The
Campine (Dutch: Kempen) is a
natural region situated chiefly in north-eastern Belgium
which once
consisted mainly of extensive moors, tracts
of sandy heath, and wetlands. It encompasses the east of Antwerp
province
(with Turnhout
as the most
important city) and a part of Limburg province
in Belgium (a former
coal-producing region), as well as areas of the Dutch
province of Noord-Brabant
.
Today the Campine is becoming a popular destination for tourists in
search of a quiet and relaxing weekend. Old farms have been
transformed into bed-and-breakfast hotels, the restaurant and café
business is very active, and an extensive cycle touring network has
come into existence over the past few years.
Origin of name
The name Campine / Kempen derives from the
Latin Campinia or Campina, meaning "region of fields"
(
campus means "field"). The inhabitants of the Campine
region are known as
Kempenaars. The region is rich in folk
tales, such as the stories about the
Goat
riders (Dutch:
Bokkenrijders) and those concerning the
gnome king Kyrië (Dutch:
Kabouterkoning Kyrië).
Culture
The region, described as
a desolate flat land often
appears in the books of the prominent Flemish writer
Hendrik Conscience (1812-1883), who spent
much of his childhood there. Another author who has written many
novels playing in the Campine was
Georges Eekhoud (1854-1927).
In 1837 Victor Hugo made a journey through Belgium and
visited the Campine and the cities Lier
and Turnhout, and wrote
about his journey. During the
interbellum Felix
Timmermans,
Stijn Streuvels,
Jozef Simons and the poet
Jozef De Voght wrote about the Belgian
Campine. The painters
Jakob Smits
(1855-1928) and
Frans Van Giel
(1892-1975) painted many Campine landscapes.
The
Museum Kempenland in Eindhoven
has a considerable and historically important art
collection of painters, draughtsmen, sculptors, blacksmiths and
other craftsmen from this region. Much of the
architectural, agrarian and historical and cultural heritage of the
Campine can be visited in the museum of Bokrijk
. The
old way of living and the Campine dialects have been the topic of
scientific research . In the
Roman era
the name of the region was
Toxandria or
Taxandria.
History
The
Campine is an area which is located in the Belgian provinces
Antwerp, Limburg and the
extreme north of the province Flemish Brabant
, and in the south of the Dutch province Noord-Brabant. It stretches from the east of the city of
Antwerp
and towards
the west of Eindhoven. Furthermore towards the east the Campine
proceeds in the Groote
Peel
, a region which is geographically related to the
Campine. The South border is formed by the river the
Demer
. The East border by the valley of the river
Meuse
. The
Campine plateau is part of the
Campine region.
The Campine Basin, which extends
from Belgium into the Netherlands
is formed by the Devonian
and Carboniferous sedimentary rocks on
the northern flank of the Brabant Massif.
Since it was a region with a poor sand soil, one finds only a few
old or large cities in the region.
Most of those cities are located at the
outer rim of the region, such as Hasselt
, Diest
, Aarschot
, Lier (the gate of
the Campine, but also claimed by the Northern-Brabant Oirschot
), Breda
, Tilburg
, Eindhoven, Maaseik
, and Maastricht
. Turnhout is an exception, and is sometimes called the
Capital of the Campine. West of Turnhout
clay was used for the production of
barge, which is one of the reasons why the
Noord-Kempens Canal was dug to Antwerp.
Also the more central
Herentals
was an historical industrial center, thanks to its
textile industry of which the Lakenhal on the main market
place is a remaining monument. The printing industry
in Turnhout is historically important, with companies such as
Brepols and more recently Cartamundi.
The
region was sparsely populated, and therefore chosen by monks who
were looking for silence such as the abbeys of Achel
, Brecht, Zundert
, Postel and Westmalle
). In the nineteenth and twentieth century
industry established itself in the region, such as the metallurgy in Balen
-Overpelt
-Lommel
.
In 1872
the Sablières et Carrières Réunies (SCR), now Sibelco, was founded to extract the silica sand layers in Mol
for
industrial applications (glass).
In 1891,
the Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. was
founded in Eindhoven (Noord-Brabant).
In the
Twentieth century the first nuclear installation in Belgium, the
SCK•CEN
, was built in Mol in
1962. The European Institute for
Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) was founded in
Geel
in 1957. Pharmaceutical industry was founded in
Beerse
in the
Sixties, with Janssen Pharmaceutica and more
recently with Genzyme in Geel.
Soudal (silicon) in Turnhout
and Ravago (plastics)
in Arendonk
became leading companies in their markets.
Wide open
spaces with scarce population also lead to the establishment of
several military bases, such as the base of Leopoldsburg
, the airport of Kleine Brogel
and Oostmalle
and the former shooting range of Brasschaat
.
Due to
the exploitation of the Campine coal basin,
especially after World War II, new
industrial activity was established, such as in Geel, Beringen
and Genk
.
The
Belgian village of Malle
is called
Heart of the Campine', while Westerlo
and Kasterlee
are called Pearl of the Campine.
The most
picturesque villages in the Dutch, Northern-Brabant Campine are
Oirschot, Eersel
and
Hilvarenbeek
. The other villages have lost much of their
historical elements in their course towards industrialisation. In
the Dutch Campine eight villages are located which are known under
the name
acht zaligheden (E:
eight blessed ones).
The denomination
zaligheden has been borrowed from the
sel, which is at the end of the name of seven of these
eight villages
selligheden).
Kalmthoutse Heide
In the Campine there are still a number of bunches,
marshes,
heathlands and
pastures.
Large areas of the region were also
covered with pine which was used in the
coalmines of Wallonia
and Limburg. The first pine in the Campine was sown in
the Gierlebos in Vosselaar
by Adriaan Ghys for Amalia van Solms in 1667.
Where the Campine, up to around 1960 includes mainly heathland,
oak grove and marsh, these were modified by
heavy fertilisation and building activities and were gradually
changed into a rather small-scale landscape.
Here and there still
up to several dozens acres of large heathland - and forests, such
as the Kalmthoutse
Heide
(E: Kalmthout heathland) at Kalmthout
, Belgium, the De Maten in Genk, De
Zegge (Geel), Zwart
Water (Lichtaart), the Zwart Water moor (Turnhout), the Liereman (Oud-Turnhout
) and the Prinsenpark
(Retie
).
The
natural reserves De Teut in
Zonhoven
and Ter Haagdoornheide in Houthalen-Helchteren
and the Nationaal Park Hoge Kempen.
To the
North, the area between Boxtel
and
Oisterwijk
is called Kampina. In a number of
villages one can still see the typical Campine
langgevelboerderijen (E:
long facade
farms).
SS La Campine
SS. La Campine (2,595
GRT), was built by Palmers' SB.
&
Iron Co., Ltd., Newcastle
for F. Speth & Co., Antwerp and sailing for the American Petroleum
Company. It was a steamship with auxiliary sails, an
early oil tanker that was launched in 1892, and was sunk by
U-boat UC 50 in North Sea
waters (Doggersbank, 56.00 North - 04.57
East) on March 13, 1917, on its way from Rotterdam
to New
York
.
See also
References
External links