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Aalter lies in Meetjesland, in the Belgian province East Flanders.
Info
History
Archaeological finds from the past decades show that the Aalter territory was already inhabited during prehistoric times. A number of stone artifacts were found at a number of paleontological sites. They may date from 3000 to 2000 BC. Archaeologists also found the remains of a bronze ax, which according to research was carried out between 1200 and 1000 BC. must be manufactured.
The name Aalter emerged, thanks to the donation of part of the Villa Haleftra (the estate Haleft(e)ra) by Count Diederik van West-Friesland aan de St. Peter's Abbey by Ghent, first recorded in the year 974. This name may have been derived from the Germanic halahdrja, which means juniper bush. Villa Haleftra would have been on the current market, right next to the current church. The estate was surrounded by fields (campsite), fields (gris), meersen (pratis), meadows and forests. In 840 and in 1112 comes the name Haltra for.
In the Middle Ages and later (period from ca. 1000 to 1800) the administrative organization consisted of lordships that often extended over a number of parishes. The main glory, the Land of the Desert, was the count's domain around the Woestijnegoed. It stretched over the territory of Aalter and Knesselare with a number of enclaves in Bellem.
Aalter played an important role in the Revolution of Ghent against the count. In 1379, the White Hoods defeated the Bruges canal diggers on the territory of Aalters.
The digging of the Brugse Vaart from 1613 to 1623 in the basin of the Durme was a very important development for the place. Many fortresses were built along the canal to defend against the Dutch. A transfer service was also introduced, which was discontinued at the end of June 2008. The ferry was the only one along the canal. In 1187 there was a watermill in Oostmolen. The inhabitants of Aalter had to have their grain milled there. Before the canal was dug in the bed of the Zuidleie and the Durme, there were three bridges over the rivers: the Geetbrug, the Woestijnebrug over the Zuidleie and the Oostmolenbrug over the Hoge Kale. When the Brugse Vaart was finally dug, those bridges had to give way. From 1617, the north and south sides were connected by ferry. The first bridge in Aalter dates from 1775.
The first railway line was built in 1838, through which Aalter is now also served by the railway with the larger cities (Ghent, Bruges, deinze, ...) was connected. The station was opened on August 12 of that year.
Everywhere the main activity was agriculture and the cottage industry provided an extra income. This parallel history only ended around 1962 with the construction of an industrial estate of more than 125 hectares. However, the first real factory was in Bellem. From about 1800, the manufacturer employed 500 people during its heyday.
In 1918 the upper part of the spire of St. Cornelius Church was dynamited by German troops. This destruction also caused a lot of damage to the roof. The church had been rebuilt and greatly expanded 15 years earlier. The destruction from the First World War was restored from 1921 to 1923, according to the neo-Gothic plans of architect Camille Goethals from 1902. The oldest parts of the church (now completely new) date back to the 12th or 13th century.
In the 1930s, construction began on the E5 (later E40) motorway between Brussels and Ostend, including an exit in Aalter.
Aalter was liberated in 1944 by soldiers of the Polish 1st Armored Division. In Ter Walle a monument to this division of General Maczek was erected.
Geography
Municipalities
Since the merger in 1977, Aalter has consisted of four sub-municipalities: Aalter, Bellem, poke and lotenhulle.
In addition to the eponymous core, the sub-municipality of Aalter also contains two other villages: Aalter Bridge and Maria-Aalter. Both have never been independent municipalities and can therefore not be regarded as sub-municipality.
Arrive
By train
- Train arrival times: NMBS
By bus
By car
Exit 11 of the E40 motorway
Travel around
To look at
To do
To buy
Food
Going out
stay overnight
all around
| This article incorporates information from the Aalter article on Wikipedia. See the page history there for the list of authors. |