Since January 1st 1996 the City of ‘s-Hertogenbosch includes the city itself (which received a town charter around 1190) and some older church villages, of which Rosmalen is the largest. This area is known to have been inhabited in the Gallo-Roman Period by - amongst others - Batavians who dedicated a temple in Empel to their favourite god Hercules Magusanus. As Roman auxiliaries they defended the frontiers of the Roman Empire against the obtrusive barbaric tribes.

Shortly before 1200 AD, merchants, and a little later artisans like smiths, bakers and weavers, established themselves in a place which is now known as The Market. This new settlement received an extensive town charter from Duke Henry I of Brabant (1190-1235) which is from the point of view of legal history very interesting. The new town grew very fast to more than 10.000 inhabitants circa 1300 AD. Captains took their ships up the Rhine up to Cologne to fetch wine, to the Baltic Sea to fish for herring, and to Liege to stock up on chalk, stone, weaponry and items made from yellow copper. The service area of the town extended towards almost the whole of the eastern part of what is nowadays North Brabant.

• Golden age: 1475 - 1525
• Between Mars and Mercury: 1525 – 1795
• Upward, onward: 1795 – 1945
• Expansion: 1945 -
• General

 
Golden Age: 1475 – 1525
Between 1475 and 1525 ’s-Hertogenbosch experienced its Golden Age. During this time the Brabant Gothic Saint John’s Cathedral was completed. For the socially vulnerable classes a fine tuned safety net of social help and caritas existed, the so-called Houses of God. The city was divided into 9 neighbourhoods, each with their own chapel and organisation. In those days the painter Hieronymus Bosch (ca. 1450 – 1516) lived and worked, and whose works of art can be admired in museums worldwide. His best paintings were very well appreciated by the Habsburg rulers like Philip the Fair, Charles V and Philip II. The Illustrious Dear Lady Fraternity was a centre of culture, which was based from 1485 in the Swann Brothers House in the Hinthamerstreet. This still-existing religious brotherhood organised great banquets to which singers and musicians added lustre.

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Between Mars and Mercury: 1525 - 1795
From about 1525 periods of economic decline alternated with periods of stability and growth. The Dutch Rebellion which burst out with the violent iconoclasm of 1566 led to a deep crisis. In 1579 the city government chose on the side of the Spanish king and for a renewed Catholicism. For religious, political and economical reasons thousands of the inhabitants of ‘s-Hertogenbosch fled their hometown and never returned. The country around the city where the people of ‘s-Hertogenbosch owned many properties was completely destroyed. The medieval stone wall was replaced by earthen ramparts and well-developed fortifications. Mercenaries took over the important job of defence from the civil shooting clubs. The fortified city was considered to be practically unassailable, because the surrounding area was easily flooded. However, in 1629, after a siege by stadholder Frederic Henry, ‘s-Hertogenbosch had to surrender to the States-General. During the Republic (1629 – 1794), city life was varied. Trade continued to be important, the garrison was prominently present and the city maintained itself rather well economically. Although the majority of the people continued to be Roman Catholic, religious diversity increased: aside from a large Dutch Reformed Congregation there were a Walloon Reformed Congregation, a Lutheran Church, and from the late 1600s a small Jewish community.

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Upward, onward: 1795-1945
Emperor Napoleon visited ‘s-Hertogenbosch in 1810 and on this occasion he gave the Saint John’s cathedral back to the Roman Catholics. During the following century they embellished the church inside and out with leaded glass windows from French studios and locally made neo-Gothic sculptures. In 1796 ‘s-Hertogenbosch became capital of the province of North Brabant. More than ever, the city became a centre of government, of administration of justice, of education and publishers. The market trade created a lot of entertainment. Annual floods were a main reason for the falling back of industrial development. Social differences were huge. A large class of the people lived in poor conditions. In 1882 the still-flourishing Oeteldonksche Club was founded. It aimed at ‘ennobling’ carnival, a popular festival that had already existed for centuries. It succeeded, in spite of a lot of opposition. Nowadays the carnival is still the most popular festival of the year. The dismantling of the fortifications from 1874 allowed for the first time in centuries the possibility for successful checking of the flooding and extension of the city. New city districts like Het Zand and De Muntel made it possible to halt dilapidation. The well-to-do meanwhile left for woody Vught, where many manors were built.

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Expansion: 1945 -

After the Second World War industrialisation was greatly reinforced. In 1960 almost all artisan companies disappeared, being replaced by large-scale production. For the first time the structural unemployment of many was stopped. Self-consciously ’s-Hertogenbosch manifested itself on the stage of Brabant economy. The former municipalities of Bokhoven, Empel and Meerwijk, and Engelen merged into the city of ’s-Hertogenbosch.
Rosmalen and ’s-Hertogenbosch merged into a new city which was also named ‘s-Hertogenbosch and passed the 100.000 inhabitants mark. In spite of all the growth the historical character of the city centre was more or less kept intact. The city council aims in the coming years to enforce its cultural regional function, for example by restoring its historical fortifications, of which a lot still exist.

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