Tessenderlo
Encyclopedia
Tessenderlo is a municipality
located in the Belgian
province of Limburg
. It is where the three Belgian provinces of Limburg, Flemish Brabant
and Antwerp
meet at the front gate of the Averbode
Abbey. The municipality Tessenderlo encompasses the villages of Tessenderlo proper, Schoot, Engsbergen, Hulst and Berg. It is on the Albert Canal
and the European route E313
, the highway between Antwerp and Liège
, one of the reasons why it was the place for the first Belgian "Industrial Zone of National Importance" in the 1960's.
Tessenderlo was the scene of an infamous industrial disaster during WWII, when a stock of 150 tonnes of ammonium nitrate at the chemical plant of "Produits Chimiques de Tessenderloo" (now "Tessenderlo Chemie") - located near the centre of town - exploded on April 29th 1942, killing 189 people at the plant and in the town.
Tessenderlo is part of a small western zone of Limburg where the local dialect is not the Limburgian dialect, but Brabantic.
On January 1, 2006 Tessenderlo had a total population of 16,811. The total area is 51.35 km² which gives a population density
of 327 inhabitants per km².
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
located in the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
province of Limburg
Limburg (Belgium)
Limburg is the easternmost province of modern Flanders, which is one of the three main political and cultural sub-divisions of modern Belgium. It is located west of the river Meuse . It borders on the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and Limburg and the Belgian provinces of Liège, Flemish Brabant...
. It is where the three Belgian provinces of Limburg, Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Hainaut and East Flanders. Flemish Brabant also completely surrounds the Brussels-Capital Region. Its capital is Leuven...
and Antwerp
Antwerp (province)
Antwerp is the northernmost province both of the Flemish Region, also called Flanders, and of Belgium. It borders on the Netherlands and the Belgian provinces of Limburg, Flemish Brabant and East Flanders. Its capital is Antwerp which comprises the Port of Antwerp...
meet at the front gate of the Averbode
Averbode
Averbode may refer to:* Averbode , a village in Belgium* Averbode Abbey, an abbey in the village* Averbode , the publishing company owned by the abbey...
Abbey. The municipality Tessenderlo encompasses the villages of Tessenderlo proper, Schoot, Engsbergen, Hulst and Berg. It is on the Albert Canal
Albert Canal
The Albert Canal is a canal located in northeastern Belgium, named after King Albert I of Belgium. It connects the major cities Antwerp and Liège and the Meuse and Scheldt rivers. It has a depth of , a free height of and a total length of...
and the European route E313
European route E313
The European route E 313 is a road in Europe and a part of the United Nations International E-road network. Approximately long, it connects the Belgian port city of Antwerp to Liège, the commercial and industrial centre of Wallonia...
, the highway between Antwerp and Liège
Liège
Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....
, one of the reasons why it was the place for the first Belgian "Industrial Zone of National Importance" in the 1960's.
Tessenderlo is part of a small western zone of Limburg where the local dialect is not the Limburgian dialect, but Brabantic.
On January 1, 2006 Tessenderlo had a total population of 16,811. The total area is 51.35 km² which gives a population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 327 inhabitants per km².
Notable people
- Kate RyanKate RyanKate Ryan is a Belgian World Music Award winner. She began her singing career in 2001 and later found fame with a string of dance hits. These included covers, mostly of Mylène Farmer and France Gall, such as "Désenchantée", "Libertine" and "Ella, elle l'a" as well as new material...
, Belgian singer. - Chantal Calin, Belgian singer.
- Tia HellebautTia HellebautTia Hellebaut is a Belgian track and field athlete who started out in the heptathlon, but afterwards specialized in the high jump event. She has cleared 2.05 metres both indoors and outdoors....
, Olympic Champion 2008 Highjump - Piet Goddaer, Belgian singer