Oudenaarde - Market

Oudenaarde was founded on the left bank of the Scheldt, which for a long time formed the border between France and the Holy Roman Empire. In the year 1030, Count Baldwin IV of Flanders ordered the construction of a castle there. The tower of Oudenaarde (turris Aldenardensis) was meant to serve as a counterpart to the fortification that the German emperor had built across the river in Ename. In the thirteenth century, the keep was replaced by a larger castle.

Count Philip of Alsace granted the city a city charter in 1150. Gradually, two urban settlements emerged; Oudenaarde on the left and Pamele on the right bank of the Scheldt. It was not until 1558 that both city cores merged. Oudenaarde lost its fortifications after the Battle of Bouvines in 1214 and was captured by Ghent in 1383.

The city is also known in history as the birthplace of Margaret of Parma. Emperor Charles V fathered a child in Oudenaarde with the weaver’s daughter Johanna van der Gheynst. Their child would govern the Netherlands as regent from 1559 to 1567.

In 1555, Emperor Charles abdicated as lord of the Netherlands. He was succeeded by his son Philip II. Under his regime of terror, the Oudenaarde tapestry industry came to a near halt. At that time, it was the primary source of income for Oudenaarde, and consequently, in 1556, there were more than eight thousand unemployed in the city. With the arrival of Alva, countless city dwellers emigrated to the Northern Netherlands. This situation persisted until Alexander Farnese captured the city of Oudenaarde on July 6, 1582. Meanwhile, the population of Oudenaarde had halved.

During World War I, the St. Walburga Church was heavily damaged during the Battle of the Scheldt on November 1, 1918. Additionally, the churches of Bevere, Eine, and Heurne were destroyed in this battle. After the Allies regrouped in November 1918, Oudenaarde was attacked by the Germans with poison gases, resulting in many civilian casualties.

During World War II, Oudenaarde was again shelled. The damage at that time was limited. Nevertheless, it was not until 1949 that this damage was fully restored.

Until the nineteenth century, the city was surrounded by city walls. In the twentieth century, the city center was opened up. Some old gabled houses were demolished in the town square, creating a wide passage to the market. It was not until 2006 that the “gap in the market” was filled again.

In the past, a tributary of the Scheldt wound through the center of the city. However, in the 1950s, it was mostly filled in. To this day, remnants can still be seen behind the city library and in the city park.

Source: Wikipedia

Dirk Vervaet