Editing Beveren

{{About||the football team from the same town|Waasland-Beveren|the village in West-Flanders|Beveren-aan-de-IJzer}}
{{more citations needed|date=March 2013}}
{{Infobox Belgium municipality
|name             = Beveren
|picture          = Doel - Village 2.jpg
|picture-legend   = Doel
|map              = Beveren East-Flanders Belgium Map.svg
|map-legend       = Location of Beveren in [[East Flanders]]
|arms             = Blason ville be Beveren.svg
|flag             = Flag of Beveren.svg
|region           = {{BE-REG-FLE}}
|community        = {{BE-NL}}
|province         = {{BE-PROV-OV}}
|arrondissement   = [[Arrondissement of Sint-Niklaas|Sint-Niklaas]]
|nis              = 46003
|pyramid-date=01/01/2006
|0-19=22.54
|20-64=60.74
|65=16.72
|foreigners=1.92
|foreigners-date=01/07/2005
|mayor            = Marc Van de Vijver ([[Christian Democratic and Flemish|CD&V]])
|majority         = [[Christian Democratic and Flemish|CD&V]], [[New Flemish Alliance|N-VA]]
|postal-codes     = 9120, 9130
|telephone-area   = 03
|web              = [http://www.beveren.be/ www.beveren.be]
|coordinates      = {{coord|51|12|N|04|15|E|region:BE|display=inline,title}}
}}

'''Beveren''' ({{IPA|nl|ˈbeːvərə(n)|-|Nl-Beveren.ogg}}) is a former [[Municipalities in Belgium|municipality]] in the [[Belgium|Belgian]] [[Provinces of Belgium|province]] of [[East Flanders]] which comprises the towns of Beveren, [[Doel]], [[Haasdonk]], [[Kallo]], [[Kieldrecht]], [[Melsele]], [[Verrebroek]] and [[Vrasene]].

The port of the [[Waasland]] (Dutch: ''Waaslandhaven'') is in Beveren, on the left bank of the [[Schelde]], facing the [[port of Antwerp]] on the other side of the river.

==History==

===Roman origins===
In [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times, the Beveren area was at the edge of the sea and heavily influenced by the tides.  The earliest inhabitants erected primitive dams, which were later reinforced and built higher by the religious communities that sprang up in the region.  The invasions of the [[Normans]] in the 9th century prompted the [[Flanders (county)|Counts of Flanders]] and their local [[vassal]]s to defend this land even more.  Among the local nobility were the lords of Beveren, whose territory was eventually ceded to [[Louis I of Flanders]] in 1334.  Beveren thus became the oldest political centre of the [[Waasland]] region &mdash; the northeastern part of the historical County of Flanders &mdash; basking for more than two centuries in the glory of Flanders and [[Duke of Burgundy|Burgundy]].

===1570 to the present===
[[Image:CortewalleZuid.JPG|thumb|left|[[Cortewalle Castle|Castle of Cortewalle]] residence of the Lord of Beveren, the [[Goubau family]].]]
In 1570, a catastrophic tide flooded the area.  For strategic reasons linked to the protection of [[Antwerp]], the local authorities decided to dismantle the remaining dams.  Five years later, the rights to the territory were sold.  The area closest to the [[Scheldt]] was bought by an Antwerp merchant, and the rest went to the Duke of [[Aarschot]].  This state of affairs lasted until the [[French Revolution]], when the territory was subdivided into the pre-merger communes.  From the 17th century on, the territory had slowly been taken back from the sea, until 1846, when the last parcel of land was dammed up.

Beveren was heavily impacted by the [[North Sea flood of 1953]], which breached the dykes, causing again heavy damage to hundreds of houses. In the 1960s and 1970s, the expansion of the [[port of Antwerp]] took place on [[Kallo]]'s territory. The village of [[Doel]] was reduced from the 900 residents of only 10 years ago to some 250 currently because of the expansion of the port.  Vast industrial settlements came in its wake, including a [[nuclear power plant]] in Doel, which allows Beveren to provide low municipal tax rates for its inhabitants.  The opening of the ''Liefkenshoek'' car tunnel under the Scheldt in 1991 further improved access to the left bank.  Despite all those developments, Beveren has managed to keep its green areas intact and still offers picturesque landscapes to visitors.

==Sights==
[[File:Kasteel Bosdam.jpg|thumb|180x180px|Bosdam Castle]]
[[File:AD 2023 - Exterieur ter SAKSEN - Versmessen - 09.jpg|thumb|268x268px|Hof Ter Saksen]]
*Three castles remain from the [[feudal]] era: the 15th-century [[Cortewalle Castle|Castle of Cortewalle]], the Bosdam Castle and the Castle Hof Ter Saksen (18th century), which evolved from a medieval inn on the road between [[Ghent]] and [[Antwerp]]. During the second part of the 20th century, the castle was abandoned and reduced to ruins within a park.
*The Haasdonk fort was built just before [[World War I]] for Antwerp's protection. [[Bunker]]s can still be seen nearby.
*Beveren has kept several centuries-old houses, manors, chapels and churches.
*The village of Doel houses a 17th-century windmill, one of the oldest in Flanders.
*The [[polder]]s north of Beveren offer a unique landscape, reminiscent of the southern [[Netherlands]].
*The [[Freethiel]]

==Folklore==
Like many other cities in Belgium, Beveren has a collection of giant [[puppets]] who take part in most of the local festivities.  The two oldest ones were [[baptism|baptized]] in 1954.

At Katoen Natie in Kallo one can watch and listen to the [[Organ collection Ghysels]], which was allocated to [[Vleeshuis|Museum Vleeshuis]] in [[Antwerp]]. The collection is open for the public since 2010 and waits on at transfer until Vleeshuis has been renovated.<ref>Kunsterfgoed, [https://web.archive.org/web/20150922044746/http://www.kunstenenerfgoed.be/nl/wat-doen-we/collectie-van-de-vlaamse-gemeenschap/de-collectie-ghysels De Collectie Ghysels], last visited on 5 November 2018 {{in lang|nl}}</ref>

==Climate==
Beveren has an [[oceanic climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]] ''Cfb'') with narrow seasonal differences for its latitude. Summers are warm, but occasionally hot, whereas winters usually remain above freezing.

{{Weather box
|location = Beveren (1981–2010 normals, sunshine 1984–2013)
|collapsed = 
|metric first = Yes
|single line = Yes
|Jan record high C = 
|Feb record high C = 
|Mar record high C = 
|Apr record high C = 
|May record high C = 
|Jun record high C = 
|Jul record high C = 
|Aug record high C = 
|Sep record high C = 
|Oct record high C = 
|Nov record high C = 
|Dec record high C = 
|year record high C = 
|Jan high C = 6.2
|Feb high C = 7.0
|Mar high C = 10.8
|Apr high C = 14.5
|May high C = 18.4
|Jun high C = 20.9
|Jul high C = 23.2
|Aug high C = 23.0
|Sep high C = 19.7
|Oct high C = 15.0
|Nov high C = 10.1
|Dec high C = 6.6
|year high C = 14.7
|Jan mean C = 3.5
|Feb mean C = 3.7
|Mar mean C = 6.8
|Apr mean C = 9.5
|May mean C = 13.5
|Jun mean C = 16.2
|Jul mean C = 18.4
|Aug mean C = 18.1
|Sep mean C = 15.0
|Oct mean C = 11.3
|Nov mean C = 7.0
|Dec mean C = 4.1
|year mean C = 10.6
|Jan low C = 0.8
|Feb low C = 0.5
|Mar low C = 2.9
|Apr low C = 4.7
|May low C = 8.6
|Jun low C = 11.5
|Jul low C = 13.6
|Aug low C = 13.0
|Sep low C = 10.5
|Oct low C = 7.4
|Nov low C = 4.1
|Dec low C = 1.5
|year low C = 6.7
|Jan record low C = 
|Feb record low C = 
|Mar record low C = 
|Apr record low C = 
|May record low C = 
|Jun record low C = 
|Jul record low C = 
|Aug record low C = 
|Sep record low C = 
|Oct record low C = 
|Nov record low C = 
|Dec record low C = 
|year record low C = 
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 70.2
|Feb precipitation mm = 57.7
|Mar precipitation mm = 63.6
|Apr precipitation mm = 48.4
|May precipitation mm = 62.5
|Jun precipitation mm = 77.6
|Jul precipitation mm = 81.6
|Aug precipitation mm = 78.9
|Sep precipitation mm = 78.4
|Oct precipitation mm = 82.0
|Nov precipitation mm = 81.1
|Dec precipitation mm = 80.8
|year precipitation mm = 862.7
|Jan precipitation days = 12.5
|Feb precipitation days = 10.7
|Mar precipitation days = 11.8
|Apr precipitation days = 9.5
|May precipitation days = 10.8
|Jun precipitation days = 10.6
|Jul precipitation days = 10.4
|Aug precipitation days = 9.9
|Sep precipitation days = 10.5
|Oct precipitation days = 11.8
|Nov precipitation days = 13.3
|Dec precipitation days = 13.1
|year precipitation days = 135.1
|Jan sun = 60
|Feb sun = 79
|Mar sun = 125
|Apr sun = 179
|May sun = 211
|Jun sun = 204
|Jul sun = 215
|Aug sun = 203
|Sep sun = 145
|Oct sun = 118
|Nov sun = 64
|Dec sun = 49
|year sun = 1651
|source = [[Royal Meteorological Institute]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.meteo.be/resources/climateCity/pdf/climate_INS46003_BEVEREN_nl.pdf|title=Klimaatstatistieken van de Belgische gemeenten|publisher=[[Royal Meteorological Institute]]|language=nl|access-date=29 May 2018}}</ref>
}}

==Famous inhabitants==
*[[Valère Gille]], poet (1867–1950)
*[[Wilfried Van Moer]], [[football (soccer)|football]] player (b. 1945)
*[[Kathleen Smet]], [[triathlon]] athlete (b. 1970)
*[[Dominique Cornu]], [[Road bicycle racing|road]] and [[track cycling|track cyclist]] (b. 1985)
*[[Julie Gould]], [[United Kingdom|British]] [[swimmer]] (b. 1989)

==See also==
*[[K.S.K. Beveren]]
*[[Asterix Kieldrecht]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*{{wikivoyage-inline|Beveren}}
*[http://www.beveren.be Official website], in [[Dutch language|Dutch]]

{{Geographic location
|Centre = Beveren
|North     = [[Antwerp]] ([[Antwerp (province)|VAN]])
|East      = [[Antwerp]] ([[Antwerp (province)|VAN]])<br>[[Zwijndrecht, Belgium|Zwijndrecht]] ([[Antwerp (province)|VAN]])
|South     = [[Temse]], [[Kruibeke]]
|West      = [[Sint-Gillis-Waas]]
|Southwest = [[Sint-Niklaas]]
|Northwest = [[Hulst]] ([[Netherlands|NL]]-[[Zeeland|ZE]])
}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Beveren| ]]
[[Category:Beveren-Kruibeke-Zwijndrecht]]
[[Category:Former municipalities of East Flanders]]
[[Category:Populated places in East Flanders]]