Coordinates: 51°36′0″N 5°36′26″E

Erp, Netherlands
Erp is a village in the southern Netherlands, in the
province of North Brabant between 's-Hertogenbosch and Erp
Eindhoven. Prior to 1994, Erp was a municipality
Village
consisting of the town of Erp and the villages of Boerdonk
and Keldonk. In that year, the municipality was merged
with the municipality of Veghel to form one municipality
under the latter name. The area of the former municipality
of Erp has a population of 6,663, while Veghel has a
population of 37,655.

The municipality of Veghel, which merged into the new

municipality of Meierijstad in 2017, consisted of the towns
of Veghel and Erp, and the villages of Boerdonk, Keldonk,
Mariaheide, Zijtaart and Eerde. Veghel is 5  km northwest
of Erp and other neighboring towns, including Uden
(north), Boekel (east), Gemert (southeast), Beek en Donk
(south) and Sint-Oedenrode (west).

Erp's town hall dates from 1791. It lost its main function
when Erp was annexed to Veghel. Both the town hall and
the Saint Servatius Church are on the national list of
historic preservation.

Contents St. Servatius Church in Erp, 1844

History
Municipality of Erp
Saint Servatius Church Flag Coat of arms
Historic Sites
The Mills of Erp
People
Erp
References
Sources
External links
Location in the province of North
Brabant in the Netherlands
History Show map of North Brabant
Show map of Netherlands
The earliest traces of habitation in Erp and its immediate Show all
surroundings are found on the town's southeast side, on Coordinates: 51°36′0″N 5°36′26″E
the road to Gemert near the river Aa. According to A. Country Netherlands
Meuwese, local farmers found several funerary vessels Province North Brabant
there from around 300 B.C. in the early 20th century. Municipality Meierijstad
Incorporated 1300
Gallic tribes that inhabited the region placed the ashes and Market rights 1789
remains of their deceased in these vessels and buried them Annexed 1994
in the many funerary fields, and some of these fields were Area[1]
in this area. Meuwese also mentions that a small “heathen”  • Total 6.20 km2
temple supposedly stood at a former bend in the Aa that (2.39 sq mi)
has since been swallowed by the river. A local legend says
Elevation[2] 11 m (36 ft)
that on Christmas night one can hear church bells ring
there. Similar stories have been reported near other Population (2021)[1]
funerary fields.  • Total 1,800
 • Density 290/km2
Traces of Roman pottery have also been found around Erp. (750/sq mi)
The Roman items are of a later period than the Gallic and Demonym Erpenaar
are recognizable by their thickness and curled edges.
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
The area around Erp was inhabited by the Menapii tribe,  • Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
who roamed the area south of the Rhine, north of the Postal code 5469[1]
Ardennes; and the Morini tribe, north and west of the Dialing code 0413
Eburones tribe, west of the Meuse, and east of the North
Major roads N279
Sea.

The earliest specific reference to Erp is from the 12th century, where it is referred to as the property
of a noble family. Earlier records, dating from 1134, mention Erthepe, which is assumed to be Erp.
The parish's first priest is mentioned in 1360, when Erp was part of the Duchy of Brabant.

In 1579, seven Northern Dutch provinces declared their independence, while Brabant remained
part of the Spain of Philip II, son of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

In 1648, the Peace of Westphalia concluded the Eighty Years' War (Tachtigjarige Oorlog) of the
Northern Dutch provinces against the Habsburgs. Brabant was separated and the current North
Brabant was incorporated in the newly established, independent country of the Netherlands; while
the larger southern parts of Antwerp and Brabant remained under Spanish Habsburg rule until
1713.

After the ravages of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Europe, at the Congress of Vienna in
1815, Brabant was reunited in the newly established Kingdom of the Netherlands. This lasted only
until 1830, when Belgium declared its independence from the Netherlands and Brabant was
divided between the two countries.

In 1940 Erp was occupied by German troops. In 1944, paratroopers participating in the largest
airborne operation in history, Operation Market Garden, liberated Erp and its surroundings. The
liberated strip from Eindhoven to Arnhem was later nicknamed Hell's Highway.

Municipality of Erp
Before 1994, the municipality of Erp included the villages of
Boerdonk and Keldonk and a few hamlets like Rijkerbeek
and Stinkhoek. In that year, the Netherlands government
merged Erp and the two villages with the municipality of
Veghel. The area remained a cadastral municipality,
however; and in 2008, following the introduction of several
new cadastral laws, the area of the former municipality of
Erp became also an official town with exactly the same
borders as the former municipality. Town Hall of Erp (1791)
As of 1 January 2014, the populations of the town and villages are:[3]

Erp 4,683
Keldonk 1,205
Boerdonk     775

Saint Servatius Church

The existing Saint Servatius Church in Erp was built in 1844,
but it belies the real age of the village's parish. The old church
was demolished in 1843, after nearly 150 years of neglect in the
care of the village's few Protestants from 1648 to around 1800
when Catholicism was banned in the Dutch Republic.

The oldest surviving clues from the church's past are two
church bells. The larger and older of the two (height 88  cm;
diameter 108 cm) carries the inscription: “I am called Maria. In
St. Servatius Church, Erp the year of the Lord 1381.” The smaller and younger (height
81 cm; diameter 96 cm) is inscribed with: “I am called Katrina.
In the year of the Lord 1412.” The age of the bells makes them
rare in the area and they narrowly avoided confiscation in 1942, during the German occupation.

There are two known drawings of the old Saint Servatius Church: a somewhat romanticized pen
drawing by the hand of Hendrik Spilman (1721–1784); and a sketch dated September 13, 1788, by
the hand of architect Hendrik Verhees (1744–1813), who designed the town hall of Erp in 1791.

In the fifteenth and sixteenth century, simple masonry churches with a nave and two aisles were
built in a regional variant of the late-Gothic style throughout the Campine. Judging from the
drawings, the church in Erp shares many characteristics of this Campine Gothic style, which
appears in a sense rural without its use of the elaborate Gothic decorations as seen in northern
France. The most characteristic element of these Campine Gothic churches is the monumental
brick bell tower or steeple with heavy-set diagonal buttresses on all four corners, examples of
which can still be found throughout the region.

During the Napoleonic era, the Church was handed back to the Catholics, but only after a fierce
dispute with the Protestants living in Erp.

The current Saint Servatius Church was finished in 1844 and is a so-called waterstaat church,
designed by architect Arnoldus van Veggel in a neo-Classical style. The spire of the steeple was
designed by famous architect Pierre Cuypers, after the original was destroyed by a fire caused by
lightning in 1895. Cuypers also redesigned the interior around 1880. From then, the interior took
after the neo-Gothic style and was painted with biblical scenes.

One of the most notable items in the church is the organ, dating from 1848. J.J. Vollebregt built the
organ and the organ housing was built by H. Meijers and the sculptures of David, Caecilia and the
angels, as well as the balustrade decorating the balcony, were created by J.P. van den Mark.

In 1951, the entire church interior was painted gray. A couple of decades later, in 1991, the interior
was partially restored to the style of 1844, and partially restored to the style of Cuypers.


Top of St. One of the church Inside view of church

Servatius Church, bells
designed by
Pierre Cuypers

Another inside View of the organ

view of church

Historic Sites
The following buildings are marked for historic preservation (‘rijksmonument’) by the Dutch
government:

Town Hall. Built in brick in 1791 by Dutch architect Hendrik Verhees (1744–1813). It currently
houses Erthepe, the local historical society.
Saint Servatius Church
Two 19th-century houses at Hezelstraat 23 and Kerkstraat 31.
Four farms at Molentiend 2 en 4 (dates from 1898); Morschehoef 16 (18th-century);
Morschehoef 19 (19th-century); and Voorbolst 5 (18th-century).

The Mills of Erp

Erp had several mills throughout the centuries, but all disappeared before the 1960s.

The oldest windmill, a tower mill at the Watermolenweg, was heavily damaged in a storm in
1949 and subsequently demolished five years later. It was built in 1849 to replace a post mill
that was already mentioned in documents in 1540 and served to complement the watermill on
the river Aa. The watermill was demolished in 1897.
 The windmill at the Molentiend was built in 1866. This smock mill was demolished in 1954, but
the miller's house still remains.
A stone smock mill, called “De Nijverheid,” was built in 1898 at the Cruijgenstraat. Even though
the mill was not damaged or neglected, it was demolished around 1959.

People
Henricus Herp was born in the early 15th century in Erp. He was an influential theological writer
and his most famous work is Spieghel der Volcomenheit. He died in the late 15th century in
Mechelen, Belgium.

Anky van Grunsven was born January 2, 1968, in Erp and recently moved back. She is a Dutch
dressage champion who won two gold medals in the 2000 and 2004 summer Olympics and four
silver medals in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 summer Olympics.

Statue of Bonfire in Erp, Olympic

medal winning horse of Anky van
Grunsven

References
1. "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2021" (https://www.cbs.nl/-/media/_excel/2021/48/kwb-2021.xls).
Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 17 April 2022. "three entries"
2. "Postcodetool for 5469AA" (http://www.ahn.nl/postcodetool). Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland
(in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
3. "Population per centre as of 01-01-2014" (https://web.archive.org/web/20140914043503/http://
www.veghel.nl/document.php?m=91&fileid=67265&f=089e2eee6fcac19ebcfb175e321780f4&at
tachment=0&c=56849). Municipality of Veghel. 1 January 2014. Archived from the original (htt
p://www.veghel.nl/document.php?m=91&fileid=67265&f=089e2eee6fcac19ebcfb175e321780f4
&attachment=0&c=56849) on 14 September 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.

Sources
Meuwese, A.P.M. Dr. Erp; Gemeente en Parochie, ’s Hertogenbosch: Zuid-Nederlandsche
Drukkerij N.V., 1955
Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum

External links
Official website of the municipality Veghel (http://www.veghel.nl/)
Harmonie OBK - Brass Band in Erp (http://www.harmonieobk.nl/)
RKVV Erp - Football Club in Erp (http://www.rkvverp.nl/)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Erp,_Netherlands&oldid=1088102541"

This page was last edited on 16 May 2022, at 05:50 (UTC).

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0;

additional terms may apply. By using
this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.