Meersel-Dreef is a village in the Belgian municipality of

Hoogstraten Hoogstraten () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises Hoogstraten, Meer, Meerle, Meersel-Dreef, Minderhout and Wortel (Meersel-Dreef includes the northernmost point in Belgium). Hoogstrate ...

in the province of Antwerp,

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. Meersel-Dreef is the northernmost point of

, and directly borders the Netherlands.

Name

"Meersel" is derived from the Germanic "mariski", meaning land along a watercourse, or from "mari", meaning lake, and "sali", meaning house.

History

Meersel-Dreef was originally two villages, Meersel and Dreef. They have been inhabited since at least the Middle Ages. The two villages grew together over time around the

Capuchin monastery The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...

, which was built in 1687 near the river Mark. It was founded by Jan de Wyse, a wealthy merchant from Breda, on land donated by Maria Gabriella de Lalaing, Countess of Hoogstraten. In 1223 there was already a chapel in Meersel. In 1421 a new chapel was built by the lord of Hoogstraten. This chapel, St. Lucia Chapel, was inaugurated on April 28 of that year and served as an auxiliary chapel for the Church of Meerle. The chapel remains is a popular pilgrimage site. It was restored in 1935 and again in 1982, and was classified as a protected monument in 1953.

Geography

The village is located on the river Mark. It lies between

Galder Tom Rune Andersen (born 18 October 1976), also known by his stage name Galder, is a Norwegian guitarist and vocalist. He is from the small town of Jessheim, north of Oslo. He is a founding member of the melodic black metal band Old Man's Child ...

and Groot Eisel. It is the most northerly village in Belgium.

Public Transport

There is a

De Lijn Vlaamse Vervoersmaatschappij De Lijn (English: Flemish transport company ''De Lijn''), usually known as De Lijn (, "The Line"), is a company run by the Flemish government in Belgium to provide public transportation with about 2240 buses and 399 tr ...

bus to Antwerp, number 600.

References

*
Official website of Hoogstraten
*

{{Authority control Sub-municipalities of Hoogstraten Belgium–Netherlands border crossings Populated places in Antwerp Province