Origins to Middle Ages Neolithic tools and remains of a
Gallo-Roman villa have been found on the territory of Jette, proving the old age of the first settlements in this area. The fact that its first church was dedicated to Saint
Peter also indicates early
Christianisation. During the
Middle Ages, parts of the territory were
feudal dependencies of the
Duchy of Brabant. Under the duke's protection,
Dieleghem Abbey was founded in 1095 by the
Bishop of Cambrai and administered by
Augustinian canons. In 1140, the Abbey's monks switched to the rules of the
Premonstratensian order. In the 13th century, the Abbey possessed half of the municipality's territory and played an important social and economic role until the
French Revolution.
17th to 20th century During the
Ancien Régime, Jette was part of the town of
Merchtem, located in modern-day
Flemish Brabant. In the 17th century, during the period of the
Spanish Netherlands, the Finance Minister under Archdukes
Albert and
Isabella acquired and refurbished the old 12th-century
Rivieren Castle in the village of
Ganshoren, near Jette. In 1654, the minister's son made this estate into a
barony, then five years later, into a
county, which included Jette and several neighbouring villages. In the 1790s, the regime that was put in power by the
French Revolution curtailed the religious freedoms drastically. The monks were expelled from the Abbey in 1796, and most of the buildings demolished the following year. Only the abbot's house was kept as a leisure house. In 1841, Ganshoren split from Jette. During the following decades, what remained of Jette gradually lost its rural character to become a suburb of Brussels. Its population, which was of around 10,000 in 1900 grew to more than 40,000 in 1971. ==Main sights==