Deurne () is the second largest
district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
of the municipality of
Antwerp
Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
, Belgium, (right after the Antwerp town district) and has 82,270 inhabitants (2023).
Deurne is best known for its green environment with the biggest park in Antwerp
Rivierenhof.
History
Ancien régime
Deurne was said to be the place where the Irish missionary
Fredigand was abbot of Kerkelodor Abbey in the eighth century.
There are indications that Deurne existed in prehistoric and Roman times but the first tangible proof of Deurne only dates back to 1185.
During the
Ancien régime
''Ancien'' may refer to
* the French word for " ancient, old"
** Société des anciens textes français
* the French for "former, senior"
** Virelai ancien
** Ancien Régime
** Ancien Régime in France
{{disambig ...
Deurne was nothing more than part of the Eastern
hinterland of
Antwerp
Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
. Like many dwellings it settled on the crossroads of a river (the
Schijn) and a connection route (the 'Turnhoutse baan': the road from Antwerp to
Turnhout
Turnhout () is a Belgium, Belgian Municipalities in Belgium, municipality and city located in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of Antwerp (province), Antwerp. The municipality comprises only the city of Turnhout proper. ...
).
Deurne consisted mainly of sparsely populated farmland. However, as a direct result of the increasing wealth of the Antwerp population, many
aristocratic estates were erected (the so-called "
Hof van Plaisantie" was a specific rural estate, a
bourgeois
The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and Aristocracy (class), aristocracy. They are tradition ...
version of a
château
A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...
or
country house
image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...
). Typically, merchants, diplomats, wealthy artists (like
Peter Paul Rubens f.i.) would escape to their Hof van Plaisantie. Some country houses in Deurne were :
Sterckshof,
Papenhof,
Lakbors,
Bisschoppenhof,
Gallifort,
Inkborsch,
Bosuil,
Ertbrugge &
Venneborg. Although most country houses were destroyed over the centuries (especially in 1542), some like Sterckxhof or Bisschoppenhof survived. Further surviving evidence of this aristocratic history of Deurne is the St Fredegand Church and the adjacent cemetery (the
St-Fredegandusbegraafpark).
Nineteenth century
After the
battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...
William of Orange started to connect the Antwerp port with its hinterland through the construction of a series of canals between Antwerp and
Liège
Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...
, connecting the
Scheldt with the
Maas. The work, started under his reign in 1823, was completed in 1874.
The effect of this canal was to establish a permanent barrier north of Deurne (where the
Kleine Schijn used to flow), separating it from
Merksem. In the south the
Grote Schijn would form the south barrier of Deurne. The effect of both barriers was to enhance an 'island feeling' for Deurne. This was further promoted by the establishment of the
Brialmont fortifications around Antwerp. Deurne was split apart and the western part of Deurne (
Borgerhout
Borgerhout () is the smallest districts of Antwerp, district of Antwerp, Belgium. , the district housed 45,769 inhabitants on 3.93 km².
It was an independent municipality until January 1983. The postal area code for Borgerhout is 2140.
Geography ...
) was to become a separate municipality. The rest of Deurne now lay outside the
enceinte and became physically and mentally more separated from Antwerp.
Modern times
Because of the barriers constructed in the nineteenth century, urbanization would only begin in the twentieth century. Many large scale urban functions were 'dropped' in the undestined area previously occupied by the Brialmont-fortifications (like the event hall
Sportpaleis Merksem).
Urban planning
Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...
started in 1913 and although the original plan was never fully realised it did determine the spatial structure of Deurne.
A real demographic explosion happened because of this urban planning and the need for many Antwerp residents to find modern housing. The population grew from 15,432 in 1920 to 52,303 in 1935.
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
halted this evolution, mainly because of the
V-2 bombardments. After 1945 the growth of Deurne started again and in the 1960s social housing & other community projects further enhanced this new urban identity of Deurne.
From 1972 onward Deurne was subject to the
urban exodus and the
urban sprawl
Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...
whereby people moved from the dense urban centres towards the
suburbs. As a result, the population began to diminish in numbers and the remaining population became older.
In 1983 Deurne was absorbed into the municipality of Greater Antwerp (see :
Antwerp
Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
) whereby Deurne became one of the 9 districts. In 2001 Antwerp was decentralised, Deurne once again has its own elected council, not a city council but a district council, not a mayor but a 'chairman of the district governing board'...
Major attractions
Deurne has one of the oldest still functioning airports in the world, established in 1923.
Antwerp Airport is a regional airport with only a limited number of flights a day.
Located at the airport is the Stampe & Vertongen Museum, at the location of the old aircraft production company of the same name.
Politics
District college
The members of the district college between Januari 1, 2019 and 31 December 2024 are:
District council
The district council of Deurne has a total of 29 seats. De district council chairman is Frank Geudens (
SP.A).
Notable people
*
Erik Van Looy, film director and TV quiz presenter
*
An Pierlé, musician
*
Björn Leukemans, cyclist
*
Pascal Struijk, footballer (born 1999)
*
Peter Renkens, Belgian singer, frontman of Confetti's
*
Raymond Van Dijck, a Belgian
pole vaulter, participated in the
1960 Olympics Games
Economy
VLM Airlines has its head office on the grounds of
Antwerp International Airport in Deurne; the office is also
CityJet's
Antwerp
Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
office.
[Our Offices]
." CityJet. Retrieved on 6 July 2010. "Antwerp office VLM Airlines Belgium NV Luchthavengebouw B50 B 2100 Antwerp Belgium Company registration number 0446.670.251."
References
{{Authority control
Districts of Antwerp
Former municipalities of Antwerp Province