Laar, Nuenen

Laar is a hamlet in the Dutch province of North Brabant. It is located in the municipality of Nuenen, Gerwen en Nederwetten, 2 km north of the town of Nuenen, just northwest of Gerwen.

References

Coordinates: 51°29′33″N 5°33′15″E / 51.49250°N 5.55417°E / 51.49250; 5.55417

Nuenen

Nuenen (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈnynə(n)]) is a town in the municipality of Nuenen, Gerwen en Nederwetten in the Netherlands. From 1883 to 1885, Vincent van Gogh lived and worked in Nuenen. In 1944, the town was a battle scene during Operation Market Garden. The local dialect is called Peellands. In 2009, Nuenen had a population of 22,437.

History

Nuenen was the scene of a battle of the 101st Airborne Division and 44th Royal Tank Regiment during Operation Market Garden on September 20, 1944, depicted in episode 4 of the television series Band of Brothers. The 101st Airborne Division did fight in Nuenen, although the story was dramatised for the television series. The casualties were two Germans, two British tanks, four American soldiers, and three British soldiers.

Dialect

The spoken language is Peellands (an East Brabantian dialect, which is very similar to colloquial Dutch).

Notable residents

Vincent van Gogh resided in Nuenen from 1883 to 1885. During that time he painted many character studies of peasants and weavers that culminated in The Potato Eaters. He also made paintings of still life and his father's church, vicarage and its garden, including Congregation Leaving the Reformed Church in Nuenen (Het uitgaan van de hervormde kerk te Nuenen) which was stolen from the Van Gogh Museum in December 2002. There is a street named after it in the town, as well as a cafe, college and bar. A statue of Van Gogh is located in the central park of the town.