Breda, city in the southern Netherlands, in Noord-Brabant (North Brabant) Province, at the confluence of the Mark and Aa rivers, near Rotterdam. Breda is a marketing and industrial center, producing refined sugar, soft drinks, beer, and metal goods. Points of interest include a Gothic church, built mostly in the 15th century, and a 14th-century castle (now a military academy). Breda was chartered in the 13th century. Strongly fortified early in the 16th century, it was later the center of considerable fighting, notably during the Dutch wars of liberation and the French revolutionary wars. Charles II, king of England, lived here in exile during the English Revolution (1640-1660). In April 1660, before the Restoration, Charles issued the amnesty proclamation known as the Declaration of Breda, preparing the way for his return to England. Population (2000) 160,398.
