Woluwe-Saint-Pierre () or Sint-Pieters-Woluwe () is one of the
19 municipalities of the
Brussels-Capital Region
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, Belgium. Located in the eastern part of the region, it is bordered by
Etterbeek
Etterbeek (French: ; Dutch: ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the municipalities of Auderghem, the City of Brussels, Ixelles, Schaerbeek, Wolu ...
,
Auderghem
Auderghem (former Dutch spelling, now used in French; pronounced ) or Oudergem () is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region (Belgium).
Located to the southeast of the region, along the Woluwe valley and at the entrance to t ...
and
Woluwe-Saint-Lambert
Woluwe-Saint-Lambert () or Sint-Lambrechts-Woluwe ( Dutch, ) is one of the nineteen municipalities in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium. It is a prosperous residential area, with a mixture of flats and detached, semi-detached and terraced hou ...
, as well as the
Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
municipalities of
Kraainem and
Tervuren
Tervuren () is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Duisburg, Tervuren, Vossem and Moorsel. On January 1, 2006, Tervuren had a total population of 20,636. The total a ...
. In common with all of Brussels' municipalities, it is legally
bilingual
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all ...
(French–Dutch).
, the municipality had a population of 42,216 inhabitants.
The total area is , which gives a
population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...
of . It is mostly a well-to-do residential area, which includes the wide, park-lined,
Avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan and the numerous embassies located near
Marshal Montgomery Square. Of the three streams that once crossed the municipality, only the
Woluwe, a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Senne, can still largely be seen today.
History
Middle Ages to 17th century
The first appearance of the name ''Wolewe'' dates from 1117 and can be found in a charter from
Forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
. At that time, the original hamlet and its farms were dependencies of the Park Abbey near
Leuven
Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic c ...
. The onset of difficulties can be traced to the middle of the 16th century, with the hostilities waged by
Philip II of Spain
Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
against the heretical
Protestants
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
and the ensuing poverty and famine took their toll on the entire population. Safety and prosperity returned under the reigns of Archdukes
Albert VII and
Isabella at the beginning of the 17th century. The first grand alley linking
Tervuren
Tervuren () is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Duisburg, Tervuren, Vossem and Moorsel. On January 1, 2006, Tervuren had a total population of 20,636. The total a ...
to
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, then known as the "Street of the Duke", dates from that period.
18th century until today
The
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
was also a troubled period for Woluwe-Saint-Pierre. The roads became insecure; the religious freedoms were drastically curtailed; much of the local wild life was exterminated for food; and the lack of coal and wood forced people to use
peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and ...
for heating. The local administration gained its independence from Brussels, obtained its first mayor on 26 May and its first municipal council in 1819. The commercial opportunities that opened up to the new municipality marked the start of a new era of wealth. The municipality did not expand very quickly, however, until the last two decades of the 19th century. New roads, such as the
Avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan, a new train track, imposing mansions, such as the
Stoclet Palace
The Stoclet Palace (french: Palais Stoclet, nl, Stocletpaleis) is a mansion in Brussels, Belgium. It was designed by the Austrian architect Josef Hoffmann for the Belgian financier Adolphe Stoclet. Built between 1905 and 1911 in the Vienna ...
, and
Woluwe Park
The Woluwe (; ) is a stream that goes through several municipalities in the southeast and east of Brussels and is a right tributary of the Senne/Zenne (in Vilvoorde). The Kleine Maalbeek is a tributary of the Woluwe (in Kraainem). Many ponds ...
were all built or designed between 1880 and 1910. An important race track, now demolished, was built in 1906. The residential areas came into being right after the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
and further urbanisation took place after the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
. Today, agriculture and fisheries, common before 1918, have completely disappeared. The area now depends nearly exclusively on the service sector of the economy.
Sights
* The extensive Woluwe Park includes
giant sequoias,
cypresses, and a variety of birds such as
mute swan
The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurosiberia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home ...
s,
gull
Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century ...
s, and
grey heron
The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more north ...
s.
* The imposing modern Municipal Hall is open to visitors.
* The municipality's main church (Saint Peter) was erected in 1755 on the site of a much older building and perpendicular to it, with funds from
Forest Abbey. Traces of the older building can still be seen on the left of the current church.
* Several turn-of-the-century houses and manors can still be seen today, such as the
Stoclet Palace
The Stoclet Palace (french: Palais Stoclet, nl, Stocletpaleis) is a mansion in Brussels, Belgium. It was designed by the Austrian architect Josef Hoffmann for the Belgian financier Adolphe Stoclet. Built between 1905 and 1911 in the Vienna ...
, which was built between 1905 and 1909 on a design by the Austrian architect
Josef Hoffmann for the Belgian financier
Adolphe Stoclet, and contains mosaics and paintings by painter
Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt (July 14, 1862 – February 6, 1918) was an Austrian symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. Klimt is noted for his paintings, murals, sketches, and other objets d'art. Klimt's pr ...
.
* The
Bibliotheca Wittockiana
The Wittockiana is a public museum and library located in Brussels ( Belgium) devoted to the arts of the book and of bookbinding.
The museum is based on the personal collection of Michel Wittock, a former entrepreneur and bibliophile, who donat ...
houses one of the most prestigious
bookbinding
Bookbinding is the process of physically assembling a book of codex format from an ordered stack of ''signatures'', sheets of paper folded together into sections that are bound, along one edge, with a thick needle and strong thread. Cheaper, b ...
collections in the world.
* The memorial on the / to the
Belgian Volunteer Corps for Korea, the force sent by Belgium to aid
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
during the
Korean War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Korean War
, partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict
, image = Korean War Montage 2.png
, image_size = 300px
, caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...
(1950–1953).
* The
Brussels Tram Museum
The Brussels Tram Museum, officially ''Musée du Transport Urbain Bruxellois'' (French) or ''Museum voor het Stedelijk Vervoer te Brussel'' (Dutch), is a transport museum located in an old tram depot in the municipality of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre, Brus ...
displays a collection of trams and buses of different ages.
File:Riviere Woluwe 2006-03-18.jpeg,
File:20120923 Brussels PalaisStoclet Hoffmann DSC06725 PtrQs.jpg,
File:Belgique - Bruxelles - Maison Gombert - 02.jpg,
Famous inhabitants
*
Henri d'Orléans, Count of Paris,
pretender
A pretender is someone who claims to be the rightful ruler of a country although not recognized as such by the current government. The term is often used to suggest that a claim is not legitimate.Curley Jr., Walter J. P. ''Monarchs-in-Waiting'' ...
to the French throne (1933–2019)
*
Jean Bingen (1920–2012), papyrologist and epigrapher died in the city
*
Eddy Merckx
Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (, ; born 17 June 1945), better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional road and track bicycle racer who is among the most successful riders in the history of competitive cycling. His victorie ...
(not currently residing), professional cyclist, multiple winner of the
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
and
Giro d'Italia in the 1960s and 1970s
International relations
Twin towns and sister cities
Woluwe-Saint-Pierre is
twinned with:
* Ruyumba, Rwanda
*
Gangnam-gu
Gangnam District ( ; , ) is one of the 25 local government districts which make up the city of Seoul, South Korea. Gangnam translates to "South of the ( Han) River". Gangnam District is the third largest district in Seoul, with an area of ...
(
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...
), South Korea
*
New Iberia, Louisiana
New Iberia (french: La Nouvelle-Ibérie; es, Nueva Iberia) is the largest city in and parish seat of Iberia Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The city of New Iberia is located approximately southeast of Lafayette, and forms part of the L ...
, USA
*
Pecica, Romania
*
Chaoyang, China
*
Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
, India
See also
*
Woluwe stream
*
Woluwe-Saint-Lambert
Woluwe-Saint-Lambert () or Sint-Lambrechts-Woluwe ( Dutch, ) is one of the nineteen municipalities in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium. It is a prosperous residential area, with a mixture of flats and detached, semi-detached and terraced hou ...
(Sint-Lambrechts-Woluwe), an adjacent municipality
*
Sint-Stevens-Woluwe
Footnotes
References
Sources
Bibliography
*
* Culot, P. (1996). ''Bibliotheca Wittockiana''. Brussels:Crédit communal, .
External links
Official site of the municipality in
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
,
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 ...
, and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
Official website of the Bibliotheca Wittockiana
{{Authority control
Municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region
Populated places in Belgium