Geleen (; li, Gelaen ) is a city in the southern part of the province of Limburg in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. With 31,670 inhabitants in 2020, it is part of the municipality of Sittard-Geleen. Geleen is situated along the river Geleenbeek, a right tributary to the river

Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a ...

. The Latin name for Geleenbeek is ''Glana'', meaning "clear river". The town centre is situated at about 60 m above sea level.

History

Until the end of the 19th century, Geleen was a very small village. Its population was 2,545 in 1899. The remains of one of the oldest prehistoric farms in the Netherlands were found here. In the 20th century the exploitation of

coal mines Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron fro ...

in this area (the state-owned coal mine " Maurits", the biggest in Europe, was located in Geleen) brought a fast population increase. During the 1960s and 1970s the Dutch coal mines, which were all located in this part of the province, were closed. The state mining company DSM (privatised in 1989) remained active in Geleen, however, now purely as a chemicals producer. In July 2002, part of DSM's petrochemicals business, located on the manufacturing locations in Geleen and

Gelsenkirchen Gelsenkirchen (, , ; wep, Gelsenkiärken) is the 25th most populous city of Germany and the 11th most populous in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia with 262,528 (2016) inhabitants. On the Emscher River (a tributary of the Rhine), it lies ...

(Germany) were acquired by SABIC Europe.

Sports and events

* The soccer club Fortuna '54, was the former soccer club of Geleen. * Geleen has a professional ice hockey team called the Geleen Eaters. * The handball club Vlug en Lenig is from Geleen. * The pop and rock festival Pinkpop, the oldest and longest running annual dedicated pop and rock music festival in the world, also has its roots in Geleen. It was held there from 1970 until 1986. This festival was held in the Burgemeester Damen Sportpark, which includes the sports centre Glanerbrook. The nearby swimming pool was popular with the artists, who enjoyed themselves backstage. * In Geleen there's a yearly town

fair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

(one week after Whitsun). * Stage 5 of Eneco Tour of Benelux a

road bicycle racing Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most common ...

and part of the

UCI ProTour The UCI ProTour was a series of road bicycle races in Europe, Australia and Canada organised by the UCI (International Cycling Union). Created by Hein Verbruggen, former president of the UCI, it comprises a number of 'ProTour' cycling teams, e ...

finished in Geleen on August 16, 2013.

Places of interest

* Ruins of Jansgeleen Castle, with restored outer bailey and water mill (Sint-)Jansmolen, to the south-east of Geleen, on the territory of the municipality of Beek. * Sint-Janskluis, former hermitage from 1699. * De Biesenhof, recently restored historical farmhouse. *

Parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

Sint Marcellinus and Petrus of Oud-Geleen. * Drossaerdhuis at Geenstraat. * Monument at Geenstraat (near train station Geleen-Lutterade) in memory of the

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

sister

Aloysia ''Aloysia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are known generally as beebrushes.

, the Jewish-Catholic Louise Löwenfels. * Main building of Staatsmijn Maurits. * Restored former brickyard Plinthos, the present office of park De Graven, at Daniken (near train station Geleen-Oost). * Foroxity cinema: the largest cinema in Limburg. * Zuyderland Medical Centrum: a fairly recent hospital with modern architecture. * Burgemeester Damen Sportpark, the location of the

Pinkpop Festival The Pinkpop Festival is an annual music festival held at Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is usually held on the Pentecost weekend (''Pinksteren'' in Dutch, hence the name). If Pentecost falls on an early date in May, the festival is held later in Ju ...

from 1970 to 1986.

Transportation

Geleen is served by two railway stations: Geleen-Lutterade, on the line

Sittard Sittard (; ) is a city in the Netherlands, situated in the southernmost province of Limburg. The town is part of the municipality of Sittard-Geleen and has almost 37.500 inhabitants in 2016. In its east, Sittard borders the German municipa ...

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

, and Geleen Oost, on the line

- Heerlen. Geleen is also served by two motorways: A2 Amsterdam-Maastricht, exit Urmond, and A76 Antwerp-Aachen, exit Geleen.

Notable people

* Jasper Adams (born 1989), Dutch handball player * Benjamin van den Broek (born 1987), Dutch-born New Zealand footballer *

Charles of Mount Argus Charles of Mount Argus (11 December 1821 – 5 January 1893), was a Dutch Passionist priest who served in 19th-century Ireland. He gained a reputation for his compassion for the sick and those in need of guidance. His reputation for healings ...

(1821–1893), Dutch Passionist priest and Saint * Rick Geenen (born 1988), Dutch footballer * Myrthe Hilkens (born 1979), Dutch journalist, non-fiction writer and politician * Wil Jacobs (born 1960), Dutch handball player * Pierre Kerkhoffs (1936–2021), Dutch footballer * Paul Kusters (born 1966), Dutch cartoonist *

Paul van Loon Paul van Loon (born 17 April 1955) is a Dutch writer of children's literature. His best-known books are the series about ' and the series '. A musical and a movie have also been made of both. The series ' also became one of his best known works ...

(born 1955), Dutch children's author * Jean Nelissen (1936–2010), Dutch sports journalist *

Maartje Paumen Maartje Yvonne Helene Paumen (born 19 September 1985) is a former Dutch field hockey player. She is currently assistant coach for Dutch club MOP. She previously played for Dutch clubs Oranje Zwart and HC Den Bosch and Belgian club Royal Antwerp. ...

(born 1985), Dutch field hockey player *

Gabriëlle Popken Gabriëlle Popken (born 21 August 1983) is a Dutch former politician for the Party for Freedom. She served in the Senate between 2011 and 2017 and subsequently in the House of Representatives between 2017 and 2020. Youth and education Popken wa ...

(born 1983), Dutch politician * Roel Rothkrans (born 1979), Dutch handball player *

Ton Raven A.C.M. "Ton" Raven (born 3 November 1957) is a Dutch politician, who has been serving as a member of the Senate since 2021. In that body, he is the only member of Independent Politics Netherlands. Before he became a senator, Raven had been activ ...

(born 1957), Dutch politician *

Pim Rietbroek Pim Rietbroek (born 2 April 1942) is a Dutch retired handball player. As a player, he collected one cap for the Netherlands men's national handball team.

(born 1942), Dutch handball player and coach * René Shuman (born 1967), Dutch singer *

Inger Smits Inger Smits (born 17 September 1994) is a Dutch handball player for Borussia Dortmund and the Dutch national team. She represented the Netherlands at the 2019 World Women's Handball Championship. Her father and brothers Kay and Jorn are also i ...

(born 1994), Dutch handball player * Jorn Smits (born 1992), Dutch handball player *

Kay Smits Kay Kirsten Evert Smits (born 31 March 1997) is a Dutch handball player for SC Magdeburg and the Dutch national team. He represented the Netherlands at the 2020 European Men's Handball Championship. His father , sister Inger and brother Jorn ar ...

(born 1997), Dutch handball player * Henk Steevens (1931–2020), Dutch cyclist

Gallery

File:Markt Geleen.JPG, Geleen market File:StJansGeleen-004.jpg, Jansgeleen Castle File:Geleen (oud) - Marcelienstraat 18-2.jpg, Marcelienstraat in Geleen File:Geleen Marcellinus en Petruskerk.jpg, Marcellinus en Petruskerk in Oud-Geleen File:Geleen (oud) - Leurstraat 4.jpg, Huis Maes in Geleen File:Huis Corten.jpg, Huis Corten File:Woonhuis Molenstraat 33 Geleen.jpg, House in Geleen File:Huis ten Dijcken vanaf vijver.jpg, File:Terborch.JPG, File:Geleen beeld De Sjöt 4.jpg, Sculpture ''De Sjöt''

References

External links

*
Official website of Sittard-Geleen
{{Authority control Mining communities in the Netherlands Municipalities of the Netherlands disestablished in 2001 Former municipalities of Limburg (Netherlands) Populated places in Limburg (Netherlands) Sittard-Geleen