Eurode – Towards a United Europe
The term “Eu-Rode” was conceived as a result of combining of the two geographical names, Europe and Land van ’s Hertogenrode, the latter an historically homogenous region which str
Eurode – Towards a United Europe
The term “Eu-Rode” was conceived as a result of combining of the two geographical names, Europe and Land van ’s Hertogenrode, the latter an historically homogenous region which straddles the present-day border between the Netherlands and Germany.
As early as the 12th century Herzogenrath (D) and Kerkrade (NL) formed a single geographic and administrative entity.
Down the centuries, the map of the region was subject to constant change, being a confused collection of duchies, fiefdoms and manors. These were likely to change hands on a whim, as dukes, counts and other manorial overseers would trade in the administrative rights to villages and lands, lose them on the throw of a dice, give them away as a dowry, or they would be captured by enemy troops or received by title in succession. Despite these tumultuous times, Kerkrade and Herzogenrath remained united under the name of Land van ’s Hertogenrode (German: Landes Herzogenrath).
In 1804, the existing borders were abolished and the whole region was incorporated into Napoleon’s Greater French Empire. The French name for Herzogenrath (Rode-le-duc, or Rolduc) was already being used for the abbey of Klosterrade (in German: Klosterrath; and in French: L’abbaye de Rolduc). Nowadays, the name Rolduc refers to the area surrounding the abbey complex in Kerkrade. From an historical perspective therefore, not strictly true.
When Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo, the Land van ’s Hertogenrode became fragmented. At the Congress of Vienna in 1815, new borders were seemingly arbitrarily drawn. The border between the Netherlands and Prussia cut the Land van ’s 