Best

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Best

Location municipality Best

Country Netherlands
Province North Brabant
Area 34.97 km²
- Land 34.18 km²
- Water 0.79 km²
Population (2005) 28,955
- Density 847/km²
This article is about the municipality in the Netherlands. For other uses, see Best (disambiguation).
Saint Odulphus church in the center of Best.
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Saint Odulphus church in the center of Best.

Best (pronunciation (help·info)) is a municipality and a village in the southern Netherlands. It's situated northwest of the city Eindhoven, and Best is also part of the agglomeration of this city. The village was part of a neighbourhood town, called Oirschot but as Best was situated on the state road from Amsterdam to Maastricht, this often gave extra difficulties. Each time a troop of soldiers wanted to stay for a while in Best, they had to request this 10 km away, in Oirschot to be allowed. This made The Hague decide to separate Best in 1819.

Back in the Roman time people had lived in Best, based on what people did dig up around the village. The first written text about Best dates back to about 775 AC, which reads: uijt eene edele stamme onder de Franken werd Sint Odulphus, patroonheilige van Best, geboren. This means: from a noble tribe under the Francs Saint Odulphus, patroness of Best, was born. The tale goes his birth place is at the same place on which now the Saint Odulphus church is built.

Two centuries back, Best itself didn't yet exist. There were three small villages: Naastenbest, in the west, Wilhelminadorp, in the south and Verrenbest, at where now the Oranjestraat is. They grew together, and formed the village with the name Best.

In 1866 Best got a train station on the line Rotterdam - Breda - Boxtel - Helmond - Venlo - Maastricht. First the line had one track, but soon there was too much traffic and the line became double tracked. But in the 1980s this again wasn't enough anymore so since 2002 the station has had four tracks. Also is it today possible to travel to Best from Utrecht or Eindhoven by train.

The head quarters of Philips Medical Systems is located in Best.

One can take a bus (line numbers 141/142/144) from the Eindhoven central station to Best.

[edit] Politics

As of March 7th 2006:

  • CDA - 5 seats
  • PvdA - 5 seats
  • Best Open - 4 seats
  • VVD - 3 seats
  • Jongerenpartij JO - 2 seats
  • PBB - 1 seat
  • D'66 - 1 seat

[edit] Population centres

  • Aarle
  • Best
  • De Vleut

[edit] External links


 
North Brabant Province

Aalburg | Alphen-Chaam | Asten | Baarle-Nassau | Bergeijk | Bergen op Zoom | Bernheze | Best | Bladel | Boekel | Boxmeer | Boxtel | Breda | Cranendonck | Cuijk | Deurne | Dongen | Drimmelen | Eersel | Eindhoven | Etten-Leur | Geertruidenberg | Geldrop-Mierlo | Gemert-Bakel | Gilze en Rijen | Goirle | Grave | Haaren | Halderberge | Heeze-Leende | Helmond | 's-Hertogenbosch | Heusden | Hilvarenbeek | Laarbeek | Landerd | Lith | Loon op Zand | Maasdonk | Mill en Sint Hubert | Moerdijk | Nuenen, Gerwen en Nederwetten | Oirschot | Oisterwijk | Oosterhout | Oss | Reusel-De Mierden | Roosendaal | Rucphen | Schijndel | Sint Anthonis | Sint-Michielsgestel | Sint-Oedenrode | Someren | Son en Breugel | Steenbergen | Tilburg | Uden | Valkenswaard | Veghel | Veldhoven | Vught | Waalre | Waalwijk | Werkendam | Woensdrecht | Woudrichem | Zundert

Netherlands | Provinces | Municipalities| map

Coordinates: 51°30′N 5°24′E