Origins to the 15th century The region of the
Scheldt was inhabited in prehistory, as proven by some
La Tène artifacts found in
Appels. Grave sites from the 2nd and 6th century also attest to dense settlement in
Gallo-Roman and
Merovingian times. In 843, the
Treaty of Verdun placed Dendermonde in
Lotharingia. After the
Norman invasions of 883, however,
Baldwin II took over the region and incorporated it into the German part of the newly founded
County of Flanders.
Otto II built a fort here in the 10th century, encouraging further settlements in the area. The town received its city
charter in 1233 and grew quickly after that, thanks to a thriving cloth industry. Several cloisters, chapels and churches, and a fortified defensive wall were built as well. A cloth hall and belfry were erected on the market square in the mid 14th century. The town's prosperity, however, gave rise to severe competition with cities such as
Ghent and to occasional attacks and plunders by neighbours. In 1384, the whole area came under the control of the Valois dukes of
Burgundy.
16th to 20th century (around 1775) The 16th century saw a decline in Dendermonde's fortunes. In 1572, the city was conquered by
William the Silent. The same year, however, Spanish troops under Duke
Alexander Farnese of
Parma, took over the city, looted and mostly destroyed it. A decade later, the Spaniards built their own fortress between the Dender and the Scheldt. In 1667, it was France's turn, under
Louis XIV, to advance on the city, but they were turned back when the defenders opened the dikes and flooded the countryside. The allied troops of the
Netherlands and England, under the
Duke of Marlborough, caused the heaviest damage in 1706. The city was then fortified by the Austrians against further French ambitions. After a last siege by
Louis XV, the city could finally breathe to the point that the fortifications were dismantled a few decades later. The second half of the 18th century was generally prosperous, with the advent of the
Industrial Revolution and a local cotton industry. After 1800, the port facilities were modernized and the first railways laid down, allowing other industries (e.g. oil, shoe, leather, etc.) to move in. The onset of
World War I in September 1914 was disastrous for the city as more than half of its housing and the city archives were either bombed or burned down.
21st century On 19 August 2006, 28 prisoners managed to escape Dendermonde prison. Seven of them were captured within hours. A few were later found in Italy and Russia. They managed to escape because the lock was old and rusty. They simply walked away, tied all their sheets together, climbed over the wall, jumped on a phone booth and ran away. On 23 January 2009, a 20-year-old Flemish man named Kim De Gelder
attacked a children's daycare centre in the village of
Sint-Gillis-bij-Dendermonde, stabbing three people to death and wounding as many as twenty. One of the school teachers and two babies, aged 8 and 9 months, died in the attack. ==Main sights==