Delft lies on the river Schie between Rotterdam and The Hague. The picturesque old part of the town is ringed by canals and has a number of notable buildings such as the Old and New Churches, City Hall and the Eastern Gate, the only remains of the original old city walls. Delft has a University of Technology and a number of
research institutes. It also has a variety of industry (engineering, car manufacture, electrical engineering, building materials, paper and packaging). The manufacture of Delft ware, which was world-famed from the 17th to the mid 18th century, has recently been revived. Delft was the birthplace of the scholar and statesman Hugo de Groot (Grotius, 1583-1645), the painter Jan Vermeer, whose "View of Delft" is in the Mauritshuis in The Hague, and the scientist Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723).
History
The town is believed to have developed in the Middle Ages around a feudal estate. It received its municipal charter in the 13th century, and thereafter carpet-making and trade flourished. In order to compete with the rival towns of Dordrecht, Schiedam and Rotterdam, Delft established an outer harbor at Delfshaven on the Maas in the early 15th century. The town reached its peak of prosperity in the 17th century, when the manufacture of Delft ware began to develop. This was the period when most of the magnificent buildings which have been preserved in the old town were erected.
Delft is also noted for its pottery with the blue and white designs as well as the Delft School of painting.
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