Breda [key], city, North Brabant prov., S Netherlands, at the confluence of the Mark and Aa rivers. It is an industrial and transportation center. Manufactures include machinery, textiles, and canned foods. Breda was founded by the 11th cent. The city was successfully besieged (1624–25) by the Spaniards under Ambrogio Spinola; the surrender of its heroic garrison is the subject of a famous painting by Velázquez. Points of interest in the city include a 13th-century Gothic church (Groote Kerk) and a castle (now a military academy).
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