consists of 35 seats, which are divided as follows:
The mayor of Purmerend is Leen Verbeek. [1] (PvdA) [edit] Born in PurmerendNotable people born in Purmerend:
[edit] Sister citiesPurmerend currently has one sister city: [edit] Sources
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