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112-626: Through the centuries, the town has filled the role of commercial centre and a principal town in the duchy of Guelders . Since 1559, it has served as the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Roermond . The skyline of the town is dominated by the towers of its two churches, St. Christopher's Cathedral and Roermond Minster ("Munsterkerk" in Dutch). In addition to the churches, the town centre has many significant buildings and monuments. Celtic inhabitants of this region used to live on both sides of

224-505: A Danish declaration that they would hold the city for Napoleon, irrevocably binding Denmark to France, an action that would guarantee full Swedish cooperation in North Germany. The Swedish occupation of Hamburg came as welcome news to the Allies, insofar as holding a wealthy center of finance was a blow against Napoleon. However, Bernadotte's initial misgivings at extending his troops so far from

336-606: A French general as well as his familiarity with Napoleon. The result was the Trachenberg Plan , authored primarily by Carl Johan of Sweden and the Austrian Chief of Staff, Field-Marshal Lieutenant Joseph Radetzky , that sought to wear down the French using a Fabian strategy , avoiding direct combat with Napoleon, engaging and defeating his marshals whenever possible and slowly encircling the French with three independent armies until

448-607: A Liberation Day festival on 5 May and the dance festival Solar Weekend . Roermond has had its own anthem since 1912. The text was written by A. F. van Beurden, the music is by H. Tijssen, who also composed the Limburg Anthem ( Waar in 't bronsgroen eikenhout ). In everyday life in Limburg around 1900, the Dutch language was of less importance. Everything was done in Limburgs . Newspapers in

560-517: A breakdown of communications, MacDonald's several corps found themselves isolated from one another with many bridges over the Katzback and Neisse rivers destroyed by surging waters. 200,000 Prussians and French collided in a confused battle that degenerated into hand-to-hand combat. However, Blücher and the Prussians rallied their scattered units and attacked an isolated French corps and pinned it against

672-735: A call to arms to his subjects, An Mein Volk . Prussia had declared war on France on 13 March, which was received by the French on 16 March. The first armed conflict occurred on 5 April in the Battle of Möckern , where combined Prusso-Russian forces defeated French troops. Meanwhile, Napoleon withdrew some 20,000 troops from the ongoing Peninsular War to reinforce his position in Central Europe, which left his Iberian forces weakened and vulnerable to Anglo–Spanish–Portuguese attacks. On 17 March 1813, his brother King Joseph Bonaparte of Spain withdrew from Madrid,

784-584: A clear sign of losing control. Wellington led a 123,000-strong army across northern Spain, taking Burgos in late May, and decisively defeating Jourdan at the Battle of Vitoria on 21 June. Marshal Soult failed to turn the tide in his large-scale Battle of the Pyrenees (25 July to 2 August). In June, the United Kingdom formally entered the coalition. Initially, Austria remained loyal to France, and foreign minister Metternich aimed to mediate in good faith

896-614: A double attack . IRA members opened fire on a car in Roermond with Royal Air Force airmen, killing Ian Shinner. Half an hour later, a second attack elsewhere, in Nieuw-Bergen , killed two British airmen and injured another. In a separate attack two years later two Australian nationals were killed . The two men were lawyers on holiday, whom the IRA shot believing they were off-duty British Army soldiers. Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke denounced

1008-636: A friendship with Alexander, and gave him moral support, strategic and tactical advice on how to defeat the French, as well as valuable insights on Napoleon himself (having had much contact with Napoleon as a member of the extended Imperial Family). However Russia bore the brunt of the French onslaught on her territory alone. After the French Grande Armée retreated from Moscow on 18/19 October 1812 and suffered heavy casualties due to extreme cold, food shortages and repeated Russian attacks, Napoleon did not seem to be as invincible as before. On 14 December,

1120-569: A member of the Coalition. Napoleon withdrew with around 175,000 troops to Leipzig in Saxony where he thought he could fight a defensive action against the Allied armies converging on him. There, at the so-called Battle of Nations (16–19 October 1813) a French army, ultimately reinforced to 191,000, found itself faced by three Allied armies converging on it, ultimately totalling more than 430,000 troops. Over

1232-630: A million Allied troops (not including the strategic reserve being formed in Germany). During the armistice, three Allied sovereigns, Alexander of Russia, Frederick William of Prussia, and Carl Johan of Sweden (by then Regent of the kingdom due to his adoptive father's illness) met at Trachenberg Castle in Silesia to coordinate the war effort. Allied staffs began creating a plan for the campaign wherein Bernadotte once again put to use his fifteen years of experience as

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1344-405: A new army as large as that he had sent into Russia, and quickly built up his forces in the east from 30,000 to 130,000 and eventually to 400,000. Napoleon inflicted 40,000 casualties on the Allies at Lützen (near Leipzig, 2 May) and Bautzen (20–21 May 1813) but his army lost about the same number of men during those encounters. Both battles involved total forces of over 250,000 – making them among

1456-476: A new coalition against France. Sweden then signed the secret Treaty of Saint Petersburg with Russia against France and Denmark–Norway on 5 April 1812. On 18 July 1812, the Treaty of Örebro formally ended the wars between Britain and Sweden and Britain and Russia , forming the basis of coalition between Russia, Britain, and Sweden, though the exact parameters of a military alliance remained in negotiation throughout

1568-701: A peace between France and its continental enemies, but it became apparent that the price was to be the dismantling of the Confederation of the Rhine , the Napoleon-controlled union of all German states aside from Prussia and Austria, and the return to France's pre-Revolutionary borders. Napoleon was not interested in any such compromise that would in effect end his empire, so Austria joined the allies and declared war on France in August 1813. Napoleon vowed that he would create

1680-478: A period of reconstruction and recuperation" and Napoleon needed time to acquire horses for his depleted cavalry and bring up more reinforcements. Therefore, Napoleon was amiable to the armistice offered by the Allies despite the Allies being in a grave condition. During the armistice, a disastrous interview with Austrian Chancellor Metternich , in which Napoleon heaped recriminations on the Austrians and threw his hat to

1792-531: A proclamation by the Swedish Crown Prince urging the Saxon Army (Bernadotte had commanded the Saxon Army at the Battle of Wagram and was well liked by them) to come over to the Allied cause, Saxon generals could no longer answer for the fidelity of their troops and the French now considered their remaining German allies unreliable. Later, on 8 October 1813, Bavaria officially ranged itself against Napoleon as

1904-548: A railway station serving commuter trains on the line Roermond-Venlo twice hourly. For regional transport, there is a bus station with municipal and regional lines to nearby villages and towns. There used to be a bus service to Heinsberg in Germany, which was terminated in December 2008. There are no long-distance coach services. Guelders The Duchy of Guelders ( Dutch : Gelre , French : Gueldre , German : Geldern )

2016-423: A soldier his duty was to break through, but as a Prussian patriot his position was more difficult. He had to judge whether the moment was favorable for starting a war of liberation; and, whatever might be the enthusiasm of his junior staff-officers, Yorck had no illusions as to the safety of his own head, and negotiated with Clausewitz. The Convention of Tauroggen armistice, signed by Diebitsch and Yorck, "neutralized"

2128-558: Is Count Anthony of Guelders, elder son of Duke Arnold and brother to Adolf "since then happily vanished". Sabatini weaves the historical characters and events of the period through the story. The folk/metalband Heidevolk , based in Gelderland, composed and performs a range of songs about Gelre/Guelders, among them a contemporary anthem " Het Gelders Volklied ". Circles est. 1500: Bavarian , Swabian , Upper Rhenish , Lower Rhenish–Westphalian , Franconian , (Lower) Saxon War of

2240-590: Is a historical duchy , previously county , of the Holy Roman Empire , located in the Low Countries . The duchy was named after the town of Geldern ( Gelder ) in present-day Germany . Though the present province of Gelderland (English also Guelders ) in the Netherlands occupies most of the area, the former duchy also comprised parts of the present Dutch province of Limburg as well as those territories in

2352-520: Is home to a McArthurGlen Designer Outlet, which has become one of the largest and most successful designer outlets in Europe with an average of almost six million customers per year, making it one of the biggest tourist attractions in the Netherlands. In 2017 it reached 200 shops following its latest expansion. The Designer Outlet attracts many shoppers from France, Germany, Belgium and China. In 2007, Roermond

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2464-514: Is situated in the middle of the province of Limburg , which is bordered by the river Maas to the west and Germany to the east. The community of Roermond consists of the following population centres: Roermond is encircled by a green belt, which offers many opportunities for hiking and cycling. To the east, nature reserves, such as the Meinweg National Park , the valley of the Leu ( Leudal ), and

2576-531: Is the German autobahn A52. The last 6 km (4 mi) stretch from Düsseldorf to the German-Dutch border was recently completed. The highway leads from Roermond straight to Düsseldorf. As of 2010, the city itself had a fairly high unemployment rate of 10.7% and the average income was lower than the national average, despite an above-average economy in the region and an influx of new residents. Since 2001, Roermond

2688-578: The A73 ( Maastricht - Nijmegen ) passes east of the city, partly through tunnels. Eastwards the German A52 leads to Düsseldorf . Westbound the provincial road N280 leads towards Weert and connects to the A2 towards Eindhoven . Roermond has a train station with quarter-hourly fast trains across the country to: In addition, there are commuter trains with half-hourly service to: The municipality of Swalmen also has

2800-626: The Battle of Baesweiler ) and Reginald III (on 4 December), the ensuing Guelders War of Succession (1371 to 1379) saw William I of Jülich emerge victorious. William was confirmed in the inheritance of Guelders in 1379, and from 1393 onwards held both duchies in personal union (in Guelders as William I, and in Jülich as William III). In 1423 Guelders passed to the House of Egmond , which gained recognition of its title from Emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg , but

2912-460: The Battle of Kulm (29–30 August 1813), losing 13,000 men further weakening his army. Realizing that the Allies would continue to defeat his subordinates, Napoleon began to consolidate his troops to force a decisive battle. The French then suffered another grievous loss at the hands of Bernadotte's army on 6 September at Dennewitz where Ney was now in command, with Oudinot now as his deputy. The French were once again attempting to capture Berlin,

3024-724: The German Confederation . During World War II , the Germans occupied Roermond from 1940 to 1945. On 1 March 1945 the town was liberated by the Recce Troop of the 35th US Infantry Division during Operation Grenade . By the time of liberation, 90% of all buildings were either damaged or destroyed. Restoration returned the old town centre to its full glory. On 1 May 1988 the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) killed three British airmen and injured three others in

3136-747: The Guelders Wars and expanded his realm further north, to incorporate what is now the Province of Overijssel . He was not simply a man of war, but also a skilled diplomat, and was therefore able to keep his independence. He bequeathed the duchy to Duke William the Rich of Jülich-Cleves-Berg (also known as Wilhelm of Cleves). Following in the footsteps of Charles of Egmond, Duke William formed an alliance with France, an alliance dubiously cemented via his political marriage to French King Francis I 's niece Jeanne d'Albret (who reportedly had to be whipped into submission to

3248-466: The Imperial Russian Army . According to the Treaty of Tilsit (9 July 1807), Prussia had to support Napoleon's invasion of Russia. This resulted in some Prussians leaving their army to avoid serving the French, like Carl von Clausewitz , who joined Russian service. When Yorck's immediate French superior Marshal MacDonald , retreated before the corps of Diebitsch, Yorck found himself isolated. As

3360-629: The Inquisition , people were encouraged to report suspects of witchcraft and heresy. In 1613, 64 witches were burnt on Galgeberg hill near the Kapel in 't Zand  [ nl ] in Roermond, the largest witch trial in the Netherlands ever. In 1632 the Dutch Stadhouder Frederik Hendrik conquered Roermond along with Venlo and Maastricht during his famous "March along the Meuse". Attempts in

3472-512: The Rhineland (the west bank of the Rhine river), while giving up control of all the rest, including all of Poland, Spain and the Netherlands, and most of Italy and Germany. Metternich told Napoleon these were the best terms the Allies were likely to offer; after further victories, the terms would be harsher and harsher. Metternich aimed to maintain France as a balance against Russian threats, while ending

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3584-516: The Roer , Roermond often has to defend itself against floods. The worst floods were in 1993 and 1995. Though Roermond grew and expanded steadily over the years, it was not until the start of the 21st century that Roermond saw another economic boost. This recent growth was mainly caused by the construction of the highway A73 circling Roermond on the east side. The highway was planned to open in January 2007 with

3696-852: The Spanish Crown . When the Netherlands revolted against King Philip II of Spain in the Dutch Revolt , the three northern quarters of Gelderland joined the Union of Utrecht and became part of the United Provinces upon the 1581 Act of Abjuration , while only the Upper Quarter remained a part of the Spanish Netherlands . At the Treaty of Utrecht , ending the War of the Spanish Succession in 1713,

3808-637: The Spanish Upper Quarter was again divided between Prussian Guelders ( Geldern , Viersen , Horst , Venray ), the United Provinces ( Venlo , Montfort , Echt ), Austria (this part continued as the duchy: Roermond , Niederkrüchten , Weert ), and the Duchy of Jülich ( Erkelenz ). In 1795 Guelders was finally conquered and incorporated by the French First Republic , and partitioned between

3920-505: The Swalm and Roer rivers provide woodlands, heath and meadows. The Meinweg also contains a small amount of wildlife, including a small group of vipers, the only venomous snake to live in the Netherlands. To the west, the river Meuse and its lake area, known as " Maasplassen ", offer opportunities for water recreation. As a town near to and surrounded by water and close to two rivers, the Meuse and

4032-581: The War of the Sixth Coalition , Roermond was liberated by the Russians. After the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 , Roermond became part of the new Kingdom of the Netherlands . The new province was to receive the name "Maastricht", after its capital. King William , who did not want the name Limburg to be lost, insisted that the name be changed to Limburg . As such, the name of the new province derived from

4144-446: The Wars of Liberation ( German : Befreiungskriege ), a coalition of Austria , Prussia , Russia , Spain , Great Britain , Portugal , Sweden , Sardinia , and a number of German States defeated France and drove Napoleon into exile on Elba . After the disastrous French invasion of Russia of 1812 in which they had been forced to support France, Prussia and Austria joined Russia,

4256-724: The 100,000 French troops still garrisoned in fortresses throughout northern Germany. Despite several attempts by the Russian General Bennigsen to storm the city, Marshal Davout held Hamburg for France until after Napoleon's abdication in April 1814. However, whilst Bernadotte cleared the Low Countries of the French in Spring 1814, the people of Norway objected to being bartered between kings, declared independence and adopted their own constitution on 17 May 1814. Even as fighting between

4368-479: The 19th century were sometimes written in German, and in some parts of Limburg German was the language used in church and education. In this time Maastricht still had a very strong connection with French-speaking areas around Liège . Van Beurden's poem was used to force the people of Limburg into speaking Dutch. Proof of this is the very un-Limburg part in the anthem, the reference to the Dutch Royal family. In 1900

4480-464: The 2.5 km (1.6 mi) long Roertunnel leading traffic underneath a part of the city and the shorter Swalmertunnel underneath Swalmen. However, due to delays the tunnels only opened with a single carriageway available and frequent closures. The tunnels grew infamous during the first weeks when numerous closures due to technical problems caused constant traffic jams. The tunnels are now fully operational. Another highway connection under construction

4592-556: The Allied armies. In total the Allies now had around 800,000 frontline troops in the German theatre, with a strategic reserve of 350,000. As a consequence of the armistice, the French lost their initial advantage in numbers as the Austrians, and Russia's huge manpower reserves, were brought to the front. Napoleon succeeded in bringing the total imperial forces in the region up to around 650,000 (although only 250,000 were under his direct command, with another 120,000 under Nicolas Charles Oudinot and 30,000 under Davout). The Confederation of

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4704-405: The Allied lines, with British General Hope calling Döbeln, who was later court-martialed for disobeying orders "the mad Swedish General," were validated when Marshal Davout approached Hamburg with a French force of 34,000, intent on retaking the city. The Swedes quietly withdrew on 26 May and Davout would occupy the city until after Napoleon's abdication in 1814. It would be the last major action of

4816-449: The Allies narrowly slipped the noose. So while Napoleon had struck a heavy blow against the Allies, several tactical errors had allowed the Allies to withdraw, thus ruining Napoleon's best chance at ending the war in a single battle. Nonetheless, Napoleon had once again inflicted a heavy loss on the primary Allied Army despite being outnumbered and for some weeks after Dresden Schwarzenberg declined to take offensive action. However at about

4928-530: The Allies. Napoleon turned the Allied Left Flank, and in skilful use of terrain, pinned it against the flooded Weißeritz river and isolated it from the rest of the Coalition Army. He then gave his famed cavalry commander, and King of Naples, Joachim Murat leave to destroy the surrounded Austrians. The day's torrential rain had dampened gunpowder, rendering the Austrians' muskets and cannon useless against

5040-756: The Bold and fought for the House of Habsburg in battles against the armies of Charles VIII of France , until being captured in the Battle of Béthune (1487) during the War of the Public Weal (also known as the Mad War ). In 1492, the citizens of Guelders, who had become disenchanted with the rule of Maximilian, ransomed Charles and recognized him as their Duke. Charles, now backed by France , fought Maximilian's grandson Charles of Habsburg (who became Holy Roman Emperor, as Charles V, in 1519) in

5152-436: The Coalition and France ended with Napoleon's abdication, codified in the Treaty of Fontainbleau on 11 April 1814, Bernadotte found himself planning and leading yet another campaign to see the results of the Treaty of Kiel fully realized. It would be the final campaign of the War of the Sixth Coalition. On 27 July 1814, Bernadotte, supported by the Swedish and British fleets, invaded Norway on two fronts, intending to envelop

5264-436: The Danish Auxiliary Corps scored a minor victory at Sehested . However, while the Danish victory managed to ensure the retreat of the main Danish army from immediate destruction, and brought about a three-week armistice, it could not change the course of war. Following a breakdown of negotiations, the armistice concluded and on 14 January 1814 Bernadotte invaded Schleswig , swiftly invested and reduced its fortresses and occupied

5376-411: The French Emperor could be cornered and brought to battle against vastly superior numbers. Following the conference, the Allies stood up their three armies: The Army of Silesia, with 95,000 Prussians and Russians, commanded by Field Marshal Gebhard von Blücher ; the Army of the North, 120,000 Swedes, Russians, Prussians, and German troops from Mecklenburg , the Hanseatic cities and North Germany, under

5488-455: The French in the abandoned city of Moscow with little food or shelter (large parts of Moscow had burned down ) and winter approaching. In these circumstances, and with no clear path to victory, Napoleon was forced to withdraw from Moscow. So began the disastrous Great Retreat , during which the retreating army came under increasing pressure due to lack of food, desertions, and increasingly harsh winter weather, all while under continual attack by

5600-463: The IRA explanation saying 'This sort of warped logic of war casualties adds insult to a mortal injury,' and a later Prime Minister John Howard refused to meet Gerry Adams from Sinn Féin on a visit to Australia in 2000. On 13 April 1992, a magnitude 5.4 earthquake occurred near the town of Roermond at a focal depth of about 17 km (11 mi). This earthquake was the strongest seismic event in Western Europe since 1756. Following this earthquake,

5712-411: The Katzbach, annihilating it; forcing the French into the raging waters where many drowned. The French suffered 13,000 killed and wounded and 20,000 captured. The Prussians lost but 4,000 men. Napoleon himself, lacking reliable and numerous cavalry, was unable to prevent the destruction of a whole army corps, which had isolated itself pursuing the enemy following the Battle of Dresden without support, at

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5824-434: The Kingdom of Norway was to be ceded to the King of Sweden. Believing his primary goal of detaching Norway from Denmark and binding it with Sweden had been fully achieved, Bernadotte and the Swedish and Russian corps of his Army of the North advanced into and occupied the Low Countries. Other elements of the Army of the North were also tasked with besieging Marshal Davout's 40,000 French and Danish troops in Hamburg, as well as

5936-452: The Norwegian forces with a combined Swedish army of 40,000 well-trained, well-equipped men, many of whom were veterans of the recent Leipzig and Danish Campaigns. Facing them were 30,000 Norwegian militia, who were short on equipment, training and munitions, but full of patriotic ardor and acquitted themselves well in the face of overwhelming odds. The Norwegians fought well, winning defensive battles at Lier and Matrand , but could not stop

6048-416: The Portuguese and Spanish in the Peninsular War for more than three years. Russia and Sweden, which had opposed Napoleon up to 1807 and 1810 respectively, had been forced to join his Continental System against Britain, but continued to trade secretly with her. On 9 January 1812, French troops suddenly occupied Swedish Pomerania , ostensibly to end the illegal trade with the United Kingdom from Sweden, which

6160-429: The Prussian corps without consent of their king. The news was received with the wildest enthusiasm in Prussia, but the Prussian Court dared not yet throw off the mask, and an order was despatched suspending Yorck from his command pending a court-martial. Diebitsch refused to let the bearer pass through his lines, and the general was finally absolved when the Treaty of Kalisch (28 February 1813) definitely ranged Prussia on

6272-435: The Prussians and Russians, French losses had been heavy and a chronic lack of horses for his cavalry meant that Napoleon could not fully exploit his victories and inflict a decisive defeat in the same vein as Austerlitz or Friedland . Napoleon's new army was filled with fresh conscripts, lacked many necessities and was exhausted from their long march from France and Napoleon's rapid maneuvering. The French were "in dire need of

6384-509: The Rhine furnished Napoleon with the bulk of the remainder of the forces, with Saxony and Bavaria as principal contributors. In addition, to the south, Murat's Kingdom of Naples and Eugène de Beauharnais 's Kingdom of Italy had a combined total of 100,000 men under arms. In Spain an additional 150–200,000 French troops were being steadily beaten back by Spanish and British forces numbering around 150,000. Thus in total around 900,000 French troops were opposed in all theatres by somewhere around

6496-414: The Russian army led by Commander-in-Chief Mikhail Kutuzov , and other militias. Total losses of the Grand Army were at least 370,000 casualties as a result of fighting, starvation and the freezing weather conditions, and 200,000 captured. By November, only 27,000 fit soldiers re-crossed the Berezina river. Napoleon now left his army to return to Paris and prepare a defence of the Duchy of Warsaw against

6608-430: The Seventh Coalition was triggered in 1815 when Napoleon escaped from his captivity on Elba and returned to power in France. He was defeated again for the final time at Waterloo , ending the Napoleonic Wars . In June 1812, Napoleon invaded Russia to compel Emperor Alexander I to remain in the Continental System . The Grande Armée , consisting of as many as 650,000 men (roughly half of whom were French, with

6720-444: The Sixth Coalition After the Armistice of Pläswitz After the Battle of Leipzig After 20 November 1813 [REDACTED] Netherlands After January 1814 [REDACTED] Denmark [REDACTED]   France Until January 1814 ( 1813–1814 ) 526,000 610,000 In the War of the Sixth Coalition ( French : Guerre de la Sixième Coalition ) (December 1812 – May 1814), sometimes known in Germany as

6832-532: The Spring before the Armistice of Pläswitz . The belligerents declared an armistice from 4 June 1813 which lasted until 13 August, during which time both sides attempted to recover from approximately a quarter of a million losses since April. During this time Allied negotiations finally brought Austria out in open opposition to France (like Prussia, Austria had moved from nominal ally of France in 1812 to armed neutral in 1813). Two principal Austrian armies deployed in Bohemia and Northern Italy, adding 300,000 troops to

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6944-410: The United Kingdom, Sweden, and Portugal, and the rebels in Spain who were already at war with France. The War of the Sixth Coalition saw battles at Lützen , Bautzen , and Dresden . The even larger Battle of Leipzig (also known as the Battle of Nations) was the largest battle in European history before World War I . Ultimately, Napoleon's earlier setbacks in Spain, Portugal and Russia proved to be

7056-401: The Veluwe and the city of Nijmegen were given as collateral to Guelders by their cash-strapped rulers. On separate occasions, in return for loans from the treasury of Guelders, the bishop of Utrecht granted the taxation and administration of the Veluwe, and William II – Count of both Holland and Zeeland , and who was elected anti-king of the Holy Roman Empire (1248–1256) – similarly granted

7168-506: The advancing Russians. The situation was not as dire as it might at first have seemed; the Russians had also lost around 400,000 men, and their army was similarly depleted. However, they had the advantage of shorter supply lines and were able to replenish their armies with greater speed than the French, especially because Napoleon's losses of cavalry and wagons were irreplaceable. At the beginning of 1812 Britain had already been at war with France for eight years, and had been fighting alongside

7280-441: The advancing Swedish columns. As a consequence, an armistice (the Convention of Moss ) was concluded on 14 August followed by swift negotiations. The terms of Union were generous to the Norwegians as Bernadotte and the Swedes had no wish to inaugurate the union of Sweden and Norway with further bloodshed. Norway agreed to enter into a personal union with Sweden as a separate state with its own constitution and institutions, except for

7392-431: The central position. Having lost the initiative, he was now forced to concentrate his army and seek a decisive battle at Leipzig . Compounding the heavy military losses suffered at Dennewitz, the French were now losing the support of their German vassal states as well. News of Bernadotte's victory at Dennewitz sent shock waves across Germany, where French rule had become unpopular, inducing Tyrol to rise in rebellion and

7504-399: The duchy; in 1543, by the terms of the Treaty of Venlo , Duke William conceded the Duchy of Guelders to the Emperor. Emperor Charles V united Guelders with the Seventeen Provinces of the Habsburg Netherlands by the Pragmatic Sanction of 1549 , and Guelders thus lost its independence. Charles abdicated in 1556 and decreed that the territories of the Burgundian Circle should be held by

7616-448: The départements of Roer and Meuse-Inférieure . The coat of arms of the region changed over time. William Thatcher, the lead character in the 2001 film A Knight's Tale played by Heath Ledger , claimed to be Sir Ulrich von Liechtenstein from Gelderland so as to appear to be of noble birth and thus qualify to participate in jousting. Set in the late 1460s, the main character in Rafael Sabatini's 1929 novel The Romantic Prince

7728-400: The east and from Prussian recruiting depots. Many Russian officers yearned to return to Russia having achieved their goal of ridding Russia of the French. Frederick William of Prussia had always viewed a renewed war with France as dubious, and the two defeats at Lützen and Bautzen had led him to reconsider peace. Moreover, the Prussians and the Russians were hopeful of bringing the Austrians into

7840-402: The entire province. The Danes, heavily outnumbered, could not prevent an Allied advance on Jutland or Copenhagen , and sued for peace. It would be the final chapter in the long and bloody history of conflicts between Sweden and Denmark with the former definitively victorious. On 14 January 1814, the Treaty of Kiel was concluded between Sweden and Denmark–Norway . By the terms of the treaty,

7952-403: The field. Further losses occurred during the pursuit that evening, and into the following day, as the Swedish and Prussian cavalry took a further 13,000–14,000 French prisoners. Ney retreated to Wittenberg with the remains of his command and made no further attempt at capturing Berlin. Napoleon's bid to knock Prussia out of the war had failed; as had his operational plan to fight the battle of

8064-496: The following days the battle resulted in a defeat for Napoleon, who however was still able to manage a relatively orderly retreat westwards. However, as the French forces were pulling across the White Elster , the bridge was prematurely blown and 30,000 troops were stranded to be taken prisoner by the Allied forces. Napoleon defeated an army of his former ally Bavaria at the Battle of Hanau (30–31 October 1813) before pulling what

8176-455: The four major cities of Guelders during his rebellion, was unwilling to strike a compromise with his father when this was demanded by Philip's successor, Duke Charles the Bold . Charles had Duke Adolf captured and imprisoned in 1471 and reinstated Arnold on the throne of the Duchy of Guelders. Charles then bought the reversion (i.e., the right of succession to the throne) from Duke Arnold, who, against

8288-421: The ground and stamped it with his foot, ensured that Austria would join the coalition against France. Napoleon did not know it at the time, but the armistice would turn out to be a grave mistake as the Allies gained far more from the suspension of hostilities than he did. Meanwhile, on 21 May 1813, a Swedish corps of 15,000 commanded by General Döbeln occupied Hamburg without orders from Bernadotte, following

8400-461: The highly destabilizing series of wars. Napoleon, expecting to win the war, delayed too long and lost this opportunity; by December the Allies had withdrawn the offer. When his back was to the wall in 1814 he tried to reopen peace negotiations on the basis of accepting the Frankfurt proposals. The Allies now had new, harsher terms that included the retreat of France to its 1791 boundaries, which meant

8512-565: The independent command of Sweden's Crown Prince Carl Johan; and the Army of Bohemia , the primary Allied force in the field, with which the Allied sovereigns Alexander, Francis and Frederick William oversaw the Campaign, numbering 225,000 Austrians, Russians, and Prussians commanded by Prince Karl von Schwarzenberg . Following the end of the armistice, Napoleon seemed to have regained the initiative at Dresden (26–27 August 1813), where he inflicted one of

8624-467: The invaders until giving battle at Borodino (7 September) where the two armies fought a devastating battle. Despite the fact that France won a tactical victory, the battle was inconclusive. Following the battle the Russians withdrew, thus opening the road to Moscow . By 14 September, the French had occupied Moscow but found the city practically empty. Alexander I (despite having almost lost the war by Western European standards) refused to capitulate, leaving

8736-590: The largest battles of the Napoleonic Wars to that point in time. The lack of horses for Napoleon's cavalry did not allow him to follow up his victories with a vigorous pursuit, robbing him of decisive results. Despite losing as many men as the Allies, Napoleon's victories had greatly demoralized the Prussians and Russians. Losses were heavy, and the Russian and Prussian forces were a shambles. Both Allied armies were in dire need of substantial reinforcements en route from

8848-531: The last French troops had left Russian soil, and Paris' allies were seriously considering rebellion and joining the Tsar's side. The Convention of Tauroggen was a truce signed 30 December 1812 at Tauroggen between Generalleutnant Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg on behalf of his Prussian troops (who had been compelled to augment the Grande Armée during the invasion of Russia), and by General Hans Karl von Diebitsch of

8960-536: The loss of Belgium and the Rhineland. Napoleon adamantly refused. Following the Battle of Leipzig , Bernadotte and his Army of the North parted ways with the rest of the Coalition armies, and liberated Bremen and Lübeck in late November 1813. In early December, Bernadotte launched his long projected invasion of Denmark to secure the Coalition's northern flank prior to the invasion of France scheduled for early 1814 and to see

9072-517: The loss of which Napoleon believed would knock Prussia out of the War. However, Ney blundered into a trap set by Bernadotte and was stopped cold by the Prussians, and then routed when the Crown Prince arrived with his Swedes and a Russian corps on their open flank. This second defeat at the hands of Napoleon's ex-Marshal was catastrophic for the French, with them losing 50 cannon, four Eagles and 10,000 men on

9184-568: The marriage, and later bodily carried to the altar by the Constable of France , Anne de Montmorency ). This alliance emboldened William to challenge Emperor Charles V's claim to Guelders, but the French, mightily engaged on multiple fronts as they were in the long struggle to against the Habsburg "encirclement" of France , proved less reliable than the Duke's ambitions required, and he was unable to hold on to

9296-694: The monastery of the Franciscan Friars Minor , the Minderbroederklooster, was in 1309. In 1361, the Chapter of the Holy Spirit moved from Sint Odiliënberg to Roermond. In 1376 Roermond Charterhouse was founded. Around 1350, Roermond became the capital of the "Overkwartier van Gelre" ( Upper Quarter of Gelre ). In 1388, during the Hundred Years' War , it was besieged by the French. A battle for

9408-565: The most lop-sided losses of the era on the Prussian-Russian-Austrian forces. On 26 August, the Allies under Prince von Schwarzenberg attacked the French garrison in Dresden. Napoleon arrived on the battlefield in the early hours of 27 August with the Guard and other reinforcements and despite being severely outnumbered having only 135,000 men to the Coalition's 215,000, Napoleon chose to attack

9520-633: The next few years to annex Antwerp and Brussels failed, however. The northern Dutch were disappointed by the lack of local support. The Counter-Reformation had firmly reattached the local population to Roman Catholicism, and they now distrusted the Calvinist Northerners even more than they loathed the Spanish occupiers. Between 1632 and 1637, Roermond was under the control of the Dutch Republic , and again from 1702 to 1716. Between 1716 and 1794, it

9632-423: The old Duchy of Limburg that had existed until 1648 within the triangle Maastricht – Liège – Aachen . When the Netherlands and Belgium separated in 1830, there was support for adding Limburg to Belgium, but in the end (1839) the province was divided in two, with the eastern part going to the Netherlands and the western part to Belgium. From then on, Dutch Limburg was, the new Duchy of Limburg , also part of

9744-525: The outer fortifications Buiten Op, destruction of these fortifications, and the old parish church followed. In 1441, Roermond became a member of the Hanseatic League , and by 1472 acquired the right to mint its own coins. Between 1543 and 1702 the area was part of the Spanish Netherlands , known in Spanish as Ruremunda . On 23 April 1568 the Battle of Rheindalen occurred near Roermond, which signalled

9856-434: The people in Limburg had to swear their allegiance to the Dutch royal family of the House of Orange-Nassau in a "aanhankelijkheidsverklaring aan het Oranjehuis" and had to start using Dutch instead of Limburgs. Roermond's old town centre is home to several historic monuments, including: Access roads to Roermond have been upgraded recently, providing direct access to the Dutch and German highway networks. From north to south

9968-482: The present-day German state of North Rhine-Westphalia that were acquired by Prussia in 1713, which included the duchy's capital Geldern . Four parts of the duchy had their own centres, as they were separated by rivers: spatially separated from the Lower Quarters (Gelderland): The county emerged about 1096, when the first documented reference to Gerard III of Wassenberg as "Count of Guelders" occurred. It

10080-564: The remainder coming from allies or subject areas), crossed the Neman river on 24 June 1812. Russia proclaimed a Patriotic War, while Napoleon proclaimed a " Second Polish War ". But against the expectations of the Poles, who supplied almost 100,000 troops for the invasion force, and having in mind further negotiations with Russia, he avoided restoring the old Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Russian forces fell back, destroying everything potentially of use to

10192-565: The river Roer. Invading Romans built a bridge (now called the Steene Brök , or stone bridge) and founded the first town at Roermond, now a suburb called Voorstad Sint Jacob. Around 1180–1543, Roermond belonged to the Duchy of Guelders . In 1213 Roermond was destroyed by Otto IV of Brunswick , the Holy Roman Emperor and German King . By 1232 the town had been rebuilt and was given its own seal, reign, mint, and court. The first mention of

10304-468: The sabers and lances of Murat's Cuirassiers and Lancers who tore the Austrians to shreds, capturing 15 standards and forcing the balance of three divisions, 13,000 men, to surrender. The Allies were forced to retreat in some disorder having lost nearly 40,000 men to only 10,000 French. However, Napoleon's forces were also hampered by the weather and unable to close the encirclement the Emperor had planned before

10416-558: The same rights over Nijmegen; as neither ruler proved able to repay their debts, these lands became integral parts of Guelders. In 1339 the Emperor Louis IV of Wittelsbach elevated Count Reginald II of Guelders (also styled Rainald), of the House of Wassenberg, to the rank of Duke . After the Wassenberg line became extinct in 1371 following the deaths of Reginald II's childless sons Edward II (on 24 August, from wounds suffered in

10528-540: The same time the French sustained several serious defeats, first at the hands of Bernadotte's Army of the North on 23 August, with Oudinot's thrust towards Berlin beaten back by the Prussians, at Großbeeren . At the Katzbach the Prussians, commanded by Blücher, took advantage of Napoleon's march toward Dresden to attack Marshal MacDonald's Army of the Bober. During a torrential rainstorm on 26 August, and due to conflicting orders and

10640-526: The same year at the head of a Flemish army besieging Tournai , after the States of Guelders had recognized him once more as Duke. Subsequently, Guelders was ruled by Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I , husband of Charles the Bold's daughter and heir, Mary . The last independent Duke of Guelders was Adolf's son Charles of Egmond (1467–1538, r. 1492–1538), who was raised at the Burgundian court of Charles

10752-472: The seeds of his undoing. With their armies reorganized, the allies drove Napoleon out of Germany in 1813 and invaded France in 1814. The Allies defeated the remaining French armies, occupied Paris, and forced Napoleon to abdicate and go into exile. The French monarchy was revived by the allies, who handed rule to the heir of the House of Bourbon in the Bourbon Restoration . The "Hundred Days" War of

10864-583: The side of the Allies. Meanwhile, Austria's alliance with France ended in February 1813, and Austria then moved to a position of armed neutrality. It would not declare war on France until half a year later, in August 1813. On 3 March 1813, after lengthy negotiations, the United Kingdom agreed to Swedish claims to Norway. Sweden entered a military alliance with the United Kingdom and declared war against France, liberating Swedish Pomerania shortly thereafter. On 17 March, King Frederick William III of Prussia published

10976-621: The start of the Eighty Years' War . In 1572, Roermond was occupied by the Dutch William the Silent . On 23 July 1572, 13 Catholic clerics were murdered in the town of Roermond by militant Dutch Calvinists ( Martyrs of Roermond ). Roermond was recaptured by the Spanish duke Fadrique Álvarez de Toledo . Under Spanish rule, Roermond became a bastion of the Counter-Reformation . On behalf of

11088-509: The succession in the Duchy of Limburg , until it lost the 1288 Battle of Worringen against Berg and Brabant . Guelders was often at war with its neighbours, not only with Brabant, but also with the County of Holland and the Bishopric of Utrecht . However, its territory grew, not only because of its success in warfare, but also because it thrived in times of peace. For example, the larger part of

11200-767: The treaty guarantees over the Danish cession of Norway to Sweden enforced. Bernadotte's Army, now some 65,000, composed only of Swedish, North German and Russian troops following the secondment of the Prussian troops to Blücher's army, attacked the Royal Danish Army in Holstein . In a lightning campaign of only two weeks the Swedes subdued the Danes. General Anders Skjöldebrand defeated the Danes at Bornhöved on 7 December 1813. Three days later,

11312-406: The war and a break in the fighting would give them time to negotiate with Vienna. Another victory by Napoleon may very well have led to a favorable peace as not only were the Russians and Prussians at their nadir, but the Austrians, with their 150,000 troops would have seen a decisive French victory as ample proof that another war with France would be most undesirable. Despite the two victories over

11424-519: The water levels of numerous wells located in the Lower Rhine Embayment showed significant coseismic anomalies. The Roer Valley, which crosses three countries (Belgium, The Netherlands, and Germany), is bounded by two north-northwest, south-southeast trending Quaternary normal fault systems. The eastern boundary is defined by the Peel boundary fault, along which the 1992 Roermond earthquake occurred, and

11536-730: The western boundary is defined by the Feldbiss fault zone, which is partly located in Belgium. Evidence of recent tectonic activity along the Feldbiss fault zone is visible on seismic profiles that show more than 600 m of offset in Neogene deposits. Although Ahorner demonstrated the existence of the Rhenish seismic zones and recommended a comprehensive analysis of Quaternary structures and background seismicity, coseismic movements were considered to be improbable and active faults remain largely unidentified. Roermond

11648-458: The will of the towns and the law of the land, pledged his duchy to Charles for 300,000 Rhenish florins. The bargain was completed in 1472–73, and upon Arnold's death in 1473, Duke Charles added Guelders to the "Low Countries" portion of his Valois Duchy of Burgundy . Upon Charles' defeat and death at the Battle of Nancy in January 1477, Duke Adolf was released from prison by the Flemish , but died

11760-519: The winter of 1812-1813. When Napoleon marched on Moscow in June 1812, neither Britain nor Sweden was able to give direct military support to Russia, though that same month the British and Spanish armies had advanced into central Spain , defeating the French at Salamanca and capturing Madrid , tying down a French army of 230,000. Britain also helped subsidize the Russian war effort while Charles John had struck up

11872-489: Was in violation of the Continental System. Swedish estates were confiscated and Swedish officers and soldiers were taken as prisoners. In response, Charles John, formerly French Marshal Jean Baptiste Bernadotte , now the Crown Prince and Regent of Sweden, declared neutrality, and though Sweden was still at war with Britain, and Russia was its perennial enemy, he dispatched diplomats to London and St. Petersburg to create

11984-578: Was left of his forces back into France. Meanwhile, Davout's corps continued to hold out in its Siege of Hamburg , where it became the last Imperial field force east of the Rhine . The Allies offered peace terms in the Frankfurt proposals in November 1813. Napoleon would remain as Emperor of France, but it would be reduced to its "natural frontiers". That meant that France could retain control of Belgium , Savoy and

12096-595: Was part of the Austrian Netherlands within the Habsburg monarchy . On 11 December 1792, during the French Revolutionary Wars , the French under General De Miranda conquered Roermond, but by 5 March 1793, the city was under Habsburg control again. The city was again occupied by the French on 5 April 1794 and officially became part of the French département Meuse-Inférieure from 1795 to 1814. In 1814, during

12208-442: Was ranked as the third most criminal place in the Netherlands, outscoring Amsterdam . In 2007, Roermond managed to improve its reputation, dropping to 9th place (though this figure is combined with the district of Swalmen, which had its own score in 2006). Efforts are being put in place to limit petty crime (especially car break-ins and house burglaries). In 2013, Roermond was in 13th place. Roermond hosts several festivals, including

12320-446: Was the signal for the King of Bavaria to proclaim neutrality and begin negotiations with the Austrians (on the basis of territorial guarantees and Maximilian's retention of his crown) in preparation of joining the Allied cause. A body of Saxon troops had defected to Bernadotte's Army during the battle and Westphalian troops were now deserting King Jérôme 's army in large numbers. Following

12432-497: Was then located on the territory of Lower Lorraine , in the area of Geldern and Roermond , with its main stronghold at Montfort (built 1260). Count Gerard's son Gerard II in 1127 acquired the County of Zutphen in northern Hamaland by marriage. In the 12th and 13th centuries, Guelders quickly expanded downstream along the sides of the Maas , Rhine , and IJssel rivers and even claimed

12544-483: Was unable to escape the political strife and internecine conflict that had so plagued the preceding House of Jülich-Hengebach, and more especially, the pressure brought to bear by the expansionist rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy . The first Egmond Duke, Arnold , suffered the rebellion of his son Adolf and was imprisoned by the latter in 1465. Adolf, who had enjoyed the support of Burgundian Duke Philip III ("the Good") and of

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