Bergenop Zoom

Bergen-op-Zoom, a town in Holland in the province of North Brabant, stands on the Zoom near its junction with the Scheldt. It was formerly a place of great strength, and the scene of many struggles between the Spanish and the Netherlanders. In 1814 it belonged to France and was unsuccessfully attacked by the English under Sir Thomas Graham, afterwards Lord Lynedoch. A curious feature about the tower of the castle is the way its breadth increases as it rises, so that it rocks in a severe wind. It has commodious marketplaces and does a good trade in anchovies, which are caught in the Scheldt. Its manufactures embrace tiles, bricks, and a fine quality of pottery.