Velzeke-Ruddershove is a double village in the
Denderstreek
The Denderstreek or Denderland is a region in Belgium. It is named after the river Dender. Though the river stretches over three provinces, Hainaut, East Flanders and Flemish Brabant, the region called after the river is situated in East Flande ...
in the province of
East Flanders
, native_name_lang =
, settlement_type = Province of Belgium
, image_flag = Flag of Oost-Vlaanderen.svg
, flag_size =
, image_shield = Wapen van O ...
in
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 ...
, currently part of the municipality of
Zottegem
Zottegem (, Sotteghem and Sottegem in older English and French language sources) is a municipality located in Belgium and more particularly in Flanders, in the province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the town of Zottegem proper and ...
.
The two villages of Velzeke and Ruddershove were merged in 1825. The settlement of Velzeke dates back from at least the Roman era, when it was a
vicus
In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus ...
situated at a crossroads in the network of
Roman roads
Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...
in
Gallia Belgica
Gallia Belgica ("Belgic Gaul") was a province of the Roman Empire located in the north-eastern part of Roman Gaul, in what is today primarily northern France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, along with parts of the Netherlands and Germany.
In 50 BC, a ...
. The municipality merged into Zottegem in 1970.
History
The village of Velzeke was first mentioned in 1015 as Felsecum; Ruddershove was first mention in 1053 as Rotgeri Curtis. The villages were part of the Land of Zottegem. In 1825, the villages which had grown together where merged in a single municipality. In 1970, the municipality was merged in Zottegem.
In 2007, the Flemish Tourism Agency held a competition to elect the most beautiful Flemish village. Velzeke-Ruddershove was one of the 50 nominated villages.
Velzeke hoard
A hoard of third-century Roman coins has been discovered at Velzeke,
including 91
denarii
The denarius (, dēnāriī ) was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War to the reign of Gordian III (AD 238–244), when it was gradually replaced by the antoninianus. It continued to be minted in very ...
(ranging in date from the reign of
Septimius Severus
Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...
to that of
Gordian III) and 93
antoniniani (ranging in date from the reign of
Elagabalus
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Sextus Varius Avitus Bassianus, 204 – 11/12 March 222), better known by his nickname "Elagabalus" (, ), was Roman emperor from 218 to 222, while he was still a teenager. His short reign was conspicuous for s ...
to that of
Postumus
Marcus Cassianius Latinius Postumus was a Roman commander of Batavian origin, who ruled as Emperor of the splinter state of the Roman Empire known to modern historians as the Gallic Empire. The Roman army in Gaul threw off its allegiance to Ga ...
).
Notable people
*
Jan de Lichte
Joannes "Jan" De Lichte (7 April 1723 – 13 November 1748) was an 18th-century Flemish outlaw and gang leader. Motivated by poverty during the upheavals of the Austrian War of Succession (1740–48), de Lichte led a gang of bandits who committed ...
(1723–1748), gang leader.
*
Lyne Renée
Lyne Renée (born Line Van Wambeke; 17 May 1979) is a Belgian actress.
She graduated from the Studio Herman Teirlinck in Antwerp, Belgium. From 2003 to 2005 she appeared as stage actress in Belgian theaters. After she starred in the Belgian TV s ...
(1979), actress and artist.
Sources
* L. van Durme, ''Toponymie van Velzeke-Ruddershove en Bochoute'', 2 parts in 3 volumes. Koninklijke Academie voor Nederlandse Taal- en Letterkunde, ser. 6, no. 117. Ghent, 1986–1988.
* J. van Heesch and J. Deschieter, ''De Gallo-Romeinse vicus te Velzeke II. Een muntschat uit de tijd van keizer Postumus'' (Zottegem, 2000).
* Marcel Thirion, "Le trésor de Zottegem - Velzeke II: argent jusqu’à Postume", ''Cercle des Etudes Numismatiques. Bulletin'' 11:1 (1974), pp. 12–15.
* Marcel Thirion, "Le trésor de Zottegem - Velzeke III: bronzes jusqu’à Hadrien", ''Cercle des Etudes Numismatiques. Bulletin'' 11:2 (1974), p. 70.
External links
*
Webpage at Internet Archives
{{Authority control
Zottegem
Populated places in East Flanders