Rijkhoven is a village in the Bilzen municipality of the

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

province in the

Flemish Community The Flemish Community ( nl, Vlaamse Gemeenschap ; french: Communauté flamande ; german: Flämische Gemeinschaft ) is one of the three institutional communities of Belgium, established by the Belgian constitution and having legal responsibilitie ...

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 ...

History

The village was first mentioned in 1076 as Rudenchoven. It used to be part of the

County of Loon The County of Loon ( , , ) was a county in the Holy Roman Empire, which corresponded approximately with the Belgian province of Limburg. It was named after the original seat of its count, Loon, which is today called Borgloon. During the middle ag ...

. In 1220 the chapel of Alden Biesen was given to the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

who establish a

commandery In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...

. In 1870, Rijkhoven became an independent municipality. In 1971, the municipality merged with Kleine- en Grote-Spouwen into Spouwen. In 1977, Spouwen merged into Bilzen. The

Alden Biesen Castle Alden Biesen is a 16th-century castle in Belgium, located in the small village of Rijkhoven in the municipality of Bilzen in the province of Limburg. Present day The castle is used today as a cultural centre and conference centre. Festivals suc ...

is located near the village, and was the commandery of the Teutonic Order. The current building has been constructed between the mid-16th century and the late 18th century.

Notable people

Johan Capiot Johan Capiot (born 12 April 1964 in Rijkhoven, Belgium) is a former professional road racing cyclist. He was a professional rider from 1986 to 2000. Major results ;1986 :1st, Stage 3, Danmark Rundt ;1987 :1st, Veenendaal–Veenendaal :1st, S ...

(1964), road racing cyclist. * Steve Stevaert (1954–2015), former Governor of Limburg.

References

External links

Bilzen Populated places in Limburg (Belgium) Former municipalities of Limburg (Belgium) {{LimburgBE-geo-stub