Sint-Truiden

Sint-Truiden is a city and municipality in the province of Limburg in the Flemish Region of Belgium, with a population exceeding 41,500, among the largest urban centers in Limburg. The municipality encompasses numerous former communes including Brustem, Gelinden and Gorsem, and sits at the center of Haspengouw, the fruit growing region of Belgium, known for its pears, Jonagold apples and sweet cherries. The settlement grew up around an abbey founded in the 7th century by the Frankish nobleman St. Trudo and reached a particularly prosperous period in the 11th century, before Charles the Bold captured the town in 1467, bringing decline; it recovered as an agricultural center in the 19th century, and during the Second World War its airfield housed a German night fighter squadron.