Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and

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

, located in the

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 ou ...

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 ...

in the

Flemish Region The Flemish Region ( nl, Vlaams Gewest, ),; german: Flämische Region usually simply referred to as Flanders ( nl, link=no, Vlaanderen ) ; german: link=no, Flandern is one of the three regions of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and t ...

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 ...

. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke,

Raversijde Raversijde ( vls, Raversyde) is a neighborhood and former parish of the West Flemish town of Ostend. It is adjacent to Middelkerke, another neighborhood, which is located on the North Sea coast. Raversijde is located on the Kusttram, which is the ...

, Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast.

History

Origin to Middle Ages

In the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

, Ostend was a small village built on the east-end () of an island (originally called

Testerep Testerep (or Ter Streep) once comprised an island along the Belgian coast. It existed as early as the 10th century. Fishing villages were scattered about, including Ostend and Westende, with Ostend on the far east (Oost-ende: east-end), Westende ...

) between the North Sea and a beach lake. Although small, the village rose to the status of "town" around 1265, when the inhabitants were allowed to hold a market and to build a market hall. The major source of income for the inhabitants was fishing. The

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the ...

coastline has always been rather unstable due to the power of the water. In 1395 the inhabitants decided to build a new Ostend behind large

dikes Dyke (UK) or dike (US) may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), a subvertical sheet-like intrusion of magma or sediment * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess of moral justice * Dikes ...

and further away from the always-threatening sea.

15th to 18th century

The strategic position on the North Sea coast had major advantages for Ostend as a harbour but also proved to be a source of trouble. The town was frequently taken, ravaged, ransacked and destroyed by conquering armies. The

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 ...

rebels, the Gueuzen, took control of the town. The

Siege of Ostend The siege of Ostend was a three-year siege of the city of Ostend during the Eighty Years' War and the Anglo–Spanish War. A Spanish force under Archduke Albrecht besieged the fortress being held initially by a Dutch force which was reinforc ...

, 1601 to 1604, of which it was said that "the Spanish assailed the unassailable and the Dutch defended the indefensible", cost a combined total of more than 80,000 dead or wounded, making it the single bloodiest battle of the Eighty Years' War. This shocking event set in motion negotiations that led to a truce several years later. When the truce broke down, it became a

Dunkirker During the Dutch Revolt (1568–1648), the Dunkirkers or Dunkirk Privateers were commerce raiders in the service of the Spanish monarchy. They were also part of the ''Dunkirk fleet'', which consequently was a part of the Spanish monarchy's ''Fl ...

base. After this era, Ostend was turned into a harbour of some importance. In 1722, the Dutch again closed off the entrance to the world's biggest harbour of Antwerp, the

Westerschelde The Western Scheldt ( nl, Westerschelde) in the province of Zeeland in the southwestern Netherlands, is the estuary of the Scheldt river. This river once had several estuaries, but the others are now disconnected from the Scheldt, leaving the ...

. Therefore, Ostend rose in importance because the town provided an alternative exit to the sea. The Belgium Austriacum had become part of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...

. The Austrian Emperor Charles VI granted the town the trade monopoly with Africa and the Far-East. The

Oostendse Compagnie The Ostend Company ( nl, Oostendse Compagnie, french: Compagnie d'Ostende), officially the General Company Established in the Austrian Netherlands for Commerce and Navigation in the Indies () was a chartered trading company in the Austrian Netherl ...

(Ostend trade company) was allowed to found colonies overseas. However, in 1727 the Oostendse Compagnie was forced to stop its activities because of Dutch and British pressure. The Netherlands and Britain would not allow competitors on the international trade level. Both nations regarded international trade as "their" privilege.

19th century

On 19 September 1826 the local

artillery magazine Magazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition or other explosive material is stored. It is taken originally from the Arabic word "makhāzin" (مخازن), meaning 'storehouses', via Italian and Middle French. The term is als ...

exploded. At least 20 people were killed and a further 200 injured. The affluent quarter of d'Hargras was levelled and scarcely a building in the city escaped damage. Disease followed the devastation leading to further deaths. The harbour of Ostend continued to expand because the harbour dock, as well as the traffic connections with the hinterland, were improved. In 1838, a railway connection with

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 ...

was constructed. Ostend became a transit harbour to England in 1846 when the first ferry sailed to Dover. An October 1854 meeting of American envoys led to the

Ostend Manifesto The Ostend Manifesto, also known as the Ostend Circular, was a document written in 1854 that described the rationale for the United States to purchase Cuba from Spain while implying that the U.S. should declare war if Spain refused. Cuba's annex ...

. Important for the image of the town was the attention it started to receive from the Belgian kings Leopold I and Leopold II. Both monarchs liked to spend their holidays in Ostend. Important monuments and villas were built to please the Royal Family, including the

Hippodrome Wellington The Hippodrome Wellington (also ''Wellingtonrenbaan'') is a horse racing track in Ostend in the Flemish Region of Belgium built in 1883, renovated in 2011 and named after Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. The facility hosts both harnes ...

horse racing track and the Royal Galleries. The rest of aristocratic Belgium followed and soon Ostend became known as "the queen of the Belgian sea-side resorts". In 1866, Ostend was the venue for a crucial meeting of exile Spanish Liberals and Republicans which laid the framework for a major uprising in their country, culminating in Spain's Glorious Revolution two years later.

20th century

Ostend (in common with nearly the entirety of the country) was occupied by German forces and used as an access point to the sea for submarines and other light naval forces for much of the duration of

World War I 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 ...

. As a consequence the port was subjected to two naval assaults by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

. The town hosted all of the

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cou ...

events for the 1920 Summer Olympics for Antwerp. Only the finals of the 12 foot dinghy were sailed in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. Ostend also hosted the polo events.

World War II 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 opposin ...

involved a second occupation of the town by Germany within a period of little more than twenty years; an occupation which it shared this time with most of northern Europe. Both conflicts brought significant destruction to Ostend. In addition, other opulent buildings which had survived the wars were later replaced with structures in the

modernist architecture Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...

style.

21st century

Ostend's Winter in the Park festival draws more than 600,000 people to the seaside city. During December, Ostend's Christmas market, one of the largest in Europe, features vendors and food sellers along with ice skating, music and other events. A light-show tunnel on one of the major shopping streets attracts and amuses visitors from all over Belgium, Europe and beyond.

Sights

Ostend is known for its sea-side esplanade, including the Royal Galleries of Ostend, pier, and fine-sand beaches. Ostend is visited by many day-trippers heading to the beaches, especially during July and August. Tourists from inland Belgium and from abroad mostly arrive by train (day trips) and head for the closest beach area, the ''Klein Strand'', located next to the pier. The locals and other residents in Belgium usually occupy the larger beach (het Groot Strand). Near the beach is a well-preserved section of the fortified Atlantic Wall, open to the public as the

Atlantic Wall Open Air Museum The Atlantic Wall Open Air Museum ( nl, Openluchtmuseum Atlantikwall) is a military museum near Ostend in Belgium which preserves fortifications of the Atlantic Wall dating to the First and Second World Wars. The section of fortifications owned b ...

located in

. One can walk through the streets around ''Het Vissersplein''. At certain times, there are markets in the neighbourhood streets and in the summer the ''Vissersplein'' has music festivals. The ''Vissersplein'' (''Bonenstraat''/''Kadzandstraat'') is a car free zone with many brasseries where patrons can sit outside and have a drink. Towards the port side there are many little fish outlets, and beyond that the ferries can be observed docking. Notable sites include: * the

Casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...

and Fort Napoleon, Ostend *

Oostende railway station Oostende railway station ( nl, Station Oostende, french: Gare d'Ostende, List of IATA-indexed railway stations, IATA code: ZGJ), officially Oostende, is a railway station in Ostend, West Flanders, Belgium. It is operated by the National Railway C ...

* The ''

Mercator __NOTOC__ Mercator (Latin for "merchant") may refer to: People * Marius Mercator (c. 390–451), a Catholic ecclesiastical writer * Arnold Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer * Gerardus Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer ** Mercator 1569 ...

'', the ex–training sailing ship for Belgian merchant navy officers, now open to the public to view *

, horse racing venue * St Petrus and St Paulus Church, Ostend (''

Sint-Petrus-en-Pauluskerk Sint-Petrus-en-Pauluskerk (Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul), the main church of Ostend, Belgium, is a Roman Catholic Neo-Gothic church. It is built on the ashes of a previous church that occupied the site. King Leopold II enthusiastically su ...

''), built in

Neo Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style * King Leopold II statue

Museums

The

James Ensor James Sidney Edouard, Baron Ensor (13 April 1860 – 19 November 1949) was a Belgian painter and printmaker, an important influence on expressionism and surrealism who lived in Ostend for most of his life. He was associated with the artistic g ...

museum can be visited in the house where the artist lived from 1917 until 1949. The Mu.Zee (merged from the and the ) is the museum of modern art (from the 1830s to the present) and displays works of noted local painters such as

, Leon Spilliaert,

Constant Permeke Constant Permeke (; 31 July 1886 – 4 January 1952) was a Belgian painter and sculptor who is considered the leading figure of Flemish expressionism. Biography Permeke was born in Antwerp but when he was six years old the family moved to Ost ...

and the revolutionary post-war Belgian COBRA movement amongst others.

Climate

Ostend has a maritime temperate climate, influenced by winds from the North Sea, making summers cooler than inland Europe. 24-hour average temperatures below the freezing point is a rare occurrence. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Ostend has a

marine west coast climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

, abbreviated "Cfb" on climate maps.

Transport

Ostend–Bruges International Airport located 5 km (3 miles) from Ostend is primarily a freight airport but offers passenger flights to leisure destinations in

Southern Europe Southern Europe is the southern region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Alba ...

and Turkey.

TUI fly Belgium TUI fly Belgium, legally incorporated as ''TUI Airlines Belgium S.A./N.V.'' and formerly branded ''Jetairfly'', is a Belgian scheduled and charter airline with its registered office at Brussels Airport. The airline is a subsidiary of the TUI G ...

has its headquarters in Ostend.

TAAG Angola Airlines TAAG Angola Airlines E.P. ( pt, TAAG Linhas Aéreas de Angola E.P.) is a state-owned airline and flag carrier of Angola. Based in Luanda, the airline operates domestic services within Angola, medium-haul services in Africa and long-haul service ...

's Ostend offices are on the grounds of Ostend Airport. The Ostend railway station is a major hub on the

National Railway Company of Belgium french: Société nationale des chemins de fer belgesgerman: Nationale Gesellschaft der Belgischen Eisenbahnen , type = Statutory corporation , industry = Rail Transport , foundation = 1926 , founder = Government o ...

network with frequent InterCity trains serving

Brugge railway station Brugge railway station ( nl, Station Brugge, french: Gare de Bruges), officially Brugge, is the main railway station in Bruges, West Flanders, Belgium. The station opened on 12 August 1838 on railway lines 50A, 51 and 66. The current buil ...

, Gent-Sint-Pieters, Brussels South and Liège-Guillemins on

Belgian railway line 50A The Belgian railway line 50A is a railway line in Belgium connecting Brussels with Ostend through Ghent and Bruges. The section between Ghent and Ostend was completed in 1838. The section between Ghent and Brussels was opened between 1923 and 1933 ...

. The Coast Tram connects Ostend with De Panne to the south and

Knokke-Heist Knokke-Heist (; french: Knocke-Heist) is a municipality in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Heist-aan-Zee, Knokke, Duinbergen, Ramskapelle and Westkapelle. On January 1, 2006 Knokke-Heist had a total ...

in the north. Ostend formerly had busy ferry routes to Dover and Ramsgate, but the last of these services ended with the failure of TransEuropa Ferries in 2013.

Gallery

File:Casino Kursaal.jpg, Casino Kursaal File:Ostend pier 20040908-002.jpg, Pier File:20040909-003-oostende-mercator.jpg, Museum-ship, the barquentine ''Mercator'' File:Oostende - Station 1.jpg,

Tramstation Oostende in 2009 2.jpg, Tramstation File:Watertoren Maria Hendrika park.JPG, Municipal park File:Renbaan(07).jpg,

File:Peperbusse.jpg, The ''Peperbusse'', the tower of a burned down church File:Vissershuisje Ostend.jpg, Fisherman's house from 1729 (Kapucijnenstraat)

Notable residents

References to these notable citizens of Ostend can be found on the oostende.be website.

Sport clubs

BC Oostende Basketball Club Oostende, for sponsorship reasons Filou Oostende, is a Belgian professional basketball team. The club is based in Ostend and was founded in 1970. The club competes domestically in the BNXT League and internationally in the Basket ...

(basketball) *

Hermes Volley Oostende Hermes Volley Oostende is a volleyball team based in Ostend (Oostende), Belgium. The club was founded in 1955, but consisted only of one men's team until 1963, when also a women's team was erected. The women's A squad currently plays at the high ...

(volleyball) * K.V. Oostende ( football) * Wellington Golf Oostende (golf)

In popular culture

Ostend has been used as a film location by numerous directors. The movies ''

Place Vendôme The Place Vendôme (), earlier known as Place Louis-le-Grand, and also as Place Internationale, is a square in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France, located to the north of the Tuileries Gardens and east of the Église de la Madeleine. It i ...

'' with

Catherine Deneuve Catherine Fabienne Dorléac (born 22 October 1943), known professionally as Catherine Deneuve (, , ), is a French actress as well as an occasional singer, model, and producer, considered one of the greatest European actresses. She gained recogni ...

; ''

Daughters of Darkness ''Daughters of Darkness'' is a 1971 erotic horror film directed by Harry Kümel and starring Delphine Seyrig, Danielle Ouimet, John Karlen and Andrea Rau. Plot Stefan Chilton, the son of an aristocratic British family who was raised in the Uni ...

'' with

Delphine Seyrig Delphine Claire Beltiane Seyrig (; 10 April 1932 – 15 October 1990) was a Lebanese-born French actress and film director. She came to prominence in Alain Resnais's 1961 film ''Last Year at Marienbad'', and later acted in films by Francois ...

as Countess Bathory; '' Armaguedon'' with Alain Delon; ''

Camping Cosmos ''Camping Cosmos'' is a 1996 Belgian satirical comedy film and a sequel to ''La Vie sexuelle des Belges 1950-1978'', directed by the same director: Jan Bucquoy. It stars Claude Semal, Lolo Ferrari (Miss Vandeputte), Noël Godin (Pierre Mertens), H ...

'' with Lolo Ferrari; and ''

Ex Drummer ''Ex Drummer'' is a 2007 Belgian black comedy and rock music film directed by Koen Mortier, whose previous work was limited to television commercials. It is based on the 1994 book by Herman Brusselmans of the same name. While receiving mixed revie ...

'', based on the novel by

Herman Brusselmans Herman Frans Martha Brusselmans (; born 9 October 1957) is a Belgian novelist, poet, playwright and columnist. He lives in Ghent. He is one of the best-selling authors in Flanders, but controversial at the same time for his profane language and ...

; were partially shot in Ostend. The comic ', about a dreadful invasion of rats, is set in Ostend.

References

External links

* * , limited information available in French, English and German.
Toerisme Oostende – English edition – extensive
. {{Authority control Municipalities of West Flanders Olympic sailing venues Populated coastal places in Belgium Port cities and towns in Belgium Port cities and towns of the North Sea Ports and harbours of the English Channel Seaside resorts in Belgium Venues of the 1920 Summer Olympics