   #copyright

Flanders

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: European Geography

   CAPTION: Vlaanderen

     The Flemish Region
                          The Flemish Community
   Official language      Dutch
   Capital                Brussels
   Minister-President     Yves Leterme
   Area
    – Total
                          13,522 km²
   Population
    – In Flemish region
    – in Brussels region
   Population density
                          6,043,161 ( 2005)
                          ca. 200,000
                          447/km²
   National anthem        De Vlaamse Leeuw

   Flanders (Dutch: Vlaanderen) has several main meanings:
     * the social, cultural and linguistical, scientific and educational,
       economical and political community of the Flemings; some prefer to
       call this the "Flemish community" (others refer to this as the
       "Flemish nation") which is, with over 6 million inhabitants, the
       majority of all Belgians;
     * a constituent governing institution of the federal Belgian state
       through the institutions of the Flemish Community (with its own
       Flemish government and Flemish parliament) and the Flemish region;
     * the geographical region in the north of Belgium coinciding with the
       Flemish region, a constituent part of the federal Belgian state.

   The precise geographical area denominated by "Flanders" has changed a
   great deal over the centuries.

   In the Middle Ages, the term Flanders was applied to an area in western
   Europe, the County of Flanders, spread over:
     * Belgium :
          + the area that is now approximately the Flemish provinces of
            East Flanders and West Flanders
          + the French-speaking area at the west of the Scheldt river,
            called Tournaisis (from the now Wallonian town Tournai in the
            province of Hainaut)
     * France :
          + a part of what is now the Nord département ( Nord-Pas de
            Calais), in north-eastern France, often called French Flanders
            or sometimes even South-Flanders.
     * Netherlands :
          + a part of what is now Zeeland in south-western Netherlands,
            called Zeeuws-Vlaanderen or North-Flanders.

   The significance of the County and its counts eroded through time, but
   the designation remained in a very broad sense. In the Early Modern,
   the term Flanders was associated to the southern part of the Low
   Countries, the Southern Netherlands. The term Walloon Flanders
   corresponds to the French-speaking Flemish region around Lille. In
   history of art, the adjectives Flemish, Dutch and Netherlandish are
   commonly used to designate all the artistic production in this region.
   For examples, Flemish Primitives is synonym for early Netherlandish
   painting, Franco-Flemish School for Dutch School, and it is not
   uncommon to see Mosan art categorized as Flemish art.

Flanders in France

Flanders in the Netherlands

   Landscape of Bachten de Kupe, in West Flanders
   Enlarge
   Landscape of Bachten de Kupe, in West Flanders

Contemporary Flanders

   Sometime in the 19th century it became commonplace to call the area now
   known as Flanders, from Maasmechelen to De Panne as "Flanders",
   including parts of the Duchy of Brabant and the ( Belgian Limburg).
   This usage started to find its modern usage in a "disambiguation" of
   the northern part of Belgium (la partie septentrionale), from 1831, the
   establishment of the Belgian monarchy, on.

   At this time, for most, the term Flanders is normally taken to refer to
   either the political, social, cultural and linguistic community (and
   the corresponding official institution, the Flemish Community), or the
   geographical area, one of the three regions in Belgium, namely the
   Flemish region.

History

Early history

   Flanders was once inhabited by Celtic peoples and Germanics had crossed
   the Rhine and merged with them. They were called Belgæ while the area
   was the farthest part of Gallia Belgica, the most northeastern province
   of the Roman Empire at its height.

Historical Flanders: County of Flanders

   Created in the year 862, the County of Flanders was divided when its
   western districts fell under French rule in the late 12th century. The
   remaining parts of Flanders came under the rule of the counts of
   neighbouring Hainaut in 1191. The entire area passed in 1384 to the
   dukes of Burgundy, in 1477 to the Habsburg dynasty, and in 1556 to the
   kings of Spain. The western districts of Flanders came finally under
   French rule under successive treaties of 1659 (Artois), 1668, and 1678.

   During the late Middle Ages Flanders' trading towns (notably Ghent,
   Bruges and Ypres) made it one of the most urbanised parts of Europe,
   weaving the wool of neighbouring lands into cloth for both domestic use
   and export.

   Increasingly powerful from the 12th century, the territory's autonomous
   urban communes were instrumental in defeating a French attempt at
   annexation ( 1300- 1302), finally defeating the French in the Battle of
   the Golden Spurs ( July 11, 1302), near Kortrijk. Two years later, the
   uprising was defeated and Flanders remained part of the French Crown.
   Flemish prosperity waned in the following century, however, owing to
   widespread European population decline following the Black Death of
   1348, the disruption of trade during the Anglo-French Hundred Years'
   War ( 1338- 1453), and increased English cloth production. Flemish
   weavers had gone over to Worstead and North Walsham in Norfolk in the
   12th century and established the woollen industry.

Flanders in the Low Countries

The Reformation

   Martin Luther's 95 Theses, published in 1517, had a profound effect on
   the Low Countries. Among the wealthy traders of Antwerp, the Lutheran
   beliefs of the German Hanseatic traders found appeal, perhaps partly
   for economic reasons in Dutch. The spread of Protestantism in this city
   was aided by the presence of an Augustinian cloister (founded 1514) in
   the St. Andries quarter. Luther, an Augustinian himself, had taught
   some of the monks, and his works were in print by 1518. Charles V
   ordered the closing of this cloister around 1525. The first Lutheran
   martyrs came from Antwerp. The reformation resulted in consecutive but
   overlapping waves of reform: a Lutheran, followed by a militant
   Anabaptist, then a Mennonite, and finally a Calvinistic movement. These
   movements existed independently of each other.

   The Pragmatic Sanction of 1549, issued by Charles V, established the
   Low Countries as the Seventeen Provinces (or Spanish Netherlands in its
   broad sense) as an entity separate from the Holy Roman Empire and from
   France.
   Statues in the Cathedral of Saint Martin, Utrecht, affected by 16th
   century iconoclasm[1] Enlarge
   Statues in the Cathedral of Saint Martin, Utrecht, affected by 16th
   century iconoclasm

   The schism between the southern Roman Catholics and northern Calvinists
   resulted in the Union of Atrecht and the Union of Utrecht,
   respectively.

   It was the iconoclasm of 1566 (the Beeldenstorm) – the demolition of
   statues and paintings depicting saints – that led to religious war
   between Catholics and Protestants. The Beeldenstorm started in what is
   now French Flanders with open-air sermons (hagepreken) in Dutch. The
   first took place on the Cloostervelt near Hondschoote. The first large
   sermon was held near Boeschepe on July 12, 1562. These open-air
   sermons, mostly of Anabaptist or Mennonite signature, spread through
   the country. On August 10, 1566 at the end of the pilgrimage from
   Hondschoote to Steenvoorde, the chapel of the Sint-Laurensklooster
   (Cloister of Saint Lawrence) was defaced by Protestants. The iconoclasm
   resulted not only in the destruction of Catholic art, but also cost the
   lives of many priests. It next spread to Antwerp, and on August 22, to
   Ghent. One cathedral, eight churches, twenty-five cloisters, ten
   hospitals and seven chapels were attacked. From there, it further
   spread east and north, but in total lasted not even a month.

   Charles' son, King Philip II of Spain, a devout Catholic and
   self-proclaimed protector of the Counter-Reformation who was also the
   duke or earl of each of the Seventeen Provinces, started to crack down
   on the rising Calvinists in Flanders, Brabant and Holland. What is now
   approximately Belgian Limburg was part of the Bishopric of Liège and
   was Catholic de facto. Part of what is now Dutch Limburg supported the
   Union of Atrecht, but did not sign it.

The Eighty Years' War and its consequences

   In 1568 the Seventeen that signed the Union of Utrecht started a
   (counter)rebellion against Philip II: the Eighty Years' War. Before the
   Low Countries could be completely reconquered, war between England and
   Spain broke out, forcing the Spanish troops under Philips II to halt
   their advances. Meanwhile, Philips' Spanish troops had conquered the
   important trading cities of Bruges and Ghent. Antwerp, which was then
   arguably the most important port in the world had to be conquered. On
   August 17, 1585, Antwerp fell. This ended the Eighty Years' War for the
   (from now on) Southern Netherlands. The United Provinces (the
   Netherlands proper) fought on until 1648 – the Peace of Westphalia. The
   definite loss of the southern Low Countries caused the rich Calvinist
   merchants of these cities to flee to the north. Many migrated to
   Amsterdam, which was at the time a tiny port, but was quickly
   transformed into one of the most important ports in the world in the
   17th century. The exodus can be described as 'creating a new Antwerp'.

   This mass immigration from Flanders and Brabant (especially Antwerp)
   was an important driving force behind the Dutch Golden Age. While Spain
   was at war with England, the rebels from the north, strengthened by
   refugees from the south, started a campaign to reclaim areas lost to
   Philips II's Spanish troops. They managed to conquer a considerable
   part of Brabant (the later Noord-Brabant of the Netherlands), and the
   south bank of the Scheldt estuary ( Zeeuws-Vlaanderen), before being
   stopped by Spanish troops. The frontline at the end of this war
   stabilized and became the current border between present-day Belgium
   and the Netherlands. The Dutch (as they later became known) had managed
   to reclaim enough of Spanish king-controlled Flanders to close of the
   river the Scheldt, effectively closing Antwerp off from a significant
   trade route. Due to these events, Flanders and Brabant went into a
   relative decline in the 17th century. From the view of the
   sophisticated northerners and the present benefit of hindsight, it
   became a country of peasants and simple but happy folk. The potential
   to reclaim their wealth and prominent world position remained possible
   until just recently. Today Flanders is one of the most productive and
   wealthiest regions of the world.

   Although arts remained at a relatively impressive level for another
   century with Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640), Flanders experienced a loss
   of its former economic and intellectual power under Spanish, Austrian,
   and French rule, with heavy taxation and rigid imperial political
   control compounding the effects of industrial stagnation and
   Spanish-Dutch and Franco-Austrian conflict.

1581-1815: The Southern Netherlands

   Conquered by revolutionary France in 1794 and annexed the following
   year as the départements of Lys, Escaut, Deux-Nèthes, Meuse-Inférieure
   and Dyle. The people rose against the French in 1798, the Boerenkrijg,
   with the heaviest fights in the Campine area. The main reason for this
   uprising was the forced army service for all men aged 16-25.

1815-1830: United Kingdom of the Netherlands

   After the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte at the 1815 Battle of Waterloo
   in Waterloo, Brabant, sovereignty over the Austrian Netherlands –
   Belgium minus the East Cantons and Luxembourg – was given by the
   Congress of Vienna ( 1815) to the United Netherlands (Dutch: Vereenigde
   Nederlanden), the state that briefly existed under Sovereign Prince
   William I of Orange Nassau, the latter King William I of the United
   Kingdom of the Netherlands, after the French Empire was driven out of
   the Dutch territories. The United Kingdom of the Netherlands was born.
   The Protestant King of the Netherlands, William I rapidly started the
   industrialisation of the southern parts of the Kingdom. The political
   system that was set up however, slowly but surely failed to forge a
   true union between the northern and the southern parts of the Kingdom.
   The southern bourgeoisie mainly was Roman Catholic, in contrast to the
   mainly Protestant north, large parts of the southern bourgeoisie also
   primarily spoke French, instead of Flemish, a sub species of the Dutch
   language.

   In the in 1815 instated Dutch Senate (Dutch: Eerste Kamer der Staaten
   Generaal) the nobility, mainly coming fom the south, became more and
   more estranged from their northern colleagues. Resentment grew both
   among the Roman Catholics from the south and the Protestants from the
   north and among the powerful liberal bourgeoisie from the south and
   their more moderate coleagues from the North. On August 25, 1830 (after
   the showing of the opera ' La Muette de Portici' of Daniel Auber in
   Brussels) the Belgian Revolution sparked off and became a fact. On
   October 4, 1830, the Provisional Authority (Dutch: Voorlopig Bewind)
   proclaimed the independence which was later confirmed by the National
   Congress that issued a new Liberal Constitution and declared the new
   state a Constitutional Monarchy, under the House of Saxe-Coburg.
   Flanders now became part of the Kingdom of Belgium, which was
   recognised by the major European Powers on January 20, 1831. The de
   facto dissidence was only finally recognised by the United Kingdom of
   the Netherlands on April 19, 1839.

Kingdom of Belgium

   In 1830, the Belgian Revolution led to the splitting up of the two
   countries. Belgium was confirmed as an independent state by the Treaty
   of London of 1839, but deprived of the eastern half of Limburg (now
   Dutch Limburg), and the Eastern half of Luxembourg (now the Grand-Duchy
   of Luxembourg) . Sovereignty over Zeeuws Vlaanderen, south of the
   Westerscheldt river delta, was left with the Kingdom of the
   Netherlands, who was allowed to levy a toll on all traffic to the
   Antwerp harbour until 1863.

Rise of the Flemish Movement

World War I and its consequences

   Flanders (and Belgium as a whole) saw some of the greatest losses of
   life of the First World War including the battles of Ypres and the
   Somme. Due to the hundreds of thousands of casualties, the poppies that
   sprang up from the battlefield and that were immortalised in the poem
   In Flanders Fields, have become an emblem of human life lost in war. It
   is perfectly normal for poppies to invade disturbed arable ground. More
   important for the course of history is the resentment some felt of
   being used as cannon fodder, as a whole nation, and not as single
   soldiers.

   Flemish feeling of identity and consciousness grew through the events
   and experiences of war. The German occupying authorities had taken
   several Flemish-friendly measures. More importantly the experiences of
   many Flemish speaking soldiers on the front led by French speaking
   officers catalysed Flemish emancipation. The French speaking officers
   barked the orders in French, followed by "et pour les Flamands , la
   même chose" , which basically meant, same thing for the Flemish, and it
   obviously did not help the Flemish conscripts, who were mostly
   uneducated farmers and workers who didn't speak French at all... The
   resulting suffering is still remembered by Flemish organizations during
   the yearly Yser pilgrimage in Diksmuide at the monument of The Yser
   tower.

Right-Wing Nationalism in the interbellum and World War II

Communautary quibbles and the Egmont pact

Government and politics

   Both the Flemish Community and the Flemish region are federal units of
   the Kingdom of Belgium. In practice, the Flemish community and region
   together have their own parliament and government, whereas the region
   has almost no proper institutions any more, as it was absorbed by the
   community. Legally speaking however, it is the community that absorbed
   the competencies of the region.

   The area of the Flemish Community is represented on the maps above plus
   the area of the Brussels region (seen as a white hole on the same map).
   Roughly, the Flemish Community is responsible for all cultural issues
   as Flemish education, culture, language, sports, ...

   The area of the Flemish region is represented on the maps above. The
   Flemish Region has a population of around 6 million (excluding the
   Dutch-speaking community in the Brussels Capital region, which is not a
   part of the Flemish region). Roughly, the Flemish Region is responsible
   for all economic issues.

   The number of Dutch-speaking Flemings in Brussels (region) is estimated
   to be between 11% and 15% (official figures do not exist as there is no
   language census and no official subnationality). According to a survey
   conducted by the Universite Catholique de Louvain in Louvain-La-Neuve
   and published in June 2006, 51% of respondents from Brussels claimed to
   be bilingual, even if they do not have Dutch as their first language.
   They are under the rule of the Brussels Region for economics affairs
   and under the rule of the Flemish Community for educational and
   cultural issues.

   As of 2005, the Flemish institutions as its government, parliament,
   etc. represent the Flemish Community and the Flemish region. The region
   and the community thus de facto share the same parliament and the same
   government. All these institutions are based in Brussels. Nevertheless,
   both bodies (the community and the region) are still existing and the
   distinction between both is important for the people living in
   Brussels. Members of the Flemish parliament who were elected in
   Brussels region cannot vote on flemish regional affairs.

   The official language for all Flemish institutions is Dutch. French
   enjoys a limited official recognition in a few municipalities along the
   border with French-speaking Wallonia and the bilingual Brussels Region.
   French is widely known in Flanders, with 59% claiming to know French
   according to a survey conducted by the Universite Catholique de Louvain
   in Louvain-La-Neuve and published in June 2006.

Politics

   Many new political parties during the last half century were founded in
   Flanders: the nationalist Volksunie of which the extreme-right
   nationalist Vlaams Blok ( Vlaams Belang) split off, and that later
   dissolved into SPIRIT, moderate nationalism rather left of the
   spectrum, and the NVA, more conservative moderate nationalism; the
   alternative/ecological Groen!; and the short-lived anarchistic
   libertarian spark ROSSEM.

Flemish nation

   For many Flemings, Flanders is more than just a geographical area
   (Flemish region) or a federal institution (Flemish community). Some
   even call it a nation: a people of over 6 million living in the Flemish
   Region and in the Brussels-Capital Region. Flemings share many
   political, cultural, scientific, social and educational views. Although
   most Flemings identify themselves more with Flanders than with Belgium,
   the largest group defines itself as both Flemish and Belgian. A vague
   and more controversial designation for Flanders is those parts of
   Belgium where Dutch is spoken. This designation finds its root in the
   romantic nationalism of the 19th century.

Administrative divisions

   Provinces of Flanders

   The Flemish Region covers 13,522 km² and contains over 300
   municipalities. It is divided into 5 provinces:
    1. Antwerp (Antwerpen)
    2. Limburg (Limburg)
    3. East Flanders (Oost-Vlaanderen)
    4. Flemish Brabant (Vlaams-Brabant)
    5. West Flanders (West-Vlaanderen)

   Independently from the provinces, Flanders has its own local
   institutions in the Brussels-Capital region, being the Vlaamse
   GemeenschapsCommissie (VGC), and its municipal antennae
   (Gemeenschapscentra, community centers for the Flemish community in
   Brussels). These institutions are independent from the educational,
   cultural and social institutions which depend directly on the Flemish
   government. They exert, among others, all those cultural competencies
   that outside Brussels fall under the provinces.

Geography and climate

   Brussels (Brussel), Antwerp (Antwerpen), Ghent (Gent), Bruges (Brugge),
   Leuven and Mechelen are the largest cities of Flanders, with
   populations above or around 100,000.

   Flanders has two main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the
   north-west and a central plateau. The coastal plain consists mainly of
   sand dunes and polders. Polders are areas of land, close to or below
   sea level that have been reclaimed from the sea, from which they are
   protected by dikes or, further inland, by fields that have been drained
   with canals. The central plateau lies further inland. This is a smooth,
   slowly rising area that has many fertile valleys and is irrigated by
   many waterways. Here one can also find rougher land, including caves
   and small gorges.

   The climate is maritime temperate, with significant precipitation in
   all seasons ( Köppen climate classification: Cfb; the average
   temperature is 3 °C (37°F) in January, and 18°  C (64 ° F) in July; the
   average precipitation is 65  millimetres (2.6  in) in January, and
   78 millimetres (3.1 in) in July).

Economy

   Flanders is one of the most dynamic areas in the entire world. It has
   one of the highest per capita incomes, thanks to a modern economy with
   important investments by many international companies. It is located at
   the heart of one of the world's most highly industrialised regions.

   Flanders was one of the first continental European areas to undergo the
   Industrial Revolution, in the early 1800s. Initially, the modernisation
   relied heavily on food processing and textile. However, by the 1840s
   the textile industry of Flanders was in severe crisis and there was
   famine in Flanders (1846–50). After World War II, Antwerp and Ghent
   experienced a fast expansion of the chemical and petroleum industries.
   Flanders also attracted a large majority of foreign investments in
   Belgium, among others thanks to its well-educated and industrious
   labour force. The 1973 and 1979 oil crises sent the economy into a
   recession. The steel industry remained in relatively good shape. In the
   1980s and 90s, the economic centre of the Belgium continued to shift
   further to Flanders. Nowadays, the Flemish economy is mainly
   service-oriented, although its diverse industry remains a crucial
   force. Flemish productivity per capita is between 20 and 25% higher
   than that in Wallonia.

   Flanders has a particularly open economy. It has developed an excellent
   transportation infrastructure of ports, canals, railways and highways
   to integrate its economy with that of its neighbours. Antwerp is the
   second-largest European port, after Rotterdam.

   In 1999, the euro, the single European currency, was introduced in
   Flanders. It replaced the Belgian franc in 2002. The Flemish economy is
   strongly export oriented, in particular of high value-added goods. The
   main imports are food products, machinery, rough diamonds, petroleum
   and petroleum products, chemicals, clothing and accessories, and
   textiles. The main exports are automobiles, food and food products,
   iron and steel, finished diamonds, textiles, plastics, petroleum
   products, and nonferrous metals. Since 1922, Belgium and Luxembourg
   have been a single trade market within a customs and currency union—the
   Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union. Its main trading partners are
   Germany, the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, the United
   States and Spain.

Demographics

   The areas with the highest population density are around the
   Brussels-Antwerp-Gent- Leuven agglomerations, also known as the Flemish
   Diamond, as well as other important urban centres as Kortrijk, Bruges,
   Hasselt and Mechelen. As of 2005, the Flemish Region has a population
   of about 6,043,161, and around 15% of the people in Brussels 1,006,749
   are also considered as Flemish.

   The (Belgian) laicist constitution provides for freedom of religion,
   and the various government generally respects this right in practice.
   According to the 2001 Survey and Study of Religion, about 47 percent of
   the population identify themselves as belonging to the Catholic Church.
   According to these figures, the Muslim population is the second-largest
   religious community, at 3.5 percent (see Religion in Belgium). Since
   independence, Catholicism, counterbalanced by strong freethought and
   especially freemason movements, has had an important role in Belgium's
   politics, in particular via the Christian trade union ( CSC/ACV) and
   the Christian Democrat parties ( CD&V, CDH).

   According to Npdata, 9.7% of the Flemish population is of foreign
   descent. 4.5% European (including 1.8% Dutch, 0.6% Italian and 0.4%
   French), and 5.1% from outside the European union, (inluding 1.8%
   Moroccan and 1.5% Turks).

   Education is compulsory from the ages of six to 18, but most Flemings
   continue to study until around 23. Among the OECD countries in 1999,
   Flanders had the third-highest proportion of 18–21-year-olds enrolled
   in postsecondary education. Flanders also scores very high in
   international comparative studies on education. Its secondary school
   students consistently rank among the top three for mathematics and
   science. However, the success is not evenly spread: ethnic minority
   youth score consistently lower, and the difference is larger than in
   most comparable countries.

   In addition, concern is rising over functional illiteracy. In the
   period 1994–98, 18.4 percent of the population lacks functional
   literacy skills.

   Mirroring the historical political conflicts between the freethought
   and Catholic segments of the population, the Flemish educational system
   is split into a laïque branch controlled by the communities, the
   provinces, or the municipalities, and a subsidised religious—mostly
   Catholic—branch controlled by both the communities and the religious
   authorities—usually the dioceses. It should however be noted that—at
   least for the Catholic schools—the religious authorities have very
   limited power over these schools. Smaller school systems follow
   'methodical pedagogies' (Steiner, Montesori, Freinet, ...) or serve the
   Jewish and Protestant minorities.

Flemish language and culture

   The standard language used in Flanders is the same as in the
   Netherlands, i.e., Dutch. The Dutch dialects spoken in Belgium are
   often referred together as Flemish. However, using Flemish to refer to
   a specific dialectic language may be confusing as there are many
   different Flemish dialects that are sometimes mutually
   incomprehensible.

   At first sight, Flemish culture is defined by its language and its
   gourmandic mentality. Some claim Flemish literature does not exist,
   because it is said to be 'readable' by both the Dutchmen as well as
   Flemings. That is correct for say 99% of the literature written in
   Dutch, although one might argue a distinct Flemish literature already
   began in the 19th century, when most of the european Nation-states
   arose, with writers and poets such as Guido Gezelle, who not only
   explicitly referred to his writings as Flemish, but actually used it in
   many of his poems, and strongly defended it:

   Original
   "Gij zegt dat ‘t vlaamsch te niet zal gaan:
   ‘t en zal!
   dat ‘t waalsch gezwets zal boven slaan:
   ‘t en zal!
   Dat hopen, dat begeren wij:
   dat zeggen en dat zweren wij:
   zoo lange als wij ons weren, wij:
   ‘t en zal, ‘t en zal,
   ‘t en zal!"

   Translation
   "You say Flemish will disappear:
   It will not!
   that Walloonish rantings will prevail:
   It will not!
   This we hope, this we crave:
   this we say and this we swear:
   as long as we defend ourselves, we:
   It will not, It will not,
   It will not!"

   This distinction in literature is also made by some experts, such as
   Kris Humbeeck, professor in Literature of the University of Antwerp
   here. Nevertheless, the near totality of Dutch-language literature read
   (and appreciated to varying degrees) in Flanders is the same as in the
   Netherlands.

   Some other famous writers representative of Flemish culture are Ernest
   Claes, Stijn Streuvels, and Felix Timmermans.

Flanders in literature

   A fictional town in Flanders called Quiquendone and the Flemish people
   were written about in the comic novel, Le Docteur Ox written by Jules
   Verne. In this story, Dr. Ox and his assistant Gédéon Ygéne secretly
   conduct science experiments which involved saturating the town with
   pure oxygen, in the guise of providing electricity for the town. This
   book was adapted into a full stage play by Dr. Michal Q. Schonberg of
   the University of Toronto at Scarborough and performed in March 2006.

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