Biggekerke is a village in the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

province of

Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...

. It is a part of the municipality of

Veere Veere (; zea, label= Zeelandic, Ter Veere) is a municipality with a population of 22,000 and a town with a population of 1,500 in the southwestern Netherlands, in the region of Walcheren in the province of Zeeland. History The name ''Veere ...

, and lies about 6 km northwest of

Vlissingen Vlissingen (; zea, label= Zeelandic, Vlissienge), historically known in English as Flushing, is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the former island of Walcheren. With its strategic location between the Scheldt river ...

History

The village was first mentioned in 1231 as Bigghenkerka, and means "(private) church of Biggo (person)". Biggekerke is a circular church village. It used to be a '' heerlijkheid'' and had a castle. The castle was destroyed in 1433 by

Middelburg Middelburg may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Europe * Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...

as ordered by Philip the Good. The Dutch Reformed church is a single aisled church. The tower dates from around 1400. The nave was probably constructed in the 17th century. The

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

Brassers Molen was built in 1712 by the city of

and leased for seven year periods. The wind mill has remained in service throughout its existence, but was restored multiple time. Biggekerke was home to 467 people in 1840. In 1943, the Widerstandsnest Carmen was built in the dunes near Biggekerke as part of the Atlantic Wall. It was captured by the Allies in 1944. The village was bombarded on 17 September 1944 which resulted in the death of 45 citizens. Biggekerke used to a separate municipality until 1966 when it was merged into Valkenisse. In 1997, it became part of

Gallery

File:Dorpskerk (Biggekerke)3.JPG, Dutch Reformed church File:Biggekerke Bakkersgang 1.jpg, Houses in Biggekerke File:Biggekerke Brassers Molen.jpg, Wind mill Brassers Molen File:Landhuis - Country House (4440348175).jpg, Country house (early 20th century)

References

{{Authority control Former municipalities of Zeeland Populated places in Zeeland Veere