De Haan

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De Haan
De Haan wapen.svg Be-dhaan.png
De Haan (West Flanders Province)
De Haan
De Haan
State : BelgiumBelgium Belgium
Region : Flanders
Province : West Flanders
District : East End
Coordinates : 51 ° 16 ′  N , 3 ° 2 ′  E Coordinates: 51 ° 16 ′  N , 3 ° 2 ′  E
Area : 42.17 km²
Residents: 12,666 (Jan. 1, 2019)
Population density: 300 inhabitants per km²
Post Code: 8420 (Klemskerke, Wenduine)
8421 (Vlissegem)
Prefix: 059, 050
Mayor: Peter Breemersch

Local government address : 		Leopoldlaan 24
8420 De Haan
Website: www.dehaan.be
lb le ls lh
Structure of the municipality of De Haan
I: Klemskerke
II: Vlissegem
III: Wenduine
IV: De Haan Centraal

De Haan ( French : Le Coq , also Le-Coq-sur-Mer ) is a municipality on the Belgian North Sea coast in the Belgian province of West Flanders . Of the 12,666 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2019), around 5200 live in the seaside resort De Haan, around 4000 in Wenduine and the rest in Klemskerke, Vosseslag, Harendijke and Vlissegem.

Geographical location

De Haan is located directly on the North Sea coast. In a central location in the village there is a stop of the coastal tram Kusttram , which connects all places on the Belgian North Sea coast. The nearest major city is Ostend, 10 km away . The city of Bruges is approx. 17 km away.

history

The sub-municipality Klemskerke is an old Belgian polder village that was evidently mentioned in 1003 for the first time as "Clemeskirca". Today's center of De Haan , on the other hand, did not originate until 1889 . At that time, King Leopold II (Belgium) issued a permit ( concession ) for the development of a section of dune . In Klemskerke, the king had a golf course built for himself from the profits from the exploitation of the Congo .

A few years earlier, in 1886, the Kusttram was opened, which should prove to be the engine of development for the entire Belgian North Sea coast. As early as 1888, the first hotel was opened near the railway station. The king's approval comprised a number of conditions for the future builders: a certain height was not allowed to be exceeded, the houses had to be free-standing, i.e. surrounded by gardens, and finally the Anglo-Norman architectural style had to be adhered to for all villas. The latter point has not been decisive for all new buildings since the 1960s. At the same time, De Haan differs from all other seaside resorts on the Belgian North Sea coast due to its open, heavily greened design. In 1899 the construction of the Grand Hotel du Coq began. In 1949 it was transformed into a holiday hostel for Walloon children under the name “L'Esperance”. During the territorial reform of 1977, the new municipality bought the building and converted it into the town hall.

In 1910, the Aachen architect Josef Stübben , who had planned the Neustadt district of Cologne , among other things , was commissioned to expand the concession area. Due to the originally issued permit, the core of De Haan between the sea dike and the coastal tram is still called the concession to this day .

In 1977 the previously independent municipalities of Wenduine, Vlissegem and Klemskerke were merged to form the new large municipality of De Haan.

Places in the community

The municipality of De Haan is divided into the sub-municipalities of Klemskerke, Vlissegem and Wenduine, with De Haan Centrum on the border between the first two (see graphic no. IV).

Other districts are Vosseslag and Harendijke.

Development

The development in the concession , planned by Josef Stübben, consists mainly of white villas as well as holiday homes and hotels in the Belle Époque and country house style. There are numerous holiday home areas in De Haan, the Zeepolder group (Zeepolder I and II), the Holiday Village (former campground today with polder and fisherman's houses) and the Atlantis holiday park.

In the other districts of De Haan there are also some older sights, for example in Klemskerke the Sint Clemens church, a Gothic hall church from the 13th / 14th century , consecrated to St. Clemens .

Sports and leisure opportunities

In De Haan there are wooded dunes (approx. 157 ha) with signposted hiking trails. The community offers numerous sports facilities such as tennis facilities, golf courses , riding stables and paths as well as a wave and indoor pool and mini golf courses . Beach sailing , surfing and fishing are possible by the sea . There are also bike and pedal rentals. The seaside resorts of Ostend , Blankenberge and Knokke are also in the immediate vicinity, where you can visit casinos and discos . The cultural city of Bruges and the shopping city of Sluis in South Holland are both around 17 km away.

Others

Stefan Zweig experienced the July crisis in De Haan (Le Coq) and described the experiences there in his book " Die Welt von Gestern ". The most famous resident of De Haan was Albert Einstein , who lived there for six months in 1933 after fleeing Germany. Even James Ensor , one of the most famous Belgian painter was often seen in the 1930s, De Haan. For many years until 2012, the Flemish artist Fernand Luickx had his studio-gallery in the Villa Eugenie, Delacenseriestraat 12 in Wenduine.

photos

  • Tram station

  • Gastronomy on the beach promenade

  • De Haan Town Hall, former Grand Hotel

  • Gracialaan in the concession

  • Dunes in De Haan

  • Street in the concession

  • Parish Church of Sint-Monica in De Haan-Centrum

  • View from the Spioenkop to Wenduine

  • The "Spioenkop", a lookout point on one of the highest dunes on the Belgian coast

  • View of Vlissegem

  • View of Klemskerke from the road to De Haan

  • Sint Clemens in Klemskerke

  • Hotel Belle Vue in De Haan

  • Consecration of the sea and procession in Wenduine

  • Consecration of the sea in Wenduine

  • De Haan - Wenduine - Museum Hubert-Molen, 2014

Web links

Commons : De Haan  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Adam Hochschild : Shadows over the Congo. The story of one of the great, almost forgotten crimes of humanity . Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 2000. ISBN 3-608-91973-2 . P. 241.