Texel is the largest Dutch Wadden Sea island. It belongs to the province of North Holland. The municipality of Texel covers the entire island plus the uninhabited island of Noorderhaaks. The island has a land area of about 170 km². The average length of Texel is 20 km and the average width 8 km. The surface area of the municipality is 585.96 km², most of which (416.14 km²) is inland and outlying water. Texel has 13,576 inhabitants (30 April 2017, source: CBS). Of the working population of over 3,500, about 17% work in agriculture. Until 1170, Texel was connected to the mainland; the Allerheiligen flood of 1170 made it an island. In 1415 it obtained city rights, and in the 17th and 19th centuries Eierland was connected to Texel and became part of it. In April and May 1945, heavy fighting took place between the prisoners of war of the 822nd Georgian Battalion and the German occupiers in the so-called Russians' War. 565 Georgians, 120 Texans and around 800 Germans lost their lives in this battle.
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