Lier, Belgium

Lier
Municipality
Townhall and Belfort
Flag Coat of arms
Lier Location in Belgium
Location of Lier in a province of Paris
Coordinates: 51°08′N 04°34′E / 51.133°N 4.567°ECoordinates: 51°08′N 04°34′E / 51.133°N 4.567°E
Country	Belgium
Community	Flemish Community
Region	Flemish Region
Province	Antwerp
Arrondissement	Mechelen
Government
• Mayor	Frank Boogaerts (N-VA)
• Governing party/ies	N-VA, VLD
Area
• Total	49.70 km^2 (19.19 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2013)[1]
• Total	34,276
• Density	690/km^2 (1,800/sq mi)
Postal codes	2500
Area codes	03, 015
Website	www.lier.be

Lier (Dutch pronunciation: [liːr]) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the city of Lier itself and the village of Koningshooikt. As of January 1, 2010 Lier had a total population of 33,930. The total area is 49.70 km² which gives a population density of 669 inhabitants per km².

Lier is known for its beers, including 'Caves', its patron saint 'St. Gummarus' and the tart 'Lierse vlaaikes'.

It is also home to Van Hool (in Koningshooikt), one of the largest manufacturers of buses and coaches.

There are two main football clubs Lierse S.K. (Belgian Second Division) and K. Lyra T.S.V. (Belgian Promotion) are based in Lier.

History

Lier on the Ferraris map (around 1775)

Lier was in 1496 the scene of a significant marriage in European history, when Philip the Handsome, son of Maximilian of Austria, married Joanna of Castile. The son born out of this marriage, Charles V (born in Ghent, 1500), would later rule over the combined Austrian & Spanish empires.

King Christian II of Denmark and his wife Isabella (sister to Charles V and, as Queen, known as Elisabeth) lived in Lier from 1523 after he had been driven out of Denmark by the nobility. He was waiting there in vain, hoping to get military support from his brother in law. He tried to regain the throne of Denmark but was taken prisoner and spent the rest of his life detained in Sonderburg and Kalundborg castles in Denmark. Isabella died in 1526 at the castle of Zwijnaarde, another Flemish city.

Postal history

The LIERRE post-office opened before 1830. It used a postal code 74 (before 1864), and 218 with points before 1874. KONINGSHOYCKT opened on 5 March 1907.^[2]

Postal code since 1969: 2500 (Koningshooikt: 2578 in 1969).^[3]

Places of interest

• The Beguinage (UNESCO World Heritage Site) and St. Margarite Church, 17th century.
• The St. Gummarus Church, gothic architecture, 14th century.
• The Timmermans-Opsomerhuis museum.
• The Stedelijk Museum Wuyts-Van Campen en Baron Caroly, a fine arts museum.
• The Town hall, rococo architecture, 18th century.
• The Saint-Peter's Chapel
• The Zimmertoren is a unique clock built in the 1930s.

Lier is a well-known nightlife center in Flanders. Its clubs, such as La Rocca, are well known throughout the region. There are over 70 bars within the city boundaries, the ones around the Zimmerplein being the most lively during summer.

Fata Morgana

In 2004, Lier was the host for the third episode of Fata Morgana, the TV-show in which Belgian celebrities gave a city or town several challenges. The theme was "Lier 2020" and the inhabitants succeeded in completing all challenges.

Famous people from Lier

• Anton Bergmann, lawyer and writer
• Cornelis de Bie, lawyer and writer
• Jan Ceulemans, football player
• Thomas Matthijs, lawyer and writer
• Jean-Baptist David, canon and founder of the Davidsfonds
• Patrick Dewael, politician, former Minister-President of Flanders
• Wim Henderickx (b. Lier, 1962), composer
• Isidoor Opsomer, painter
• Bob Peeters, former football player, now a manager
• Felix Timmermans, Flemish writer and painter
• Triggerfinger, rock band
• Lodewijck Van Boeckel, ornamental smith
• Herman Van Breda, founder of the Husserl archive
• Wim Vandekeybus (b. Lier, 1963) choreographer, director, film maker and founder of "Ultima Vez" Wim Vandekeybus
• Herman Vanderpoorten, politician (1922–1984)
• Filip Verlinden (born 1982), kickboxer
• Yanina Wickmayer, tennis player
• Marc Zabeau (b. Lier, 1949), scientist and businessman

Gallery

• 

  church

• 

  St. Gummarus Church

• 

  monumental houses

• 

  Lier Zimmertoren

References

1. Population per municipality on 1 January 2013 (XLS; 607.5 KB)
2. Catalogue Spécialisé des Oblitérations Belges, 1849-1910, Nationale en Internationale Postzegelmanifestaties Antwerpen (NIPA), Antwerp, 1999.
3. Liste des Numéros Postaux, Administration des Postes, Bruxelles 1969.

External links

• Official website (Dutch only)