Delft

Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland (Zuid-Holland), in the Netherlands. Delft is located between the larger cities of Rotterdam and The Hague. Delft is primarily known for its historic town centre with canals; also for the painter Vermeer, Delft Blue pottery (Delftware), the Delft University of Technology, and its association with the Dutch royal family, the House of Orange-Nassau.

History

The city of Delft erupted aside a canal, the 'Delf', which come from the word delven, meaning digging, and led to the name Delft. It presumably started around the 11th century as a landlord court.

From a rural village in the early Middle Ages Delft developed to a city, that in the 13th century (1246) received its charter.
(For some more information about the early development, see the article "Gracht", section "Delft as an example").

The town's association with the House of Orange started when William of Orange (Willem van Oranje), nicknamed William the Silent (Willem de Zwijger), took up residence in 1572. At the time he was the leader of growing national Dutch resistance against Spanish occupation of the country, which struggle is known as the Eighty Years' War. By then Delft was one of the leading cities of Holland and it was equipped with the necessary city walls to serve as a headquarters.