Tervuren
Encyclopedia
Tervuren is a municipality
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...

 in the province of 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...

, in Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

, one of the three regions of Belgium
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...

. The municipality comprises the villages of Duisburg
Duisburg (Tervuren)
-History:On the first of January 1977 Duisburg became part of the municipality of Tervuren as part of the fusion of the Belgian municipalities. Prior to this it was an independent municipality.-Culture:...

, Tervuren, Vossem
Vossem
Vossem is a village in the municipality of Tervuren, in Belgium. It is located in the valley of the Voer creek . There is small nature reserve in Vossem, the Twaalf-Apostelenbos , a swamp.Vossem was an independent village until 1977, when it became part of the municipality of Tervuren....

 and Moorsel. On January 1, 2006, Tervuren had a total population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...

 of 20,636. The total area
Area
Area is a quantity that expresses the extent of a two-dimensional surface or shape in the plane. Area can be understood as the amount of material with a given thickness that would be necessary to fashion a model of the shape, or the amount of paint necessary to cover the surface with a single coat...

 is 32.92 km², which gives it 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 627 inhabitants per km².

The official language of Tervuren is Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...

. Local minorities consist primarily of French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 speakers and nationals of many countries of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

, the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The reason for this diverse mix of nationalities is the presence of expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...

 workers and their families working in and around Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...

, usually either for the European Union, NATO or for multinational corporation
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...

s. The British School of Brussels
British School of Brussels
The British School of Brussels , an English-language day school providing a British education for international students in Belgium, was founded in 1970 and occupies a site of about surrounded by woodland near the Royal Museum of Central Africa in the town of Tervuren, east of Brussels...

 has been located in Tervuren since 1970.

Tervuren is one of the richest municipalities in Belgium. It is linked to Brussels by a large processional avenue (Tervurenlaan/Avenue de Tervueren) built by king Leopold II
Leopold II of Belgium
Leopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...

 for the Universal Exhibition of 1897
Brussels International (1897)
The Brussels International Exposition of 1897 was a World's Fair held in Brussels, Belgium, from May 10, 1897 through November 8, 1897...

. This interweaves with a combined heritage and commuter tramline
Brussels trams
The Brussels tram system is one of the ten largest in the world, carrying some 75.6 million passengers in 2009. Its development demonstrates many of the quandaries that face local public transport planners...

. Until 1959 Tervuren was also served by an electric railway, whose disused terminus opposite the Royal Museum for Central Africa
Royal Museum for Central Africa
The Royal Museum for Central Africa is an ethnographical and natural history museum in Tervuren, just outside Brussels, Belgium. It was first built to show off King Leopold II's Congo Free State for the 1897 World Exhibition. It focuses mainly on Congo, Belgium's former colony...

 is now a pub named the Spoorloos Station (Trackless Station).

History

For centuries people thought that Tervuren was the same place as "Fura", where Saint Hubert (Hubertus)
Hubertus
Saint Hubertus or Hubert , called the "Apostle of the Ardennes" was the first Bishop of Liège...

 died in 727 AD. There is, however, no historical proof of this.

A document dating from 1213 AD proves the presence of Henry I, Duke of Brabant
Henry I, Duke of Brabant
Henry I of Brabant , named "The Courageous" Duke of Brabant and Duke of Lower Lotharingia until his death.-Biography:...

, possibly in a wooden fortification. This evolved in the castle of Tervuren, the residence of the dukes of Brabant in the 14th and 15th centuries. The castle was demolished in 1782 under Joseph II
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...

.

Tram 44, which travels between Brussels (Montgomery) and Tervuren (and the Royal Museum for Central Africa) exists because of Leopold II's desire to bring visitors from around the world to his 1897 exhibition of the Congo
Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...

.

Culture

The Royal Museum for Central Africa
Royal Museum for Central Africa
The Royal Museum for Central Africa is an ethnographical and natural history museum in Tervuren, just outside Brussels, Belgium. It was first built to show off King Leopold II's Congo Free State for the 1897 World Exhibition. It focuses mainly on Congo, Belgium's former colony...

 (RMCA) is an ethnographical
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...

 and natural history
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...

 museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...

. It focuses mainly on the Congo, Belgium's former colony
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....

. However, some aspects (especially regarding to biological research) extend to the whole of the Congo River basin, Middle Africa, East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...

 and West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...

. It was at first intended purely as a colonial museum, but after 1960 it became more focused on ethnography and anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

. Like in most museums, there is both a research department and a public exhibit department. Despite its name, not all research pertains to Africa. For example, there is research going on into the archaeozoology of Sagalassos
Sagalassos
Sagalassos is an archaeological site in southwestern Turkey, about 100 km north of Antalya , and 30 km from Burdur and Isparta...

. Some researchers have strong ties with the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
The Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences is a museum in the Belgian capital of Brussels dedicated to natural history. Its most important pieces are 30 fossilized Iguanodon skeletons, which were discovered in 1878 in Bernissart. The dinosaur hall of the museum is the world's largest museum...

. The museum is surrounded by gardens, with the biggest giant redwood in Flanders, and a large park with lakes. St Hubert Chapel is located at the west end of the park.

Tervuren Library (Gemeentelijke Openbare Bibliotheek Tervuren - GOBT) is situated at Vandersandestraat 15. It contains around 43,300 printed documents, and 886 DVDs.

Education

The Gemeentelijke Basisschool Tervuren has a kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...

 and a primary school. The Heilig Hartcollege (HHC) Tervuren has a primary school as well. It also has a grammar school
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...

. The Koninklijke Ateneum Tervuren (KAT) is a primary and grammar school.
There is also the GITO, a secondary technical school.
The British School of Brussels
British School of Brussels
The British School of Brussels , an English-language day school providing a British education for international students in Belgium, was founded in 1970 and occupies a site of about surrounded by woodland near the Royal Museum of Central Africa in the town of Tervuren, east of Brussels...

 has been located in Tervuren since 1970.
There are also several alternative schools including the Kristoffel Steiner School (for 'peuters and kleuters', effectively a kindergarten) for children 2.5 to 6 years. The Steiner method of teaching is subsidised by the Government and follows the curriculum from the Federation of Steiner Schools in Flanders. Dutch speaking but encompasses and accommodates children from different nationalities.

Twin towns

Tervuren is twinned
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...

 with Dachau
Dachau
Dachau is a town in Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany. It is a major district town—a Große Kreisstadt—of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, about 20 km north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants...

, Oosterbeek
Oosterbeek
Oosterbeek is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is located in the municipality of Renkum, about 5 km west of Arnhem.The oldest part of the village of Oosterbeek is the Benedendorp , on the northern bank of the river Rhine...

 (in Renkum
Renkum
Renkum is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands.The municipality has 31.801 inhabitants and has a land area of 47,12 km². Renkum is situated along the river Rhine The municipality Renkum is part of the Stadsregio Arnhem-Nijmegen.The surrounding of the municipality are mainly...

) and Kloster Lehnin.

External links

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