Wies Moens (28 January 1898 – 5 February 1982) was a literary historian, poet and ''

Flamingant The term ''flamingant'', in both Dutch and French, refers to an adherent of the Flemish Movement. Originating as a pejorative term use by Belgian nationalists, it may be equally used as an adjective or substantive and the term ''flamingantisme' ...

'' activist from

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

. He was also a founding member of the

Verdinaso Verdinaso (''Verbond van Dietsche Nationaal-Solidaristen'', ), sometimes rendered as Dinaso, was a small authoritarian and fascist political party active in Belgium and, to a lesser extent, the Netherlands between 1931 to 1941. Verdinaso was foun ...

, but left the movement after its change of course in 1934. He was born in

Sint-Gillis-bij-Dendermonde Sint-Gillis-bij-Dendermonde (french: Saint-Gilles-lez-Termonde) is a part of the municipality of Dendermonde in the Denderstreek in East Flanders in Belgium, a typical agricultural village in the Dendervallei near the junction of the railroads to ...

, the only child of

baker A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient history Since grains ha ...

Karel Moens and Johanna Moreels. Between 1916 and 1918 he studied German philology at Von Bissing University (the Flemish version of the

University of Ghent Ghent University ( nl, Universiteit Gent, abbreviated as UGent) is a public research university located in Ghent, Belgium. Established before the state of Belgium itself, the university was founded by the Dutch King William I in 1817, when the ...

set up during the

German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

). He was a member of the

Flemish Movement The Flemish Movement ( nl, Vlaamse Beweging) is an umbrella term which encompasses various political groups in the Belgian region of Flanders and, less commonly, in French Flanders. Ideologically, it encompasses groups which have sought to promo ...

, and after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he was imprisoned for his activities during the war. The Flemish Literary Society requested his release through a petition signed by many, and in March 1921 Moens was set free. His expressionistic poetry was published in ''Ruimte'' magazine, which also published

Paul van Ostaijen Paul van Ostaijen (22 February 1896 – 18 March 1928) was a Belgian Dutch-language poet and writer. Nickname Van Ostaijen was born in Antwerp to Dutch father and Flemish mother. His nickname was ''Mister 1830'', derived from his habit of walki ...

. Aside from that he was secretary of the ''Vlaamsche Volkstooneel'' (Flemish People's Theatre) and a journalist.

Bibliography

*''Gedichten'' 1918 *''Celbrieven'' (1920) *''De boodschap'' (1920) *''De tocht'' (1921) *''Opgangen'' (1921) *''Landing' (1923) *''Golfslag'' (1935) *''Kalewala: het epos der Finnen'' (1938) *''Het vierkant'' (1938) *''Dertig dagen oorlog'' (1940) *''Nederlandsche letterkunde van volksch standpunt gezien'' (1941) *''Onze volksche adel'' (1942) *''De spitsboog'' (1944) *''Het spoor'' (1944) *''De verslagene'' (1963) *''Het activistisch avontuur en wat erop volgde'' (1966–1970)

External links

Flemish authors

Dutch digital library
* * Flemish activists Flemish poets 1898 births 1982 deaths 20th-century Belgian poets Belgian male poets 20th-century Belgian male writers {{Belgium-historian-stub