Melsele is a town in the Belgian

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

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 ...

, between the city of

Beveren Beveren () is a former municipality in the Belgian 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'') ...

and the nearby town of Zwijndrecht. Tram route 3 which starts just outside the town connects it to Zwijndrecht and

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. The town's road links include the E17 (

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) and the E34 (

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 ...

History

Melsele is one of the oldest settlements of

Waasland The Waasland (, archaically "Waesland") or Land van Waas () is a historic region in northern Belgium. It is part of the Belgian province of East Flanders. The other borders are with the Scheldt and Durme rivers (east and south) and, to the north, ...

. Ceramics and coins have been found from the Roman period. The parish had been established before the year 1000. In 1375, dikes were constructed to protect the

polder A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrology, hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as levee, dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclamation, Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a ...

, however during the 14th and 15th century there were several floods. The Church of Our Lady was built from 13th to the 17th century, and is a registered heritage site (''beschermd erfgoed''). In 1511, a miraculous Madonna statue was discovered under a

lime tree ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Great Britain and Irelan ...

near the hamlet Gaverland which from then on became a site of pilgrimage. The Our Lady in Gaverland Chapel was built at the site between 1862 and 1870. In 1977 the municipality was merged with Beveren as part of the

fusion of municipalities in Belgium The fusion of the Belgian municipalities (French: ''fusion des communes'', Dutch: ''fusie van Belgische gemeenten'') was a Belgian political process that rationalized and reduced the number of municipalities in Belgium between 1964 and 1983. In 1 ...

. It was home to 7,077 people and covered an area of prior to the merger.

Events

The Strawberry Festival is held annually five days after the

Feast of the Ascension The Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ (also called the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday, or sometimes Holy Thursday) commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. It ...

. It was originally conceived by Ivens de Melseelse, the local priest, to promote strawberries. It was a procession to Gaverland offering strawberries. However, after only three years, the festival was cancelled. In 1963, three local sport clubs revived the festival, with a strawberry exhibition, performances and a Miss Strawberry competition.

Notable people

Roland Verhavert Roland Verhavert (1 May 1927 – 26 July 2014) was a Belgian film director. He directed 44 films between 1955 and 1993. He co-directed the 1955 film '' Seagulls Die in the Harbour'', which was entered into the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. His ...

(1927–2014), film director.

Gallery

File:Station Melsele Sporen.jpg , Melsele railway station File:Beveren Kerkplein Parochiekerk Onze-Lieve-Vrouw - 107879 - onroerenderfgoed.jpg, Church of Our Lady, Melsele File:Beveren Kerkplein 21 Dorpswoning - 107877 - onroerenderfgoed.jpg, House in Melsele File:Gaverland huis Kapelbewaardster.jpg, House in Melsele

References

External links

* *
beveren.be
with a page on Melsele. {{Authority control Beveren Populated places in East Flanders Former municipalities of East Flanders