Geraardsbergen

Geraardsbergen (French: Grammont) is a city and municipality located in the Denderstreek and in the Flemish Ardennes, the hilly southern part of the Belgian province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Geraardsbergen proper and the following towns:

Goeferdinge, Grimminge, Idegem, Moerbeke, Nederboelare, Nieuwenhove, Onkerzele, Ophasselt, Overboelare, Schendelbeke, Smeerebbe-Vloerzegem, Viane, Waarbeke, Zandbergen and Zarlardinge.

On January 1, 2006 Geraardsbergen had a total population of 31,380. The total area is 79.71 km² which gives a population density of 394 inhabitants per km².

The current mayor of Geraardsbergen is Guido De Padt, from the Open VLD (liberal) party.

History

Geraardsbergen is one of the oldest cities in Belgium. It came into existence close to the settlement of Hunnegem. In 1068, Geraardsbergen was one of the first communities in Western Europe to be granted the city status.^[2]

Geraardsbergen was destroyed in 1381 by Walter IV of Enghien and his troops. The legend goes that during the siege the people of Geraardsbergen threw some of their food which was left over the city wall. By this they wanted to show that they had enough food to survive a siege for a long time. This bravado notwithstanding, the city was still captured by Enghien's troops. This event lives further in the city. Every year during carnaval the city organizes on top of the Oudenberg (111m) the 'krakelingenworp' to celebrate this historical event.^[3]

On 29 May 1815, shortly before the battle of Waterloo, Wellington and Blücher reviewed the Allied cavalry here. Some 6,000 troops were paraded in meadows on the banks of the Dender between Geraardsbergen and Jedeghem.^[4]

Places of interest

• Manneken Pis, the oldest such statue, older than the more famous one in Brussels.
• The wall, a steep street paved with cobblestones, climbed every year by cyclists during the Ronde van Vlaanderen.
• Boelare Castle, seat of the former feudal domain Land (Barony) of Boelare.

Mattentaart

Geraardsbergen is known for the mattentaart, a type of sweet pastry. This is made with matten paste or cheese curd.^[5]

The mattentaart was granted Protected Geographical Indication status by the European Union in 2006, indicating they can only be made in Geraardsbergen or in the nearby municipality of Lierde.^[5][6]

References

External links

• Official website - in Dutch
• Sightseeing in Geraardsbergen - in Dutch
• The historical city Geraardsbergen - in English