Knokke () is a town in the municipality of

Knokke-Heist Knokke-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 population o ...

, which is located in the province of

West Flanders West Flanders is the westernmost province of the Flemish Region, in Belgium. It is the only coastal Belgian province, facing the North Sea to the northwest. It has land borders with the Dutch province of Zeeland to the northeast, the Flemis ...

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. The town itself has 15,708 inhabitants (2007), while the municipality of Knokke-Heist has 33,818 inhabitants (2009). Promenade du Zoute

Knokke is the most north-eastern

seaside resort A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...

on the Belgian coast. It lies adjacent to the Dutch border; separated from the Dutch territory by the

Zwin The Zwin is a nature reserve at the North Sea coast, on the Belgian– Dutch border. It consists of the entrance area of a former tidal inlet which during the Middle Ages connected the North Sea with the ports of Sluis and Bruges inland. The ...

nature reserve. Knokke came into existence as a result of the construction of dikes that were to protect the area around the 'Zwin' sea-arm. Originally a vacation haven for the city folk of

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

in the early 19th century, artists such as

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 ...

Alfred Verwee Alfred Jacques Verwee (23 April 1838, Saint-Josse-ten-Noode – 15 September 1895, Schaerbeek) was a Belgian painter known for his depictions of animals, landscapes and seascapes. Life His father was the painter Louis-Pierre Verwee and his bro ...

and others started to frequent the small hamlet to paint its beautiful vistas. The artists rented a small miller's cottage and founded the ''Cercle des Artistes'' in 1880. It gradually became a resort town with upscale clientele, restaurants and shops. St. George's

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

Church serves the English-speaking community. Nowadays Knokke is well known for its beaches and for the dike system to which it owes its origins. The largest of Belgium's ten casinos,

Knokke Casino Knokke Casino (also called Knokke-Heist Casino; ; ) is a sea-front casino in the town of Knokke, in the administrative community Knokke-Heist, in the province of West Flanders in Flanders, Belgium. Description The largest of Belgium's ten casinos, ...

, is located on a seaside promenade and is open 20 hours a day. The town lies at the northern end of the

Belgian Coast Tram The Coast Tram () is a light rail service connecting the cities and towns along the Belgian (West Flanders) coast between De Panne, near the French border, and Knokke-Heist, near the Dutch border. At in length, it is currently the world's long ...

line and is also served by

NMBS The National Railway Company of Belgium (, NMBS; , SNCB; ) is the national railway company of Belgium. The company formally styles itself using the Dutch and French abbreviations NMBS/SNCB. The corporate logo designed in 1936 by Henry van de V ...

trains at

Knokke railway station Knokke railway station (; ) is a railway station serving Knokke-Heist and Knokke, in West Flanders, Belgium. The station was built in 1920. It is run by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB) as a terminal station located on the r ...

. The N34 connects Knokke to

De Panne De Panne (; ) is a town and a municipality located on the North Sea coast of the Belgian province of West Flanders. There it borders France, making it the westernmost town in Belgium. It is one of the most popular resort town destinations within ...

In popular culture

Knokke is immortalised in the

Jacques Brel Jacques Romain Georges Brel (; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed theatrical songs. He generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, but later throughout the world ...

song, " Jacky (La Chanson de Jacky)": ''Even if one day in Knokke-le-Zoute/I become, as I fear/Singer for old women...'' It does not feature in the English language version written by

Mort Shuman Mortimer Shuman (12 November 1938 – 2 November 1991) was an American singer, pianist and songwriter, best known as co-writer of many 1960s rock and roll hits, including " Viva Las Vegas". He also wrote and sang many songs in French, such as ...

. In the 1970s the town was the host of the

light entertainment Light entertainment encompasses a broad range of television and radio programming that includes comedies, variety shows, game shows, quiz shows and the like. In the UK In the early days of the BBC, virtually all broadcast entertainment would b ...

competition for the Golden Sea swallow of Knokke. In 1976 the British entry, BBC's '' The Norman Wisdom Show'', won first prize. The successful 2023 Belgian-Flemish television series ''

Knokke Off ''Knokke Off'' (''High Tides'') is a Belgian fictional television series created by Anthony Van Biervliet that first aired in 2023. It tells the story of a group of young people and their parents who spend their summer in the Belgium, Belgian coas ...

'' was filmed and set in Knokke.

Gallery

File:Knokke Albertstrand R02.jpg, File:Casino Knokke.JPG, File:Stadhuis van Knokke, Alfred Verweeplein 1, Knokke.jpg, File:Pissarro Camille, Le village de Knocke, 1894, ppp630, Paris Musées.jpg, File:ZWIN.jpg, File:Knokke - Dominicanenkerk 1.jpg, File:Alfred Verwee002.jpg, File:Twee Groetende AVL-Mannen 02.jpg, File:Pines at Knocke by Charles Warren Eaton.jpg, File:St George Knokke.JPG, Tram de la Cote belge - Rame BN 6048 @ Knokke.JPG, Tram

References

External links

* Populated places in West Flanders Seaside resorts in Belgium Knokke-Heist {{WestFlanders-geo-stub