From the top, left to right: View of Eupen from Moorenhöhe, Klötzerbahn street in the city center, Friedenskirche, city parish church of Saint Nicholas, church of Saint Joseph, seat of the Executive and Council of the German-speaking Community
On 1 January 2006, Eupen had a total population of 18,248 (8,892 males and 9,356 females). The total area is 103.74 km2 (40.05 sq mi) which gives a population density of 175.90 inhabitants per km2.
History
Early history
Eupen and the St. Nikolaus Chapel were first mentioned in 1213 as part of the Duchy of Limburg. In 1288, after the Battle of Worringen, the Duchy of Limburg was annexed by John I of Brabant. Brabant and Limburg were inherited by Burgundy in 1387, and Eupen was burnt to the ground during the war against the Guelders. Burgundy was dissolved in 1477 by the AustrianHabsburgs who then inherited Eupen after gaining both Limburg and Brabant.
Habsburgs and Germans
Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor Charles V granted Eupen the privilege to conduct two markets per year in 1544. In 1555, both Brabant and Limburg were passed to the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs. Ten years later, Protestantism was mentioned for the first time in the town. In 1582, during the Dutch Revolt against the Spanish Habsburgs, rebels burnt Eupen but did not take control of it. Bubonic plague reached Eupen in 1635, with devastating consequences. Eupen obtained its own court of law in 1648, and in 1674 received city rights, giving it greater recognition and autonomy. Six years later, textile manufacture was introduced to the city.
In 1713, with the Treaty of Utrecht, Brabant and Limburg were returned to the Austrian Habsburgs. Revolutionary France took the city in 1794, incorporating it into the Département Ourthe, préfectureLiège and sous-préfectureMalmedy. Following the Congress of Vienna in 1815, Eupen became part of the PrussianRhine Province. All Prussian possessions became part of the German Empire in 1871, while Eupen itself enjoyed its popularity as a spa town.
Records show that a weaver named 'Schunck' was established as early as 1776. His eldest son, Nikolaus Severin Schunck (1799–1865), had six sons, of whom the third oldest, Arnold, would later found the firm in Heerlen. The youngest son, Joseph, remained at the weaving mill and there is still a weaving mill in Kettenis run by descendants of Nikolaus. The company became the famous Schunck.
20th century
After the First World War, the 1919 Treaty of Versailles transferred Eupen and the nearby municipality of Malmedy from Germany to Belgium. The effect led to the formation of National Socialist groups in Eupen. From 1938 the Vesdre Dam was constructed (completed in 1950), creating Lake Eupen. In 1940, Nazi Germany invaded Belgium; in an attempt to reverse Versailles, Eupen and Malmedy were annexed to Germany. In September 1944, American forces reached Eupen which became a centre of fierce fighting in the Battle of the Bulge.
In 1949, the left tower of the St Nikolaus Church burnt down. The city centre was affected by flooding in 1953. Eupen merged with the municipality of Kettenis in 1976, amidst protest from that town.
In 1980, following a state reform ten years earlier, the German-Speaking Community of Belgium was established and Eupen was named as its capital.
Climate
Eupen has a cool oceanic climate with some continental influences due to it being elevated in comparison to most of Belgium. Eupen is also wetter and cloudier than Liège in the valley to the west, as a result of orographic lift due to the elevation change. As a result of this along with frequent winter frosts, Eupen gets a significant snowfall amount by Belgian standards. It also gets 16 ice days on average each year, as in the day staying below 0 °C (32 °F), along with 71 frost days.[2]
Permanent exhibition of paintings at the Christian Silvain Foundation
Sport
K.A.S. Eupen, founded in 1945, is the city's main association football club and play at the 8,000-capacity Kehrwegstadion. In 2010, after winning a play-off, the side became the first club from the German-speaking Community to reach the country's top flight, then known as the Belgian Pro League. They were relegated after one season,[3] returning to the top level, now known as Belgian First Division A, in 2016.