Erpe-Mere () 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 of
East Flanders
East Flanders ( ; ; ; ) is a Provinces of Belgium, province of Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the North) the Netherlands, Dutch province of Zeeland and the Belgian provinces of Antwerp (province), Antwerp, Flemish Brabant, Hainaut (provinc ...
in the
Denderstreek
The Denderstreek or Denderland is a region in Belgium. It is named after the river Dender. Though the river stretches over three provinces, Hainaut (province), Hainaut, East Flanders and Flemish Brabant, the region called after the river is situa ...
. The municipality comprises the towns of
Aaigem
Aaigem is a village belonging to the municipality of Erpe-Mere. It is located in the province of East Flanders, Belgium. The village has some 2000 inhabitants. Aaigem was an independent municipality with an area of 7.32 square kilometers till 19 ...
,
Bambrugge
Bambrugge is a sub-municipality of Erpe-Mere in Flanders. It is located on the Molenbeek in the Denderstreek, southeast of East Flanders and belongs to the Arrondissement of Aalst. It is bordered by the sub-municipalities of Vlekkem, Ottergem, ...
,
Burst
Burst may refer to:
*Burst mode (disambiguation), a mode of operation where events occur in rapid succession
**Burst transmission, a term in telecommunications
**Burst switching, a feature of some packet-switched networks
**Bursting, a signaling mo ...
,
Erondegem
Erondegem is a sub-municipality of Erpe-Mere in Flanders, Belgium. It is located on the Molenbeek in the Denderstreek, southeast of East Flanders and belongs to the Arrondissement of Aalst. It is bordered by the sub-municipalities of Erpe and ...
,
Erpe,
Mere
Mere may refer to:
Places
* Mere, Belgium, a village in East Flanders
* Mere, Cheshire, England
* Mere, Wiltshire, England
People
* Mere Broughton (1938–2016), New Zealand Māori language activist and unionist
* Mere Smith, American television ...
,
Ottergem and
Vlekkem. There is also a hamlet in Bambrugge:
Egem. Erpe-Mere is crossed by 2 brooks, the
Molenbeek
( French, ) or ( Dutch, ), often simply called Molenbeek, is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, from which it is separated ...
and the
Molenbeek-Ter Erpenbeek
The Molenbeek-Ter Erpenbeek or in popular language Molenbeek (English: Millbrook-Ter Erpenbrook) is a brook in the Denderstreek region of Belgium. The stream has a length of approximately 25 kilometers. The source of the Molenbeek is in Godveerde ...
. In 2022 Erpe-Mere had a total population of 20,127. The total area is 34.03 km
2.
The current mayor of Erpe-Mere is Hugo De Waele, from the CD&V (Christian Democratic) party.
History
The municipality was formed in 1975 by the merger of the eight sub-municipalities of today, but the sub-communities Erpe and Mere initially disagreed on the new name for the merged municipality. While Erpe had the largest area, Mere was central in the entire area and had more inhabitants. As a compromise they choose the double name Erpe-Mere.
Geography

The municipality is bordered to the north by
Lede
OpenWrt (from ''open wireless router'') is an open-source project for embedded operating systems based on Linux, primarily used on embedded devices to route network traffic. The main components are Linux, util-linux, musl, and BusyBox. All com ...
, in the east by
Aalst and
Haaltert
Haaltert () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the towns of Denderhoutem, Haaltert proper, and . In 2021, Haaltert had a total po ...
, in the south by
Herzele
Herzele () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek
The Denderstreek or Denderland is a region in Belgium. It is named after the river Dender. Though the river stretches over three provinces, Hain ...
and in the west by
Sint-Lievens-Houtem
Sint-Lievens-Houtem (; , not officially recognized) is a Dutch-speaking municipality of Belgium. It is located in the Denderstreek and at the edge of the Flemish Ardennes, the hilly southern part of the province of East Flanders (Flemish Region). ...
. Erpe-Mere is located north of the foothills of the
Flemish Ardennes
The Flemish Ardennes (Dutch language, Dutch: ''Vlaamse Ardennen'') is an informal name given to a hilly region in the south of the province of East Flanders, Belgium. Highest summit is the Hotondberg (151 m). Main characteristics of the region ar ...
, in the region
Denderstreek
The Denderstreek or Denderland is a region in Belgium. It is named after the river Dender. Though the river stretches over three provinces, Hainaut (province), Hainaut, East Flanders and Flemish Brabant, the region called after the river is situa ...
. The area north of the N9 (Aalst-Ghent) is between 10 and 30 meters high, the area between the N9 and E40 (Brussels-Ghent) is between 25 and 50 meters high and the area south of it has hills peaks up to 80 meters. The most famous of them is the Gotegemberg in Mere, not for his height of 68 meters, but for its slope of 18% making it a popular challenge for cyclists.
The territory is traversed by two brooks that both bear the name Molenbeek. The Molenbeek from the Upper Scheldt crosses Burst, Bambrugge, Ottergem, Vlekkem and Erondegem before it flows into the Scheldt. The Molenbeek-Ter Erpenbeek flows into the Dender.
The Romans knew early there was white natural stone called Vlaamse Arduin or Lediaanse Steen in Steenberg of Bambrugge. This white natural stone was suitable as a foundation for the masonry of Roman villas and as building material for columns and capitals of the Roman temples. From about the 11th or 12th century there was already extracted white sandstone in Bambrugge (Steenberg). The common types of white natural stone in Brabant in the 16th to 17th Century were extracted in Steenberg. Extraction continued until after World War II. Today it is the administrative center of Erpe-Mere.
There is a 205 hectare nature reserve called
Den Dotter
Den Dotter is a 205 hectare nature reserve in the sub-municipalities of Aaigem (municipality Erpe-Mere) and Heldergem (municipality Haaltert) in the East Flanders, East Flemish Denderstreek, Belgium.
It is a swampy, almost uninhabited area, wit ...
in the sub-municipalities of
Aaigem
Aaigem is a village belonging to the municipality of Erpe-Mere. It is located in the province of East Flanders, Belgium. The village has some 2000 inhabitants. Aaigem was an independent municipality with an area of 7.32 square kilometers till 19 ...
(municipality Erpe-Mere) and
Heldergem
Haaltert () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the towns of Denderhoutem, Haaltert proper, and . In 2021, Haaltert had a total po ...
(municipality
Haaltert
Haaltert () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the towns of Denderhoutem, Haaltert proper, and . In 2021, Haaltert had a total po ...
).
Transportation
Erpe-Mere has an exit to the
A10/
E40 and a regional railway station on the railway line Kortrijk–Oudenaarde–Zottegem–Erpe-Mere–Aalst–Brussels. Also the N9 (Gentsesteenweg), the N442 (Leedsesteenweg) and the N46 (Oudenaardsesteenweg) cross the municipality.
Landmarks
* The water tower of the Tussengemeentelijke Maatschappij der Vlaanderen voor Watervoorziening.
Mills
Landmarks include the mills of the municipality, through which runs the Denderroute South and the Molenbeekroute. Due to the geography of the area, there are eleven water mills in Erpe-Mere, with Erpe-Mere having the most water mills in Belgium, seven of which are protected by law. One mill was largely demolished, but there are still remains of this mill and the mill house is still intact. Another mill was also converted into a house. On the Koudenberg, one of the highest hills of the community, there is a windmill that is protected by law. It was re-mounted on its base in 2006 after being restored in 2004 by a studio in Roeselare. The Kruiskoutermolen was restored in 2006 and is operational. It can be visited by appointment with the tourist service.
File:Engelsmolen Aaigem.JPG, Engelsmolen at Aaigem
File:Ratmolen Aaigem.JPG, Ratmolen at Aaigem
File:Zwingelmolen Aaigem.jpg, Zwingelmolen at Aaigem
File:Cottemmolen Erpe vooraanzicht.JPG, Front view of the Cottemmolen at Erpe
File:De Graevemolen Mere vooraanzicht.jpg, Front view of the De Graevesmolen at Mere
File:Kruiskoutermolen Mere.JPG, Kruiskoutermolen at Mere
Sports
Erpe-Mere once had seven football clubs that belonged to the Royal Belgian Football Association. There are still four left:
KRC Bambrugge
Erpe-Mere United is a Belgian association football club based in Bambrugge, East Flanders. The club has matricule number 5343 and the club's colours are black and yellow. They currently play in East Flanders Division One in the Belgian Provinci ...
,
KFC Olympic Burst, FC Mere and SK Aaigem. FC Edixvelde was absorbed by FC Mere. FC Oranja Erpe and
KFC Olympia Erondegem merged into KVC Erperondegem that was some years later also absorbed by FC Mere.
Each year the Steenbergcross, the first international
cyclo-cross
Cyclo-cross (cyclocross, CX, cyclo-X or cross) is a form of bicycle racing. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter (the international or "World Cup" season is October–February), and consist of many laps of a short (2.5–3.5&nb ...
race of the season, is held at Steenberg in Bambrugge. The national clubhouse of the motorcycle club
Blue Angels
The Blue Angels, formally named the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, are a Aerobatics, flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.. Blue Angels official site. Formed in 1946, the unit is the second oldest formal aerobatics ...
in Belgium is located in Erpe.
Image gallery
File:Sporthal Erpe-Mere.jpg, The sports hall of Erpe-Mere, at Steenberg in Bambrugge
File:Vijver Steenberg Erpe-Mere.jpg, The pool of Steenberg in Bambrugge
File:Autosnelwegbrug Mere.jpg, The motorway bridge (E40) of Mere over the Oudenaardsesteenweg
File:AaigemKerk2.JPG, Church of Aaigem
File:Kerk Mere 1.jpg, Church of Mere
References
External links
* only available in
Dutch
Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
** Dutch people as an ethnic group ()
** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship ()
** Dutch language ()
* In specific terms, i ...
{{Authority control
Municipalities of East Flanders