‘s-Hertogenbosch — Postal Cancellation
The city’s official name is a contraction of the Dutch des Hertogen bosch — “the Duke’s forest”. The duke in question was Henry I, Duke of Brabant, whose family had owned a large estate at nearby Orthen for at least four centuries. He founded a new town located on some forested dunes in the middle of a marsh. At age 26, he granted ‘s-Hertogenbosch city rights and the corresponding trade privileges in 1185. His reason for founding the city was to protect his own interests against encroachment from Gelre and Holland; from its first days, he conceived of the city as a fortress.
Holland is a region and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. The name Holland is also frequently used to informally refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands. This usage is commonly accepted, especially outside of the Netherlands, but some individuals, particularly from the other parts of the Netherlands, dislike the use of “Holland” as a substitute for “the Netherlands”,[2] or even find it insulting.
‘s-Hertogenbosch was founded as a fortified city and that heritage can still be seen today. After World War II, plans were made to modernise the old city, by filling in the canals, removing or modifying some ramparts and redeveloping historic neighbourhoods. Before these plans could come to effect however, the central government declared the city a protected townscape. Most historic elements have been preserved. Because the main ramparts are crucial in keeping out the water, they have never been slighted, their usual fate in the Netherlands. In contrast to cities like Rotterdam, ‘s-Hertogenbosch also survived the Second World War relatively unscathed. Much of its historic heritage remains intact.
In 2004 the city was awarded the title European Fortress City of the year.