Dilbeek
Dilbeek | |
|---|---|
.jpg) De Viron Castle, serving as town hall | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Dilbeek  | |
  Dilbeek Location in Belgium
Location of Dilbeek in Flemish Brabant Halle-Vilvoorde | |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Willy Segers (N-VA) |
| • Governing party/ies | N-VA, Open Vld |
| Area | |
| • Total | 41.48 km2 (16.02 sq mi) |
| Population (2018-01-01)[1] | |
| • Total | 42,434 |
| • Density | 1,000/km2 (2,600/sq mi) |
| Postal codes | 1700–1703 |
| NIS code | 23016 |
| Area codes | 02 |
| Website | www.dilbeek.be |
Dilbeek (Dutch pronunciation: Dutch language area of Belgium, there is a French-speaking minority represented by 3 members on the 35-seat local council.[2] It is a mostly residential community with some preserved rural areas and some industrial zones.
History
Medieval origins
The life of
Landgraviate of Brabant by the counts of Leuven around 1085. The first mention of the name Dedelbeccha dates from 1075, while the name Bigardis, later transformed into Groot-Bijgaarden (in French Grand Bigard), dates from 1110. Bigardis was originally a dependency of the Abbey of Saint Bavo in Ghent, but by 1125, nuns under the leadership of Saint Wivina had founded a religious community there. Around 1183, the landgraviate became the Duchy of Brabant, within which Dilbeek remained as an independent parish until the French Revolution
.
16th century until now
The area's parishes belonged to the
Protestants
, which resulted in the ruin of the Abbey of Groot-Bijgaarden. The final dismantlement and sale of the buildings took place during the French regime in the 1790s.
Events
- Each of the six communes that make up the current municipality organizes several annual fairs and kermesses.
- Every spring, a tulip festival takes place in Dilbeek.
- Each summer the Vijverfestival (Pond Festival), where Flemish bands perform on a floating stage, takes place at the pond behind the town hall in Dilbeek proper.
Sights
The Parable of the Blind
- The imposing castle of Groot-Bijgaarden was built in 1640 around a 14th-century keep. Nearby is the Sint-Wivina domain, where ruins of the original abbey still stand.
- Dilbeek's local authority offices, also known as the , which resulted in the nickname konijnenfretters (rabbit eaters) for the inhabitants of Dilbeek. Several other buildings of interest (farm, ice cellar, stagecoach building) can also be found in the park
- The rural communes contain numerous old farms, including Het Neerhof, a 13th-century building that belonged to the abbey of Forest.
- The tower of the Sint-Ambrosiuskerk (church of Saint-Ambrose) dates from the same century.
- The main church of Sint-Anna-Pede (Itterbeek) was the model used by dating from 1776.
- Dilbeek also houses an interesting tram museum, tracing the history of this local mode of transportation since its beginning in 1887.
- The village of Sint-Gertrudis-Pede (Schepdaal) is the location of the Payottenland's only working watermill, a centuries-old building that has been thoroughly renovated in the eighties and nineties.
Famous inhabitants
- Saint Alena, Christian saint (died c. 640)
- Saint Wivina, monastic foundress, 12th century.
- Romain Maes, cyclist who won the 1935 Tour de France (1913–1983)
- Johan Anthierens, journalist, publicist, critic, and writer (1937–2000)
- Goedele Liekens, former Miss Belgium
- Urbanus, famous Flemish comedian was born and raised in Schepdaal.
- Black Box Revelation, a garage-rock band formed in 2005 by Dilbeek natives Jan Paternoster and Dries Van Dijck.
- Remco Evenepoel, Belgian cyclist nicknamed the "Schepdaal Cannibal".
Twin cities
Austria: OberVellach, part of Hermagor
United States: Dalton, Georgia
South Africa: Franschhoek
References
- ^ "Wettelijke Bevolking per gemeente op 1 januari 2018". Statbel. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
- ^ Dilbeek - gemeenteraad (Municipal elections results, 2018)
- ^ "The legend of Saint Alena" (in Dutch). Dilbeek.be. Archived from the original on 27 December 2008.
External links
Media related to Dilbeek at Wikimedia Commons- Official website Only available in Dutch
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Municipality of Dilbeek | ||
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