In June 1806 works to deepen the Aa and to dig some shortcuts were actually started. During the works, Roman coins were found at a depth of two feet four inches below the previous bed. By 1809 the construction of locks to achieve the Veghel plan was estimated at 68,000 guilders. On 16 March 1810 North Brabant was annexed by France. In the end, these plans to make the Aa navigable did not lead to a very significant result. The plans for the Zuid-Willemsvaart were made for the drainage basin of the Aa. However, the idea was totally different. The previous plans aimed to develop the economy of Brabant. The plans for the Zuid-Willemsvaart wanted to improve communication between Liège and the cities of Holland. More recent developments After the Zuid-Willemsvaart had been dug, a more industrial approach to extract peat started in the raised bog of the Peel in 1853. As a consequence, the precipitation that was previously retained by the raised bog began to flow downstream with steadily less delay. It meant that the Aa had to process much more water. Therefore, in 1927-1929 two canals were dug around Helmond, and connected to the Zuid-Willemsvaart, so the water situation in the Peel could be improved. This was not sufficient, and so the Aa was normalized from 1934 to 1951, meaning that it was canalized. Latest developments In 1995 heavy rainfall upstream caused that the highway A2 near 's-Hertogenbosch was flooded for two weeks. In addition, there were fears that a massive evacuation would be required. One of the causes was a policy which had centered on getting rid of excess water as soon as possible, and to trust in technical measures to solve any problems. The events of 1995 changed this policy, and created focus for spillover areas, meandering, and restoration of streams and brooks. The aim is to prevent flooding by slowing drainage, and by temporarily storing excess water in spill over areas. For the Aa it meant that many improvements for navigability, or to increase the speed with which it drains water downstream, had to be reverted. This was coordinated in the project 'Dynamisch Beekdal' (Dutch for dynamic brook-valley), which was executed from 2002 to 2017. The project made rigorous changes to the Aa from Heeswijk Castle to 's-Hertogenbosch. It combined safety measures with measures to restore the ecology of the river. Meanwhile, the new Máxima