Minderhout is a village in the Belgian municipality of

Hoogstraten Hoogstraten () is a municipality and city located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises Hoogstraten, Meer, Meerle, Meersel-Dreef, Minderhout and Wortel (Meersel-Dreef includes the northernmost point in Belgium). Ho ...

in the province of

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 ...

close to the border with the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. As of 2021, it has about 4,420 inhabitants.

History

The village was first mentioned in 1238 as Minrehout, and means "the smaller forest". Minderhout was founded from

Baarle Baarle () is a village in Northwestern Europe which consists of a patchwork of Belgian and Dutch territories. The Belgian parts of the village are called Baarle-Hertog and the Dutch elements are called Baarle-Nassau. The Belgian part include ...

.The Thorn Abbey used to have many possession in Minderhout, and the village and neighbouring

Castelré Castelré () is a village in the Dutch province of North Brabant. It is a part of the municipality of Baarle-Nassau, and lies some 20 km south of Breda Breda ( , , , ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of m ...

originally belonged to the Land of

Breda Breda ( , , , ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. ...

. During the 14th century, Minderhout became the property of the Lords of

, but Castelré remained with Breda, therefore, the original area was cut in two. In 1794, it became an independent municipality. Minderhout would remain independent until 1977 when it was merged into Hoogstraten.

Gallery

File:Pastorie - Minderhout - Minderhoutdorp 27.jpg, Clergy house File:Vrijliggend fietspad.JPG, The ''Fietspad'' or

Bicycle Path A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. ...

in Minderhout, Vlaanderen,

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 ...

which is separate from the road. File:46715 Minderhout - Bredaseweg 30.jpg, Mission congregation File:AC restaurants Minderhout Belgium 4juni2006.jpg, Restaurant in Minderhout

References

External links

* *
Official website of Hoogstraten
Sub-municipalities of Hoogstraten Former municipalities of Antwerp Province Belgium–Netherlands border crossings Populated places in Antwerp Province {{Antwerp-geo-stub