Houthulst (; vls, Oetulst, ) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...

located in the Belgian

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

West Flanders ) , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of West Flanders.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van West-Vlaanderen.svg , shield_size = , image_map ...

. The municipality consists of the sub-municipalities Houthulst, Jonkershove, Klerken and Merkem. On January 1, 2006, Houthulst had a total population of 9,051. The total area is 55.89 km² which gives a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), 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 ...

of 162 inhabitants per km².

Landmarks

* The ''Sint-Jan Baptistkerk'' (Church of Saint John the Baptist) is the church of Houthulst. It was rebuilt in 1924 after being completely destroyed during

World War I 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, ...

. * The , containing the

grave A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grave ...

s of almost 1800 Belgian soldiers killed during World War I. The cemetery also contains 81 Italian graves. Most of the

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

s who have been buried here were killed during the final assault on the Germans on

September 28 Events Pre-1600 *48 BC – Pompey disembarks at Pelusium upon arriving in Egypt, whereupon he is assassinated by order of King Ptolemy XIII. * 235 – Pope Pontian resigns. He is exiled to the mines of Sardinia, along with Hippolytus o ...

1918 This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide. Events Below, the events ...

, to liberate the Vrijbos forest. Houthulst - Military Cemetery 1

References

External links

*
Official website
- Available only in Dutch Municipalities of West Flanders {{WestFlanders-geo-stub