1.
Dutch language
–
It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language, after English and German. Dutch is one of the closest relatives of both German and English and is said to be roughly in between them, Dutch vocabulary is mostly Germanic and incorporates more Romance loans than German but far fewer than English. In both Belgium and the Netherlands, the official name for Dutch is Nederlands, and its dialects have their own names, e. g. Hollands, West-Vlaams. The use of the word Vlaams to describe Standard Dutch for the variations prevalent in Flanders and used there, however, is common in the Netherlands, the Dutch language has been known under a variety of names. It derived from the Old Germanic word theudisk, one of the first names used for the non-Romance languages of Western Europe. It literarily means the language of the people, that is. The term was used as opposed to Latin, the language of writing. In the first text in which it is found, dating from 784, later, theudisca appeared also in the Oaths of Strasbourg to refer to the Germanic portion of the oath. This led inevitably to confusion since similar terms referred to different languages, owing to Dutch commercial and colonial rivalry in the 16th and 17th centuries, the English term came to refer exclusively to the Dutch. A notable exception is Pennsylvania Dutch, which is a West Central German variety called Deitsch by its speakers, Jersey Dutch, on the other hand, as spoken until the 1950s in New Jersey, is a Dutch-based creole. In Dutch itself, Diets went out of common use - although Platdiets is still used for the transitional Limburgish-Ripuarian Low Dietsch dialects in northeast Belgium, Nederlands, the official Dutch word for Dutch, did not become firmly established until the 19th century. This designation had been in use as far back as the end of the 15th century, one of them was it reflected a distinction with Hoogduits, High Dutch, meaning the language spoken in Germany. The Hoog was later dropped, and thus, Duits narrowed down in meaning to refer to the German language. g, in English, too, Netherlandic is regarded as a more accurate term for the Dutch language, but is hardly ever used. Old Dutch branched off more or less around the same time Old English, Old High German, Old Frisian and Old Saxon did. During that period, it forced Old Frisian back from the western coast to the north of the Low Countries, on the other hand, Dutch has been replaced in adjacent lands in nowadays France and Germany. The division in Old, Middle and Modern Dutch is mostly conventional, one of the few moments linguists can detect somewhat of a revolution is when the Dutch standard language emerged and quickly established itself. This is assumed to have taken place in approximately the mid-first millennium BCE in the pre-Roman Northern European Iron Age, the Germanic languages are traditionally divided into three groups, East, West, and North Germanic. They remained mutually intelligible throughout the Migration Period, Dutch is part of the West Germanic group, which also includes English, Scots, Frisian, Low German and High German
Dutch language
–
The Utrecht baptismal vow Forsachistu diobolae...
Dutch language
–
Distribution of the Dutch language and its dialects in
Western Europe
Dutch language
–
Second edition of this column decorated with a title of
Charles V 's portrait, with archaic Dutch inscriptions
Dutch language
–
Dutch language street sign in the Netherlands
2.
Provinces of Belgium
–
The country of Belgium is divided into three regions. Two of these regions, the Flemish Region or Flanders, and Walloon Region, the third region, the Brussels-Capital Region, is not divided into provinces, as it was originally only a small part of a province itself. Many of the provinces evolved from earlier duchies and counties of the name and similar location. At the time of the creation of Belgium in 1830, only nine provinces existed, including the province of Brabant and these divisions reflected political tensions between the French-speaking Walloons and the Dutch-speaking Flemish, the Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual. The division into provinces is fixed by Article 5 of the Belgian Constitution, the provinces are subdivided into 43 administrative arrondissements, and further into 589 municipalities. These each had their own identities and governments, though in the modern period almost all the Belgian states became part of larger entities. Each of the provinces of Belgium takes its name from one of these predecessors. At the time of the independence of Belgium from the Netherlands in 1830, the first article of the Belgian Constitution said, Belgium is divided into provinces. These provinces are Antwerp, Brabant, West Flanders, East Flanders, Hainaut, Liège, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, in 1839 half of the province of Limburg became part of the Netherlands, which consequently has its own province of Limburg. In 1920, following the First World War, Belgium annexed the Eupen-Malmedy territory, during the second half of the 20th century, Belgium transitioned from a unitary state to a federal state with three Communities and three Regions. As part of the reforms, the province of Brabant was split in 1995 three ways, into two provinces and into the Brussels-Capital Region. The two new Brabant provinces became part of the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region respectively, the remaining eight provinces became part of these regions as well, so the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region each contain five provinces. The Provincial Councils are the bodies of the population of the provinces. This is the equivalent of the States-Provincial in the Netherlands, the numbers of seats in the Provincial Councils are proportional to the population of the province, the numbers were reduced in both Flanders and Wallonia, starting 2013. They are directly elected each six years, at the time of the municipal elections. Before 1994, the elections instead coincided with the national elections. Until then, the provincial councils also appointed Provincial Senators to the Belgian Senate, the executive branch was previously called the Permanent Deputation. In the Flemish Region it is now called the Deputation and it consists of the Governor
Provinces of Belgium
3.
Belgium
–
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a sovereign state in Western Europe bordered by France, the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and the North Sea. It is a small, densely populated country which covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres and has a population of about 11 million people. Additionally, there is a group of German-speakers who live in the East Cantons located around the High Fens area. Historically, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were known as the Low Countries, the region was called Belgica in Latin, after the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 17th century, today, Belgium is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. It is divided into three regions and three communities, that exist next to each other and its two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia. The Brussels-Capital Region is a bilingual enclave within the Flemish Region. A German-speaking Community exists in eastern Wallonia, Belgiums linguistic diversity and related political conflicts are reflected in its political history and complex system of governance, made up of six different governments. Upon its independence, declared in 1830, Belgium participated in the Industrial Revolution and, during the course of the 20th century, possessed a number of colonies in Africa. This continuing antagonism has led to several far-reaching reforms, resulting in a transition from a unitary to a federal arrangement during the period from 1970 to 1993. Belgium is also a member of the Eurozone, NATO, OECD and WTO. Its capital, Brussels, hosts several of the EUs official seats as well as the headquarters of major international organizations such as NATO. Belgium is also a part of the Schengen Area, Belgium is a developed country, with an advanced high-income economy and is categorized as very high in the Human Development Index. A gradual immigration by Germanic Frankish tribes during the 5th century brought the area under the rule of the Merovingian kings, a gradual shift of power during the 8th century led the kingdom of the Franks to evolve into the Carolingian Empire. Many of these fiefdoms were united in the Burgundian Netherlands of the 14th and 15th centuries, the Eighty Years War divided the Low Countries into the northern United Provinces and the Southern Netherlands. The latter were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs and this was the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the dissolution of the First French Empire in 1815, although the franchise was initially restricted, universal suffrage for men was introduced after the general strike of 1893 and for women in 1949. The main political parties of the 19th century were the Catholic Party, French was originally the single official language adopted by the nobility and the bourgeoisie
Belgium
–
Charlemagne and
Charles V
Belgium
–
Flaga
Belgium
Belgium
–
Episode of the
Belgian Revolution of 1830 (1834), by
Egide Charles Gustave Wappers
4.
Geographic coordinate system
–
A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
Geographic coordinate system
–
Longitude lines are perpendicular and latitude lines are parallel to the equator.
5.
Flemish Region
–
The Flemish Region is one of the three official regions of the Kingdom of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and the Brussels-Capital Region. Colloquially, it is simply referred to as Flanders. It occupies the part of Belgium and covers an area of 13,522 km2. It is one of the most densely populated regions of Europe with around 470 inhabitants per square kilometer, immediately after its establishment in 1980, the region transferred all its constitutional competencies to the Flemish Community. Thus, the current Flemish authorities represent all the Flemish people, hence, the Flemish Region is governed by the Flemish Community institutions. However, members of the Flemish Community parliament elected in the Brussels-Capital Region have no right to vote on Flemish regional affairs, the Flemish Region comprises five provinces, each consisting of administrative arrondissements that, in turn, contain municipalities. Brussels city, the seat of the Flemish parliament, is located within the Brussels-Capital Region, Brussels contains both the Flemish Community and the French Community, both having their institutions in Brussels. Flanders is home to a modern economy, with emphasis put on research. Many enterprises work closely with local knowledge and research centres to develop new products, De Lijn serves as the main public transport company, run by the Flemish government. It consists of buses and trams, TEC is the equivalent company in Wallonia, and MIVB-STIB in Brussels. The railway network run by the NMBS, however, is a federal responsibility, the Flemish government is also responsible for about 500 kilometers of regional roads and about 900 kilometers of highways in the territory of the Flemish Region. Other types of roads are roads and municipal roads. Approximately 5,500,000 people live in the area, the official language is Dutch, sometimes colloquially referred to as Flemish. The main dialect groups include West Flemish, East Flemish, Brabantian, French may be used for certain administrative purposes in a limited number of the so-called municipalities with language facilities around the Brussels-Capital Region and on the border with Wallonia. Rim municipalities are Drogenbos, Kraainem, Linkebeek, Sint-Genesius-Rode, Wemmel, Brussels was originally a Dutch-speaking city, but it was frenchified in the 19th and 20th century and is now largely French-speaking. A few municipalities in the Flemish agglomeration of Brussels are now also frenchified, municipalities with language facilities on the border with Wallonia are Bever, Herstappe, Mesen, Ronse, Spiere-Helkijn, Voeren. Communities and regions of Belgium Provinces of regions in Belgium De Vlaamse Leeuw Count of Flanders Flanders Flemish Flemish authorities, toerisme Vlaanderen French Flanders Frans-Vlaanderen The Flemish region reaches 6 million inhabitants
Flemish Region
–
Bus of "De Lijn"
Flemish Region
–
Flag
6.
Bruges
–
Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 1,075 hectares off the coast, the historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is oval and about 430 hectares in size, the citys total population is 117,073, of whom around 20,000 live in the city centre. The metropolitan area, including the commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km2 and has a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008. Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam and Stockholm, Bruges has a significant economic importance thanks to its port and was once one of the worlds chief commercial cities. Bruges is well known as the seat of the College of Europe, the name probably derives from the Old Dutch for bridge, brugga. Also compare Middle Dutch brucge, brugge, and modern Dutch bruggehoofd, the form brugghe would be a southern Dutch variant. The Dutch word and the English bridge both derive from Proto-Germanic *brugjō-, Bruges was a location of coastal settlement during prehistory. This Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement is unrelated to medieval city development, in the Bruges area, the first fortifications were built after Julius Caesars conquest of the Menapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the region from the Gallo-Romans around the 4th century. The Viking incursions of the century prompted Count Baldwin I of Flanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications, trade soon resumed with England. Bruges received its city charter on 27 July 1128, and new walls and canals were built, in 1089 Bruges became the capital of the County of Flanders. Since about 1050, gradual silting had caused the city to lose its access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a channel at the Zwin. The new sea arm stretched all the way to Damme, a city became the commercial outpost for Bruges. Bruges had a location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade. They developed, or borrowed from Italy, new forms of merchant capitalism, whereby several merchants would share the risks and profits and they employed new forms of economic exchange, including bills of exchange and letters of credit. The city eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably the Portuguese traders selling pepper and other spices, the citys entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotlands wool-producing districts
Bruges
–
A canal in Bruges with the famous
Belfry in the background
Bruges
–
The
Markt ("Market square")
Bruges
–
The 'Burg', painted c. 1691 – 1700 by
Meunincxhove
Bruges
–
An old street in Bruges, with the
Church of Our Lady tower in the background
7.
West Flemish language
–
West Flemish is a dialect of the Dutch language spoken in western Belgium and adjoining parts of the Netherlands and France. Some of the cities where West Flemish is widely spoken are Bruges, Kortrijk, Ostend, Roeselare. The dialects of the rest of the Dutch province of Zeeland, Zeelandic, are included in West Flemish. West Flemish is listed as a language in UNESCOs online Red Book of Endangered Languages. West Flemish phonology differs a lot from the standard Dutch phonology, the best known are the velar fricatives g and ch in Dutch, being realised as glottal h -, and the overall lack of diphthongs compared to Dutch. The following differences are listed by their Dutch spelling, as different letters have evolved to the same sound in Dutch. Pronunciations can also differ a bit from region to region, sch - /sx/ is realised as, or. Ei - /ɛi/ is realised as or, ij - /ɛi/ is realised as. Au - /ʌu/ is realised as ou - /ʌu/ is realised as, it resembles a lot the long oe that is used in Dutch. Ie - /i/ is more stressed towards aa - /aː/ is realised as, due to the non-existent /x/ and /ɣ/ sounds in West Flemish, native speakers of the dialect have to concentrate a lot to pronounce these sounds. This often results in hyper-correction of the /h/ sounds to a /x/ or /ɣ/, the Dutch language also has many words with an -en suffix. While standard Dutch and most Dutch dialects dont pronounce the final n, West Flemish typically drops the e, for base words already ending with n, the final n sound is often prolonged to make the suffix clear. This mute-e is similar to many English words, beaten, listen, the short o in words can also be pronounced as a short u. This happens spontaneously on some words, but other words keep their original short o sounds, similarly, the short a can turn into a short o in some words without apparent reason. The diftong ui doesnt exist in West Flemish, and is pronounced as a u or a long ie. Similar to the ui, the o can turn into an on some words. This transition often shows similarities with English and this phenomenon is shared with the Lower Saxon Germanic dialects, and even more prominent in English. Under influence of Standard Dutch, the number of people that uses the -s suffix for the form on these words diverging from Dutch is diminishing
West Flemish language
–
Bachten de Kupe (nl) scenic road sign.
West Flemish language
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Geographical location of West Flemish (colour: sandy) among the other minority and regional languages and dialects of the
Benelux countries
West Flemish language
–
Apartment building in
Blankenberge (Belgium) with West Flemish name "Yzeren Rampe" (Iron embankment)
8.
French language
–
French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages, French has evolved from Gallo-Romance, the spoken Latin in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues doïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to Frances past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, a French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French. French is a language in 29 countries, most of which are members of la francophonie. As of 2015, 40% of the population is in Europe, 35% in sub-Saharan Africa, 15% in North Africa and the Middle East, 8% in the Americas. French is the fourth-most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union, 1/5 of Europeans who do not have French as a mother tongue speak French as a second language. As a result of French and Belgian colonialism from the 17th and 18th century onward, French was introduced to new territories in the Americas, Africa, most second-language speakers reside in Francophone Africa, in particular Gabon, Algeria, Mauritius, Senegal and Ivory Coast. In 2015, French was estimated to have 77 to 110 million native speakers, approximately 274 million people are able to speak the language. The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie estimates 700 million by 2050, in 2011, Bloomberg Businessweek ranked French the third most useful language for business, after English and Standard Mandarin Chinese. Under the Constitution of France, French has been the language of the Republic since 1992. France mandates the use of French in official government publications, public education except in specific cases, French is one of the four official languages of Switzerland and is spoken in the western part of Switzerland called Romandie, of which Geneva is the largest city. French is the language of about 23% of the Swiss population. French is also a language of Luxembourg, Monaco, and Aosta Valley, while French dialects remain spoken by minorities on the Channel Islands. A plurality of the worlds French-speaking population lives in Africa and this number does not include the people living in non-Francophone African countries who have learned French as a foreign language. Due to the rise of French in Africa, the total French-speaking population worldwide is expected to reach 700 million people in 2050, French is the fastest growing language on the continent. French is mostly a language in Africa, but it has become a first language in some urban areas, such as the region of Abidjan, Ivory Coast and in Libreville. There is not a single African French, but multiple forms that diverged through contact with various indigenous African languages, sub-Saharan Africa is the region where the French language is most likely to expand, because of the expansion of education and rapid population growth
French language
–
The
"arrêt" signs (French for "stop") are used in
Canada while the international stop, which is also a valid French word, is used in France as well as other French-speaking countries and regions.
French language
–
Regions where French is the main language
French language
–
Town sign in
Standard Arabic and French at the entrance of
Rechmaya in
Lebanon.
French language
–
An obsolete 100
Lebanese pound note with the French language inscriptions "Banque du Liban" and "Cent livres".
9.
German language
–
German is a West Germanic language that is mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Tyrol, the German-speaking Community of Belgium and it is also one of the three official languages of Luxembourg. Major languages which are most similar to German include other members of the West Germanic language branch, such as Afrikaans, Dutch, English, Luxembourgish and it is the second most widely spoken Germanic language, after English. One of the languages of the world, German is the first language of about 95 million people worldwide. The German speaking countries are ranked fifth in terms of publication of new books. German derives most of its vocabulary from the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, a portion of German words are derived from Latin and Greek, and fewer are borrowed from French and English. With slightly different standardized variants, German is a pluricentric language, like English, German is also notable for its broad spectrum of dialects, with many unique varieties existing in Europe and also other parts of the world. The history of the German language begins with the High German consonant shift during the migration period, when Martin Luther translated the Bible, he based his translation primarily on the standard bureaucratic language used in Saxony, also known as Meißner Deutsch. Copies of Luthers Bible featured a long list of glosses for each region that translated words which were unknown in the region into the regional dialect. Roman Catholics initially rejected Luthers translation, and tried to create their own Catholic standard of the German language – the difference in relation to Protestant German was minimal. It was not until the middle of the 18th century that a widely accepted standard was created, until about 1800, standard German was mainly a written language, in urban northern Germany, the local Low German dialects were spoken. Standard German, which was different, was often learned as a foreign language with uncertain pronunciation. Northern German pronunciation was considered the standard in prescriptive pronunciation guides though, however, German was the language of commerce and government in the Habsburg Empire, which encompassed a large area of Central and Eastern Europe. Until the mid-19th century, it was essentially the language of townspeople throughout most of the Empire and its use indicated that the speaker was a merchant or someone from an urban area, regardless of nationality. Some cities, such as Prague and Budapest, were gradually Germanized in the years after their incorporation into the Habsburg domain, others, such as Pozsony, were originally settled during the Habsburg period, and were primarily German at that time. Prague, Budapest and Bratislava as well as cities like Zagreb, the most comprehensive guide to the vocabulary of the German language is found within the Deutsches Wörterbuch. This dictionary was created by the Brothers Grimm and is composed of 16 parts which were issued between 1852 and 1860, in 1872, grammatical and orthographic rules first appeared in the Duden Handbook. In 1901, the 2nd Orthographical Conference ended with a standardization of the German language in its written form
German language
–
Old Frisian (Alt-Friesisch)
German language
–
The widespread popularity of the
Bible translated into German by
Martin Luther helped establish modern German
German language
–
Examples of German language in
Namibian everyday life
German language
–
German-language newspapers in the U.S. in 1922
10.
Provinces of regions in Belgium
–
The country of Belgium is divided into three regions. Two of these regions, the Flemish Region or Flanders, and Walloon Region, the third region, the Brussels-Capital Region, is not divided into provinces, as it was originally only a small part of a province itself. Many of the provinces evolved from earlier duchies and counties of the name and similar location. At the time of the creation of Belgium in 1830, only nine provinces existed, including the province of Brabant and these divisions reflected political tensions between the French-speaking Walloons and the Dutch-speaking Flemish, the Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual. The division into provinces is fixed by Article 5 of the Belgian Constitution, the provinces are subdivided into 43 administrative arrondissements, and further into 589 municipalities. These each had their own identities and governments, though in the modern period almost all the Belgian states became part of larger entities. Each of the provinces of Belgium takes its name from one of these predecessors. At the time of the independence of Belgium from the Netherlands in 1830, the first article of the Belgian Constitution said, Belgium is divided into provinces. These provinces are Antwerp, Brabant, West Flanders, East Flanders, Hainaut, Liège, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, in 1839 half of the province of Limburg became part of the Netherlands, which consequently has its own province of Limburg. In 1920, following the First World War, Belgium annexed the Eupen-Malmedy territory, during the second half of the 20th century, Belgium transitioned from a unitary state to a federal state with three Communities and three Regions. As part of the reforms, the province of Brabant was split in 1995 three ways, into two provinces and into the Brussels-Capital Region. The two new Brabant provinces became part of the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region respectively, the remaining eight provinces became part of these regions as well, so the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region each contain five provinces. The Provincial Councils are the bodies of the population of the provinces. This is the equivalent of the States-Provincial in the Netherlands, the numbers of seats in the Provincial Councils are proportional to the population of the province, the numbers were reduced in both Flanders and Wallonia, starting 2013. They are directly elected each six years, at the time of the municipal elections. Before 1994, the elections instead coincided with the national elections. Until then, the provincial councils also appointed Provincial Senators to the Belgian Senate, the executive branch was previously called the Permanent Deputation. In the Flemish Region it is now called the Deputation and it consists of the Governor
Provinces of regions in Belgium
–
Map of the Seventeen Provinces, red showing the border between the independent (Northern)
Netherlands and the
Southern Netherlands.
11.
Netherlands
–
The Netherlands is the main constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a densely populated country located in Western Europe with three territories in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, sharing borders with Belgium, the United Kingdom. The three largest cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague, Amsterdam is the countrys capital, while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of parliament and government. The port of Rotterdam is the worlds largest port outside East-Asia, the name Holland is used informally to refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands. Netherlands literally means lower countries, influenced by its low land and flat geography, most of the areas below sea level are artificial. Since the late 16th century, large areas have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes, with a population density of 412 people per km2 –507 if water is excluded – the Netherlands is classified as a very densely populated country. Only Bangladesh, South Korea, and Taiwan have both a population and higher population density. Nevertheless, the Netherlands is the worlds second-largest exporter of food and agricultural products and this is partly due to the fertility of the soil and the mild climate. In 2001, it became the worlds first country to legalise same-sex marriage, the Netherlands is a founding member of the EU, Eurozone, G-10, NATO, OECD and WTO, as well as being a part of the Schengen Area and the trilateral Benelux Union. The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EUs criminal intelligence agency Europol and this has led to the city being dubbed the worlds legal capital. The country also ranks second highest in the worlds 2016 Press Freedom Index, the Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy, ranking 17th of 177 countries according to the Index of Economic Freedom. It had the thirteenth-highest per capita income in the world in 2013 according to the International Monetary Fund, in 2013, the United Nations World Happiness Report ranked the Netherlands as the seventh-happiest country in the world, reflecting its high quality of life. The Netherlands also ranks joint second highest in the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index, the region called Low Countries and the country of the Netherlands have the same toponymy. Place names with Neder, Nieder, Nether and Nedre and Bas or Inferior are in use in all over Europe. They are sometimes used in a relation to a higher ground that consecutively is indicated as Upper, Boven, Oben. In the case of the Low Countries / the Netherlands the geographical location of the region has been more or less downstream. The geographical location of the region, however, changed over time tremendously
Netherlands
–
The Netherlands in 5500 BC
Netherlands
–
Flag
Netherlands
–
The Netherlands in 500 BC
Netherlands
–
An oak figurine found in
Willemstad, North Brabant (4500 BC).
12.
East Flanders
–
East Flanders is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on Zeelandic Flanders and on the provinces of Antwerp, Flemish Brabant, of Hainaut and it has an area of 2,991 km² which is divided into six administrative districts containing 65 municipalities. The provincial population is 1,408,484 and the capital is Ghent, during the short-lived Napoleonic Empire, most of the area of the modern province was part of the Department of Escaut, named after the River Scheldt. The provincial flag has a lion with red tongue and claws, on a background of horizontal white. This is a recent adaptation, formerly, East Flanders used the Flemish flag, the old flag is still publicly used, e. g. for road signs. The province has several geographic and/or tourist regions, Denderstreek Meetjesland Waasland Flemish Ardennes Important rivers are the Scheldt, the Dender merges into the Scheldt in the city of Dendermonde. East Flanders is divided into 6 administrative arrondissements, subdivided into a total of 65 municipalities, in addition, there are 3 judicial and 3 electoral arrondissements. The province had a population of 1,445,831 as of 1 January 2011 and it had 734,000 inhabitants in 1380 and about a million in 1900. The capital and biggest city is Ghent, also the second largest city in the Flemish Region, other smaller cities are Aalst, Sint-Niklaas and Dendermonde in the east of the province. The provincial council consists of 72 members which were last elected in the 2012 elections, previously it consisted of 84 members. The deputation of East Flanders is a coalition of the political parties CD&V, Open Vld, the biggest party in the council, N-VA, is not included. The daily government is led by the governor, who is appointed by the Flemish Government, andré Denys has been the governor of East Flanders from 26 November 2004 until 21 January 2013. Jan Briers, who is not member of a party but was nominated by N-VA. The province has a budget of approximately 300 million euro
East Flanders
–
The
Gravensteen in
Ghent, the provincial capital
East Flanders
East Flanders
–
The
Muur van Geraardsbergen
13.
Wallonia
–
Wallonia is a region of Belgium. Wallonia is primarily French-speaking, and accounts for 55% of the territory of Belgium, unlike Flanders, the Walloon Region was not merged with the French Community of Belgium which is the political entity that is responsible for matters related mainly to culture and education. The German-speaking minority in the east forms the German-speaking Community of Belgium, during the industrial revolution, Wallonia was second only to the United Kingdom in industrialization, capitalizing on its extensive deposits of coal and iron. This brought the wealth, and, from the beginning of the 19th to the middle of the 20th century. Since World War II the importance of industry has greatly diminished. Wallonia now suffers high unemployment and has a significantly lower GDP per capita than Flanders. The economic inequalities and linguistic divide between the two are major sources of conflict in Belgium and is a major factor in Flemish separatism. The capital of Wallonia is Namur but the city with the greatest population is Charleroi, most of Wallonias major cities and two-thirds of its population lie along the Sambre and Meuse valley, the former industrial backbone of Belgium. To the north lies the Central Belgian Plateau, which, like Flanders, is relatively flat, in the south-east lie the Ardennes, hilly and sparsely populated. Wallonia borders Flanders and the Netherlands in the north, France to the south and west, Wallonia has been a member of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie since 1980. The term Wallonia can mean different things in different contexts. One of the three regions of Belgium is still constitutionally defined as the Walloon Region, but the regions government has renamed it Wallonia. In practice, the difference between the two terms is small and what is meant is usually clear, based on context, the root of the word Wallonia, like the words Wales, Cornwall and Wallachia, is the Germanic word Walha, meaning the strangers. Wallonia is named after the Walloons, the population of the Burgundian Netherlands speaking Romance languages, in Middle Dutch, the term Walloons also included the French-speaking population of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège or the whole population of the Romanic sprachraum within the medieval Low Countries. Julius Caesar conquered Gaul in 57 BC, the Low Countries became part of the larger Gallia Belgica province which originally stretched from southwestern Germany to Normandy and the southern part of the Netherlands. The population of territory was Celtic with a Germanic influence which was stronger in the north than in the south of the province. The ancestors of the Walloons became Gallo-Romans and were called the Walha by their Germanic neighbours, the Walha abandoned their Celtic dialects and started to speak Vulgar Latin. The Merovingian Franks gradually gained control of the region during the 5th century, the language border began to crystallize between 700 under the reign of the Merovingians and Carolingians and around 1000 after the Ottonian Renaissance
Wallonia
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The
Sequence of Saint Eulalia, the oldest surviving text written in what would become
Old French, likely originated in or near Wallonia.
Wallonia
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Flag
Wallonia
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Baptismal font of
Renier de Huy, an example of
Mosan art and of medieval Walloon brass working expertise.
Wallonia
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The
Lion's Mound commemorates the
Battle of Waterloo, fought in present-day Wallonia. Belgium was united with the Netherlands following the
Napoleonic Wars.
14.
Hainaut (province)
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Hainaut is a province of Belgium in the Walloon region. Its capital is Mons and the most populous city is Charleroi, also the major urban, economic. The city is also the capital of Hainaut and one of the most important commercial centers in Belgium. Hainaut province is divided into 7 administrative districts, subdivided into a total of 69 municipalities and it has an area of 3,800 square kilometres. The patron saint of the province Hainaut is Saint Waltrude, Official web site of the Hainaut province Official gateway to the Hainaut The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Hainaut Euro Info Centre Hainaut Walloon Settlers Monument
Hainaut (province)
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Historical map of the County of Hainaut, with in red the current French-Belgian border.
Hainaut (province)
–
Flag
15.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
France
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One of the
Lascaux paintings: a horse –
Dordogne, approximately 18,000 BC
France
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Flag
France
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The
Maison Carrée was a temple of the
Gallo-Roman city of Nemausus (present-day
Nîmes) and is one of the best preserved vestiges of the
Roman Empire.
France
–
With
Clovis ' conversion to Catholicism in 498, the
Frankish monarchy,
elective and
secular until then, became
hereditary and of
divine right.
16.
North Sea
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The North Sea is a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean located between Great Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the ocean through the English Channel in the south and it is more than 970 kilometres long and 580 kilometres wide, with an area of around 570,000 square kilometres. The North Sea has long been the site of important European shipping lanes as well as a major fishery, the North Sea was the centre of the Vikings rise. Subsequently, the Hanseatic League, the Netherlands, and the British each sought to dominate the North Sea and thus the access to the markets, as Germanys only outlet to the ocean, the North Sea continued to be strategically important through both World Wars. The coast of the North Sea presents a diversity of geological and geographical features, in the north, deep fjords and sheer cliffs mark the Norwegian and Scottish coastlines, whereas in the south it consists primarily of sandy beaches and wide mudflats. Due to the population, heavy industrialization, and intense use of the sea and area surrounding it. In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean, in the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively. In the north it is bordered by the Shetland Islands, and connects with the Norwegian Sea, the North Sea is more than 970 kilometres long and 580 kilometres wide, with an area of 570,000 square kilometres and a volume of 54,000 cubic kilometres. Around the edges of the North Sea are sizeable islands and archipelagos, including Shetland, Orkney, the North Sea receives freshwater from a number of European continental watersheds, as well as the British Isles. A large part of the European drainage basin empties into the North Sea including water from the Baltic Sea, the largest and most important rivers flowing into the North Sea are the Elbe and the Rhine – Meuse watershed. Around 185 million people live in the catchment area of the rivers discharging into the North Sea encompassing some highly industrialized areas, for the most part, the sea lies on the European continental shelf with a mean depth of 90 metres. The only exception is the Norwegian trench, which extends parallel to the Norwegian shoreline from Oslo to a north of Bergen. It is between 20 and 30 kilometres wide and has a depth of 725 metres. The Dogger Bank, a vast moraine, or accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris and this feature has produced the finest fishing location of the North Sea. The Long Forties and the Broad Fourteens are large areas with uniform depth in fathoms. These great banks and others make the North Sea particularly hazardous to navigate, the Devils Hole lies 200 miles east of Dundee, Scotland. The feature is a series of trenches between 20 and 30 kilometres long,1 and 2 kilometres wide and up to 230 metres deep. Other areas which are less deep are Cleaver Bank, Fisher Bank, the International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the North Sea as follows, On the Southwest
North Sea
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North Sea
North Sea
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The German North Sea coast
North Sea
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The
Afsluitdijk (Closure-dike) is a major dam in the Netherlands
North Sea
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Zuid-Beveland,
North Sea flood of 1953
17.
Brugge
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Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 1,075 hectares off the coast, the historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is oval and about 430 hectares in size, the citys total population is 117,073, of whom around 20,000 live in the city centre. The metropolitan area, including the commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km2 and has a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008. Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam and Stockholm, Bruges has a significant economic importance thanks to its port and was once one of the worlds chief commercial cities. Bruges is well known as the seat of the College of Europe, the name probably derives from the Old Dutch for bridge, brugga. Also compare Middle Dutch brucge, brugge, and modern Dutch bruggehoofd, the form brugghe would be a southern Dutch variant. The Dutch word and the English bridge both derive from Proto-Germanic *brugjō-, Bruges was a location of coastal settlement during prehistory. This Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement is unrelated to medieval city development, in the Bruges area, the first fortifications were built after Julius Caesars conquest of the Menapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the region from the Gallo-Romans around the 4th century. The Viking incursions of the century prompted Count Baldwin I of Flanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications, trade soon resumed with England. Bruges received its city charter on 27 July 1128, and new walls and canals were built, in 1089 Bruges became the capital of the County of Flanders. Since about 1050, gradual silting had caused the city to lose its access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a channel at the Zwin. The new sea arm stretched all the way to Damme, a city became the commercial outpost for Bruges. Bruges had a location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade. They developed, or borrowed from Italy, new forms of merchant capitalism, whereby several merchants would share the risks and profits and they employed new forms of economic exchange, including bills of exchange and letters of credit. The city eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably the Portuguese traders selling pepper and other spices, the citys entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotlands wool-producing districts
Brugge
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A canal in Bruges with the famous
Belfry in the background
Brugge
–
The
Markt ("Market square")
Brugge
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The 'Burg', painted c. 1691 – 1700 by
Meunincxhove
Brugge
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An old street in Bruges, with the
Church of Our Lady tower in the background
18.
Kortrijk
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Kortrijk is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province West Flanders. It is the capital and largest city of the arrondissement of Kortrijk, the wider municipality comprises the city of Kortrijk proper and the villages of Aalbeke, Bellegem, Bissegem, Heule, Kooigem, Marke, and Rollegem. Kortrijk is part of the cross-border Eurometropolis Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai, which had 2,155,161 residents in 2008, the city is situated on the Leie,42 km southwest of Ghent and 25 km northeast of Lille in France. In addition, Mouscron in Wallonia is located just south of Kortrijk, both Kortrijk and Lille are part of the same transnational Eurodistrict urban agglomeration with around 1,900,000 inhabitants. As the biggest city of southern West Flanders, Kortrijk has many schools, hospitals, Kortrijk originated from a Gallo-Roman town, called Cortoriacum at a crossroads near the Leie river and two Roman roads. During the Middle Ages, Kortrijk grew significantly thanks to the flax and wool industry with France and England, in 1820, the Treaty of Kortrijk was signed, which laid out the current borders between France and Belgium. Throughout the 19th and 20th century, Kortrijk became a center of the flax industry, today, Kortrijk is the largest city in southern West-Flanders with several hospitals, colleges and a university. Kortrijk was the first city in Belgium with a shopping street. Nowadays, a big part of the city center is a complete pedestrian area with lots of shops. Another shopping mall is located near the edge of the city. Cortoriacum was a typical Gallo-Roman vicus at an important crossroads near the Leie river and it was situated on the crossroads of the Roman roads linking Tongeren and Cassel and Tournai and Oudenburg. In the 9th century, Baldwin II, Count of Flanders established fortifications against the Vikings, the town gained its city charter in 1190 from Philip, Count of Flanders. The population growth required new defensive walls, part of which can still be seen today, in the 13th century, the battles between Fernando of Portugal, Count of Flanders and his first cousin, King Louis VIII of France, led to the destruction of the city. The Counts of Flanders had it rebuilt soon after, to promote industry and weaving in the town, Joan, Countess of Flanders exempted settlers in Kortrijk from property tax. From that time, Kortrijk gained great importance as a centre of linen production, in 1302, the population of Bruges started a successful uprising against the French, who had annexed Flanders a couple of years earlier. On 18 May the French population in that city was massacred and this date is now remembered as a national holiday by the whole Flemish community. Following a new uprising by the Flemish in 1323, but this time against their own Count Louis I and these Flemish acquisitions were consolidated by the French at the Battle of Cassel. Most of the 15th century was prosperous under the Dukes of Burgundy, until the death of the Burgundian heiress, Mary of Burgundy, in 1482, the 16th century was marked by the confrontations engendered by the Reformation and the uprising of the Netherlands against Spain
Kortrijk
–
Broel Towers along the
river Lys in Kortrijk
Kortrijk
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Beguinage of Kortrijk
Kortrijk
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The second castle of Kortrijk
Kortrijk
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The medieval city hall.
19.
Ostend
–
Ostend is a Belgian coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, in earlier times, Ostend was a small village built on the east-end of an island between the North Sea and a beach lake. Although small, the rose to the status of town around 1265 when the inhabitants were allowed to hold a market. The major source of income for the inhabitants was fishing, the North Sea coastline has always been rather unstable and in 1395 the inhabitants decided to build a new Ostend behind large dikes and further away from the always-threatening sea. The strategic position on the North Sea coast had major advantages for Ostend as a harbour, the town was frequently taken, ravaged, ransacked and destroyed by conquering armies. The Dutch rebels, the Gueuzen, took control of the town and this shocking event set in motion negotiations that led to a truce several years later. When the truce broke down, it became a Dunkirker base, after this era, Ostend was turned into a harbour of some importance. In 1722, the Dutch again closed off the entrance to the worlds biggest harbour of Antwerp, therefore, Ostend rose in importance because the town provided an alternative exit to the sea. The Belgium Austriacum had become part of the Austrian Empire, the Austrian Emperor Charles VI granted the town the trade monopoly with Africa and the Far-East. The Oostendse Compagnie was allowed to found colonies overseas, however, in 1727 the Oostendse Compagnie was forced to stop its activities because of Dutch and British pressure. The Netherlands and Britain would not allow competitors on the trade level. Both nations regarded international trade as their privilege, on 19 September 1826 the local artillery magazine exploded. At least 20 people were killed and a further 200 injured, the affluent quarter of dHargras was levelled and scarcely a building in the city escaped damage. Disease followed the leading to further deaths. The harbour of Ostend continued to expand because the harbour dock, in 1838, a railway connection with Brussels was constructed. Ostend became a harbour to England in 1846 when the first ferry sailed to Dover. Very important for the image of the town was the attention it started to receive from the Belgian kings Leopold I, both liked to spend their holidays in Ostend. Important monuments and villas were built to please the Royal Family, including the Hippodrome Wellington horse racing track, the rest of aristocratic Belgium followed and soon Ostend became known as The Queen of the Belgian sea-side resorts
Ostend
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Promenade at Ostend seaside
Ostend
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Ostend on the
Ferraris map (around 1775)
Ostend
–
St Petrus and St Paulus Church
Ostend
–
Beach, seafront and Europacenter building
20.
Roeselare
–
Roeselare is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Roeselare proper and the towns of Beveren, Oekene, the name of the city is derived from two Germanic words meaning reed and open space, i. e. a marsh in a forest glade. Roeselares minor seminary is famous for having hosted the famous Flemish poets Guido Gezelle, Albrecht Rodenbach, the city is also home to the Rodenbach brewery. Traces of early dwellings have been found in the area, including flint tools, Gallo-Roman wells. The first mention of Roslar dates from a document dated 821 or 822, whereby the former domain of the Menapii, the Roeselare area soon became part of the County of Flanders. The rights to build fortifications and to hold a market date from 957. The city received its charter of freedoms in the century, period in which it also built its first city hall. The manufacturing of cloth was then the driver of the local economy. Unfortunately, the few walls that the city had were no match against the forces of Maximilian of Austria. The market hall and Saint Michael church were rebuilt in the year 1500, on the orthodromic distance line from the Saint Michael church to the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem are located the jubilee column on the Schlossplatz in Stuttgart and the Kokino observatory. Therefore, is the Cross of Lorraine, granted by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, the 16th century proved to be disastrous for the city as the Spanish rulers ruthlessly repressed any desire for autonomy in the Low Countries, both political and religious. Iconoclasts stormed the city in 1566 and destroyed most of the sacred art, the Eighty Years War that followed put an end to the wool supply from England, which in turn resulted in the disappearance of the cloth industry in Roeselare. Starting with the reigns of Archdukes Albert and Isabella, the beginning of the 17th century was a lot kinder to Roeselare, new churches and religious houses were built and old ones repaired. New schools also appeared in the city and the industry found a new life. The second half of the century, however, was marked by the wars of Louis XIV and Marshal Turenne against the Spanish, with further plundering, the Treaty of Nijmegen in 1678 made Roeselare a border city, a situation that encouraged smuggling rather than regular economic development. The 18th century was a prosperous period that saw the construction of the current city hall. In 1794, the area was the scene of a French victory over the Austrians, the victors imposed deep reforms on the country, such as a new legal system and the curtailment of religious freedoms, which lasted until the Concordat of 1802 between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII. Several members of the Rodenbach family of Roeselare took part in the leading to Belgian Independence in 1830
Roeselare
–
Market square with town hall
Roeselare
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Rumbeke Castle near Roeselare
Roeselare
–
Albrecht Rodenbach, by
Jules Lagae
21.
Ypres
–
Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. Though Ieper is the name, the citys French name. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres and the villages of Boezinge, Brielen, Dikkebus, Elverdinge, Hollebeke, Sint-Jan, Vlamertinge, Voormezele, Zillebeke, together, they are home to about 34,900 inhabitants. During the First World War, Ypres was the centre of Battles of Ypres between German and Allied forces, during the war it was nicknamed Wipers, as its name was difficult for English-speaking British Imperial forces troops to pronounce. Ypres is an ancient town, known to have been raided by the Romans in the first century BC and it is first mentioned by name in 1066 and is probably named after the river Ieperlee on the banks of which it was founded. During the Middle Ages, Ypres was a prosperous Flemish city with a population of 40,000 in 1200 AD, renowned for its trade with England. As the third largest city in the County of Flanders Ypres played an important role in the history of the textile industry, textiles from Ypres could be found in the markets of Novgorod in Kievan Rus in the early 12th century. In 1241, a fire ruined much of the old city. The powerful city was involved in important treaties and battles, including the Battle of the Golden Spurs, the Battle at Mons-en-Pévèle, the Peace of Melun, the famous Cloth Hall was built in the thirteenth century. Also during this time cats, then the symbol of the devil and witchcraft, were thrown off Cloth Hall, today, this act is commemorated with a triennial Cat Parade through town. During the Norwich Crusade, led by the English bishop Henry le Despenser, Ypres was besieged from May to August 1383, after the destruction of Thérouanne, Ypres became the seat of the new Diocese of Ypres in 1561, and Saint Martins Church was elevated to cathedral. On 25 March 1678 Ypres was conquered by the forces of Louis XIV of France and it remained French under the treaty of Nijmegen, and Vauban constructed his typical fortifications that can still be seen today. In 1697, after the Treaty of Ryswick, Ypres was returned to the Spanish Crown, in 1713 it was handed over to the Habsburgs, and became part of the Austrian Netherlands. In 1782 the Habsburg Austrian Emperor Joseph II ordered parts of the torn down. This destruction, which was partly repaired, made it easier for the French to capture the city in the 1794 Siege of Ypres during the War of the First Coalition. In 1850 the Ypresian Age of the Eocene Epoch was named on the basis of geology in the region by Belgian geologist André Hubert Dumont, Ypres had long been fortified to keep out invaders. Parts of the ramparts, dating from 1385, still survive near the Rijselpoort. Over time, the earthworks were replaced by masonry and earth structures
Ypres
–
Ypres Ieper
Ypres
–
Ypres on the
Ferraris map (around 1775)
Ypres
–
Ypres's shell-blasted Cloth Hall burns
Ypres
–
Ruins of Ypres – 1919
22.
Belgian coast tram
–
The Coast Tram is a public transport service connecting the cities and towns along the entire Belgian coast, between De Panne near the French border and Knokke-Heist. At 68 km in length, it is the longest tram line in the world, the line is built at 1,000 mm metre gauge and fully electrified at 600 V DC. On its creation, the line was managed by the NMVB, the service makes 69 stops along the 68 km long line, with a tram running every ten minutes during the peak summer months, during which it is used by over 3 million passengers. The service has recently made more accessible through the addition of low-floor centre sections to existing vehicles. This avoids delays to the schedule when the road bridge that the tram line normally follows is raised for boats passing under it. A similar feature exists at the end of Ostend station around the lock entrance to the Vlotdok. De Lijn NMVB / SNCV De Kusttram De Lijn Buurtspoorweg foto archief TRAMANIA Buurtspoorweg sponsoring UrbanRail. net page
Belgian coast tram
–
The Belgian Coast Tram near
Ostend
Belgian coast tram
–
Map of the route
Belgian coast tram
–
Tram in
Oostende Henegouwenstraat stop
Belgian coast tram
–
Ostend (tram and rail) station
23.
De Panne
–
De Panne is a town and a municipality located on the North Sea coast of the Belgian province of West Flanders. There it borders France, which implies that it is the westernmost location of Belgium, the municipality comprises apart from De Panne the village of Adinkerke. On 1 January 2006 De Panne had a population of 10,060 on a total area of 23.90 km². Famous people who lived or died in De Panne include King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth, and John Aidan Liddell, VC, who died in De Panne in August 1915. The Belgian royal family lived in De Panne during the First World War because it is located in the fraction of their country that was not conquered by the Germans. De Panne is home to Plopsaland, an aimed at young children. De Panne was also the place where the first land yachts intended for sport were built, on 17 July 1831, Leopold I, the first Belgian king, sailed to Calais from England, and arrived in Belgium in De Panne. The Leopold I Esplanade, which includes a statue of him, since 1977 the town has hosted the Three Days of De Panne cycle race, which is held in the run up to, and traditionally used by riders as preparation for, the Tour of Flanders. De Panne Railway Station is located in nearby Adinkerke, there are regular NMBS trains to Brussels. The line across the border to Dunkirk is out of use, dk bus run buses from the station forecourt to Gare de Dunkerque. A cross-border campaign group called Trekhaak-73 is seeking to re-open the railway line, the cemetery is located at Kerkstraat 69 in De Panne,1 km south of the church. Besides Belgian soldiers who died in the First World War there are also British soldiers who died in the Second World War,3,744 soldiers have been buried here. Close nearby is Adinkerke Military Cemetery
De Panne
–
De Panne city view
De Panne
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Statue of Leopold I in De Panne
De Panne
–
Beach and apartment buildings
24.
Knokke-Heist
–
Knokke-Heist is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Heist-aan-Zee, Knokke, Duinbergen, on January 1,2006 Knokke-Heist had a total population of 34,063. The total area is 56.44 km² which gives a density of 603 inhabitants per km². Knokke-Heist is located along the North Sea in an area on the Belgian border with the Netherlands. It is one of Belgium’s better known and more affluent seaside resorts, originally, the marshy Zwin area was mostly settled by shepherds and fishermen. New parishes were founded and the settlement of Sint-Anna-ter-Muiden, later made part of Westkapelle. The strategic importance of the Zwin harbour came to light in 1301, during the Hundred Years War that followed shortly after, several battles were fought between France and England for supremacy of the area including the Battle of Sluys in June 1340. The local population tried to remain neutral as it was tied to Flanders, then allied to France. Under Philip the Bold’s leadership, it took advantage of the peace of the end of the century to fortify the canal linking the Zwin to the port of Bruges. The beginning of the 15th century witnessed several renewed English attacks on neighboring Sluis, with devastating effects on the local economy, the end of the century was marked by internal rebellions against Maximilian of Austria and strategic flooding of the polders. The reign of Charles V in the century saw peace coming back to the region. This was also the time when the Zwin started silting and when apple orchards were planted to supplement the local economy, the strength of this agricultural rebirth and of the cattle trade allowed the local farmers to weather future economic crises relatively well. Following the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, the territory of Knokke was annexed to the Netherlands, after the Battle of Fleurus, Bruges, Knokke and the neighboring municipalities were included in the department of the Lys. The construction of the Leopold Canal in 1857 made the closing of the Zwin, the development of Knokke and Heist as tourist destinations followed soon after. The area known as Het Zoute includes the exclusive Royal Zoute Golf Club, the Zwin, a 158 ha coastal nature reserve. This large salt-water marsh area is also a bird sanctuary. The Sincfala museum, located in Heist, documents the regional history, a butterfly garden was established near Moeder Siska, the coffeehouse that makes clover-shaped waffles which dates from 1892. There are many sculptures in Knokke-Heist located on the beach and on the wave breakers, the pink fountain located at the tourism center
Knokke-Heist
–
Knokke-Heist
Knokke-Heist
–
Chapel of the fishermen in Heist
Knokke-Heist
–
Beachpromenade in Knokke-Heist
25.
Polder
–
POLDER is a passive optical imaging radiometer and polarimeter instrument developed by the French space agency CNES. POLDER has a mass of approximately 30 kilograms, and has a power consumption of 77 W in imaging mode, POLDER utilizes a push broom scanner. The devices optical system uses a lens and a charged coupled device matrix with a resolution of 242x548 pixels. The focal length is 3.57 millimetres with a ratio of 4.6. The field of view ranges from ±43° to ±57°, depending on the tracking method, the device scans between 443 and 910 nm FWHM, depending on the objective of the measurement. The shorter wavelengths typically measure ocean color, whereas the longer wavelengths are used to study vegetation and it transmits data on 465.9875 MHz at bit rate of 200 bit/s, and receives on 401.65 MHz at 400 bit/s. The data rate is 880 kbit/s at a level of 12 bits. POLDER was first launched as an instrument aboard ADEOS I on 17 August 1996. The mission ended on 30 June 1997 when communication from the host satellite failed, POLDER2 was launched in December 2002 aboard ADEOS II. The second mission ended prematurely after 10 months when the solar panel malfunctioned. A third generation instrument was launched on board the French PARASOL microsatellite, although the satellite has been manoeuvred out of the A-Train on 2 December 2009, data is still being acquired by the satellite
Polder
26.
Kemmelberg
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Kemmelberg is a hill formation in Flanders, Belgium. It is located less than a kilometer from the village of Kemmel, the earliest settlements on the Kemmelberg date back 2.500 years, when Celtic tribes of the Hallstatt culture populated the area. The hill takes its name from Camulos, the Celtic god of war, during World War I, it was the location of one of the wars most ferocious battles. Because of its importance, it was fiercely fought in the Fourth Battle of Ypres. On 25 April 1918, German imperial forces, hoping to force a breakthrough to the North Sea, at 6 a. m. the German Alpenkorps seized and captured the Kemmelberg, causing allied troops to withdraw from all the hills in the region. Thousands of French soldiers were slaughtered, several streets and army barracks in Germany were named after this event. Friedrich Bertram Sixt von Armin and Prince Franz of Bavaria were commanders and it was recaptured during the Battle of the Peaks of Flanders in late September 1918, as a precursor to the Armistice of 11 November 1918. At the western foot of the hill, there is a war cemetery. At the top of the Kemmelberg there is a war memorial. The memorial column is 17 meter high and depicts the Roman victory goddess Victoria, in the area, the monument is colloquially called The Angel. The steep cobbled roads over the hill are often featured in cycling races, in 1950 the Kemmelberg was included in the route of the World Championship, won by Belgian local and cycling icon Briek Schotte. Die Eroberung des Kemmel - Bericht des deutschen Hauptquartiers aus dem Jahre 1918 Fotos der Eroberung des Kemmelberges
Kemmelberg
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Kemmelberg, seen from the west
Kemmelberg
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Kemmelberg after the fights of 1918
Kemmelberg
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Kemmelberg today, with the Belvedere visible near its top
27.
Leie
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The Leie or Lys is a river in France and Belgium, and a left tributary of the Scheldt. Its source is in Pas-de-Calais, France, and it flows into the river Scheldt in Ghent and its total length is 202 kilometres. It is a polluted river from the high population density. Historically, the Lys valley was known for the spinning and weaving of flax, the region of the Leie was known as a favourite place for numerous painters in the first half of the 20th century. The source of the Lys is in a village, Lisbourg, east of Fruges, the river was the location of three battles between the Allies and the German Army. During the Second World War, the Battle of the Lys was part of the 1940 German offensive in Flanders towards the English Channel, geoportail. fr The Lys at the Sandre database River basin of the Lys in Flanders
Leie
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The Leie in Ghent.
28.
IJzer
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The Yser is a river that rises in French Flanders, enters the Belgian province of West Flanders and flows through the Ganzepoot and into the North Sea at the town of Nieuwpoort. The source of the Yser is in Buysscheure, in the Nord department of northern France and it flows though Bollezeele, Esquelbecq, and Bambecque. After approximately 30 kilometres of its 78-kilometre course, it leaves France and it then flows through Diksmuide and out into the North Sea at Nieuwpoort. The Yser river itself never overflowed its banks, peene Becque Sale Becque Ey Becque Zwyne Becque GéoPortail The Yser at the Sandre database Image of the basin of the Yser
IJzer
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The Yser and West Flemish
polders near
Diksmuide
IJzer
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Yser/IJzer
29.
Oostende
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Ostend is a Belgian coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, in earlier times, Ostend was a small village built on the east-end of an island between the North Sea and a beach lake. Although small, the rose to the status of town around 1265 when the inhabitants were allowed to hold a market. The major source of income for the inhabitants was fishing, the North Sea coastline has always been rather unstable and in 1395 the inhabitants decided to build a new Ostend behind large dikes and further away from the always-threatening sea. The strategic position on the North Sea coast had major advantages for Ostend as a harbour, the town was frequently taken, ravaged, ransacked and destroyed by conquering armies. The Dutch rebels, the Gueuzen, took control of the town and this shocking event set in motion negotiations that led to a truce several years later. When the truce broke down, it became a Dunkirker base, after this era, Ostend was turned into a harbour of some importance. In 1722, the Dutch again closed off the entrance to the worlds biggest harbour of Antwerp, therefore, Ostend rose in importance because the town provided an alternative exit to the sea. The Belgium Austriacum had become part of the Austrian Empire, the Austrian Emperor Charles VI granted the town the trade monopoly with Africa and the Far-East. The Oostendse Compagnie was allowed to found colonies overseas, however, in 1727 the Oostendse Compagnie was forced to stop its activities because of Dutch and British pressure. The Netherlands and Britain would not allow competitors on the trade level. Both nations regarded international trade as their privilege, on 19 September 1826 the local artillery magazine exploded. At least 20 people were killed and a further 200 injured, the affluent quarter of dHargras was levelled and scarcely a building in the city escaped damage. Disease followed the leading to further deaths. The harbour of Ostend continued to expand because the harbour dock, in 1838, a railway connection with Brussels was constructed. Ostend became a harbour to England in 1846 when the first ferry sailed to Dover. Very important for the image of the town was the attention it started to receive from the Belgian kings Leopold I, both liked to spend their holidays in Ostend. Important monuments and villas were built to please the Royal Family, including the Hippodrome Wellington horse racing track, the rest of aristocratic Belgium followed and soon Ostend became known as The Queen of the Belgian sea-side resorts
Oostende
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Promenade at Ostend seaside
Oostende
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Ostend on the
Ferraris map (around 1775)
Oostende
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St Petrus and St Paulus Church
Oostende
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Beach, seafront and Europacenter building
30.
Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge
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Zeebrugge is a multifaceted port that handles a wide range of trades, unit loads, new cars, conventional general cargo, high & heavy cargoes, dry and liquid bulk cargoes and natural gas. From a purely transit port Zeebrugge has gradually evolved into a centre for European distribution, the port has become a major European port since major development works were carried in the 1972 to 1985 period. Since then total tonnage has doubled, as of 2008, Bruges-Zeebrugge is one of the fastest growing ports between Le Havre and Hamburg. It is Europes leading RoRo port, handling 12.5 million mt in 2010, and it is also Europes largest terminal for liquefied natural gas, receiving natural gas from the Troll gas field via the 814 km long Zeepipe under the North Sea. LNG is also delivered in specialized gas tankers from various origins, like Africa, Zeebrugge counts as one of the most important ports in Europe for containerized cargo as well, handling over 2.5 million TEUs in 2010. The port employs directly over 11,000 people and handles over 10,000 ship moorings annually, together with the indirect employees, the port creates over 28,000 jobs. The port of Bruges-Zeebrugge is managed by the Maatschappij van de Brugse Zeevaartinrichtingen N. V, as of July 2015,1866 Mr August de Maere dAertrijcke, a Ghent Alderman describes the project of connecting his town with the sea in a public conference. He is known as the father of the Zeebrugge port,1894 Belgian parliament votes the law approving the construction of Port of Heyst The port was inaugurated on July 23,1907 by King Leopold II, arriving by sea. On 23 April 1918, the port was the target of a famous raid and this was an attempt to block access to and from the port by intentionally sinking ships to block the canal entrance, thus preventing its use by German ships and submarines. Eight participants in the raid were awarded the Victoria Cross, on 6 March 1987, the ferry Herald of Free Enterprise was just outside the port when it took on water due to the bow doors remaining open, became unstable and capsized, killing 189 passengers. On the 16 August 2014,35 people of an Afghan origin, were found in a container at Tilbury Docks that had originated from The Bruges-Zeebruge port, all were suspected to be dehydrated and 1 man died from his injuries. Zeebrugge Hub Interconnector Zeepipe A. de Maere-Limnander, des communications directes du port de Gand à la mer. Canal de Terneuzen - Canal de Heyst, conférence donnée au Cercle Commercial et Industriel de Gand,52, plates I-II pp. A. de Maere-Limnander. Dune communication directe de Bruges à la mer,57, plates I-IV pp J. Nyssens-Hart, Le Port de vitesse de Heyst. J. Nyssens-Hart et J. Zone, Le port de vitesse de Heyst, J. Nyssens-Hart The outer port and the inner port of Bruges. Cie des Installations maritimes de Bruges,1898,43 pp. U, baron August de Maere dAertrycke, vader van Brugge-Zeehaven. 148 pp E. Bilé, E. Trips, Zeebrugge, een haven in de branding 1895-1970. Tentoonstelling 100 jaar Zeehaven Brugge 8 juli-20 September 1995, official Zeebrugge Port site follow the harbour movements @ ship-hunters Port of Zeebrugge
Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge
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Bruges and the port area of Bruges-Zeebrugge (pink)
Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge
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Satellite image of Bruges and the Port
Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge
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Containership CMA CGM BALZAC in PSA HNN terminal.
Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge
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Containership CMA CGM BIZET in PSA HNN terminal.
Belgium
Flemish Region
listen);[2] West Flemish: West Vloandern; French: (Province de) Flandre-Occidentale; German: Westflandern) is the most western province of the Flemish Region, also named Flanders, in Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the North) on the Netherlands, the Flemish province of East Flanders (Oost-Vlaanderen) and the Walloon province of Hainaut (Henegouwen) in Belgium, on France and the North Sea. Its capital is Bruges (Brugge). Other important cities are Kortrijk in the south and Ostend on the coast, Roeselare and Ypres (Ieper). The province has an area of 3,125 km² which is divided into eight administrative districts (arrondissementen) containing 64 municipalities.
West Flanders
