Putte | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 The border between Belgium and the Netherlands in Putte. | |
  Putte Location in the province of North Brabant in the Netherlands Show map of North Brabant Putte Putte (Netherlands) Show map of Netherlands Putte Putte (Benelux) Show map of Benelux | |
| Coordinates:51°22′N4°23′E / 51.367°N 4.383°E /51.367; 4.383 | |
| Country |  Netherlands |
| Province | North Brabant |
| Municipality | Woensdrecht |
| Area | |
• Total | 18.51 km2 (7.15 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 12 m (39 ft) |
| Population (2021)[1] | |
• Total | 3,785 |
| • Density | 200/km2 (530/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 4645[1] |
| Dialing code | 0164 |
Putte is part of theDutch municipality ofWoensdrecht, and had 3751 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008. The village lies on and extends over the border between theNetherlands andBelgium, the Belgian part beingPutte, Kapellen.
The village was first mentioned in 1277 as Pitte and meanswell.[3] Putte developed around the 14th centuryRavenhof Castle [nl] which is located in Belgium, but whose park is mainly in the Netherlands. In 1839, the border was defined and the village started to develop along the border road.[4] In 1648, at thePeace of Münster, the border between theDutch Republic and theSpanish Netherlands was drawn through the village of Putte.[5]
The Catholic St Dionysius Church was built in 1865. The church was destroyed in 1940 by war. In 1950, the tower was rebuilt. The church was rebuilt in 1953 at a distance from the tower. The Moretusbosch is a forest which used to belong to Castle Ravenhof, and containshexagonRococo tea house.[4]
Putte was home to 671 people in 1840. DuringWorld War I, the border was sealed off and theWire of Death was constructed to prevent refugees from entering the Netherlands.[5] The former municipality (which merged with several other communities to form the municipality ofWoensdrecht in 1997) covered 18,56 sq. kilometres, of which much is forest and moorland.
Putte is the burial place of the 17th centuryAntwerp painterJacob Jordaens who, as aProtestant, could not be buried in hisRoman Catholic hometown. A Jordaens monument stands on the place of the former Protestant cemetery. The village also has three extensiveJewish cemeteries with many graves ofBelgian Jews.
The noted artistMarguerite Wildenhain, who was forced to leave her teaching post in Germany because of her Jewish ancestry, came to Putte in 1933. She and her husband Franz established in the town a pottery shop calledHet Kruikje (Little Jug) - which existed until the German invasion of the Netherlands in 1940, when Wildenhain was able to find refuge in the US.
Media related toPutte, Netherlands at Wikimedia Commons