Fever Chapel Sint-Pieterveld Wingene

Previously, there was an Our Lady statue on a pole here. A stone chapel was erected around 1776 .

Originally this was a place of worship because there was no parish church nearby , but this place quickly grew into a kind of pilgrimage site where people came from far and wide to pray and, above all, to cure fever. One therefore speaks of a fever chapel.

On the "ommegang" or path in the grove around the field chapel, seven lime trees each hung a niche with a statue of the Lady in it and between two lime trees that had grown together at the foot stood an impressive Lady of the Cross . Those lime trees are still there, but a new high crucifix was erected on the hill near the chapel.

They performed the procession three times , prayed at the crucifix and some added a superstitious gesture to their devotion: they tied a ribbon around one or more of those lime trees "to tie off the fever". They were ribbons of all kinds and colors: white, blue, elegant or simple strips of rag or string.
Humorists say that women also tied garters to them. On Chapel Day, bundles of ribbons hung from the trees. In time they fell away due to winds and rot . They were also ripped off by rascals. At school in Doomkerke this custom was called "superstition".

The chapel was very busy at the time and there was a large crowd, especially on March 25, chapel day, when the grand prix of Sint-Pietersveld was held. Over the years, that day grew into a real fair day with the usual folk festivals and a cycling race, the Sint-Pietersveld grand prize.

Around 1960, during the widening and modernization of the road to St. Maria-Aalter, the chapel was in danger of disappearing, but a solution was found: steps and lime trees in front of the entrance door disappeared and a door was installed at the back of the chapel.

With the decline of Marian devotion, the beeweg also disappeared. Even more: the old niches and. statues were long gone. when they were replaced by new ones due to the actions of a local lady, but also fell prey to art and antique theft. The chapel itself is rarely used; it was even permanently closed because lately it had only served as a resting and sleeping place for wanderers. and immersion heaters . Only the tradition of "Chapelle Day" with the necessary festivities has survived, but Marian devotion has been forgotten.

Willem Vandenameele