Middle Ages In the
Early Middle Ages, Ostend was a small village built on the east-end () of an island (originally called
Testerep) between the North Sea and a beach lake. Although small, the village rose to the status of "town" around 1265, when the inhabitants were allowed to hold a market and to build a market hall. The main source of income for the inhabitants was fishing. The
North Sea coastline has always been rather unstable due to the power of the water. In 1395 the inhabitants decided to build a new Ostend behind large
dikes and further away from the always-threatening sea.
15th–18th centuries (around 1775) The strategic position on the North Sea coast had major advantages for Ostend as a harbour but also proved to be a source of trouble. The town was frequently taken, ravaged, ransacked and destroyed by conquering armies. The
Dutch rebels, the
Gueuzen, took control of the town. The
Siege of Ostend, 1601 to 1604, of which it was said that "the Spanish assailed the unassailable and the Dutch defended the indefensible", cost a combined total of more than 80,000 dead or wounded, making it the single bloodiest battle of the
Eighty Years' War. This shocking event set in motion negotiations that led to a truce several years later. When the truce broke down, it became a
Dunkirker base. After this era, Ostend was turned into a harbour of some importance. In 1722, the Dutch again closed off the entrance to the world's biggest harbour of
Antwerp, the
Westerschelde. Therefore, Ostend rose in importance because the town provided an alternative exit to the sea. The
Belgium Austriacum had become part of the
Austrian Empire. The Austrian Emperor
Charles VI granted the town a trade monopoly with Africa and the
East Indies. The
Ostend Company was allowed to found colonies overseas. However, in 1727 the Ostend Company was dissolved due to Dutch and British diplomatic pressure. There was a
Jewish community in Ostend, which was first noted in the 16th century.
19th century On 19 September 1826, the local
artillery magazine exploded. At least 20 people were killed and a further 200 injured. The affluent quarter of d'Hargras was levelled and scarcely a building in the city escaped damage. Disease followed the devastation leading to further deaths. The harbour of Ostend continued to expand because the harbour dock, as well as the traffic connections with the hinterland, were improved. In 1838, a railway connection with
Brussels was constructed. Ostend became a transit harbour to England in 1846 when the first ferry sailed to
Dover. An October 1854 meeting of American envoys led to the
Ostend Manifesto. Important for the image of the town was the attention it started to receive from the Belgian kings
Leopold I and
Leopold II. Both monarchs liked to spend their holidays in Ostend. Important monuments and villas were built to please the Royal Family, including the
Hippodrome Wellington horse racing track and the
Royal Galleries. The rest of aristocratic Belgium followed and soon Ostend became known as "the queen of the Belgian sea-side resorts". In 1866, Ostend was the venue for a crucial meeting of exiled Spanish Liberals and Republicans which laid the framework, the
Pact of Ostend, for a major uprising in their country, culminating in Spain's
Glorious Revolution two years later.
20th century The two world wars proved to be disastrous for Ostend. The
Belle Époque-era ended for the city in 1914 at the start of
World War I when the Germans placed anti-aircraft batteries along
Fort Napoleon and in the dunes along the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-ter-Duinenkerk. During the
German invasion of Belgium, Ostend along with
Zeebrugge fell to the Germans without fighting on October 15, after which they stationed German submarines and other light naval forces in the city for much of the duration of World War I. Near the end of the war, the British
Royal Navy tried to block Ostend twice with a
naval blockade: the
first raid took place on 23 April 1918, the
second raid on 9 May 1918. Between the wars, the town hosted all of the
sailing events for the
1920 Summer Olympics for
Antwerp. Only the finals of the
12 foot dinghy took place in
Amsterdam. Ostend also hosted the
polo events. Ostend was once again a target at the start of
World War II by both the
Axis and
Allied powers. The city would face repeated bombing raids by the
Luftwaffe during the
German invasion of Belgium on 10 May 1940, destroying significant parts of the historic coastline in the process. As early as 13 and 15 May, German bombs fell in the evening and night around Fort Napoleon and the water tower in the Vuurtorenwijk. On the 17th of May more bombs were dropped, with the freight station on the Istanbul quay being hit as a result. Around this time, the fear that Ostend would be bombed heavily by the Luftwaffe started to form, prompting many to flee the city by boat to England or France. The 21st of May was the scene of another air raid on Ostend, causing big fires as a result. One of such fires was at
Hotel Splendid. The beach hotel of Ostend was hit by three German bombs on the 24th of May. The hotel was used as a hospital and killed over 50 Belgian soldiers after a massive fire broke out. The next day, the 25th of May, another German bombing raid was carried out. At around 08:00 in the morning,
incindiary and
brisance bombs were dropped on the city, causing around 3 to 4 fires and killing 12 civilians as a result. The last bombing raid on the 27th of May ended up completely destroying the city hall of Ostend at the
Wapenplein as well as the city archive and paintings created by
James Ensor and
Léon Spilliaert. In total, the bombing raids between the 21st until the 27th of May caused over 75 deaths of civilians and soldiers in the city. After the German bombings stopped in May 1940, Allied bombings started in June of that year. The
Royal Air Force repeatedly targeted the city due to British fears that Germany would use the strategic coastal city for a
German invasion of England. As a result, more civilians died and even more of the coastline and inner city, as well as the harbour, ended up being damaged or destroyed. After the successful invasion of Belgium and the occupation, the Germans decided to demolish the remnants of the Kursaal and build a bunker underneath its remains. They also decided to enact the massive
Atlantic Wall in the city and heavily reinforced and defended it due to its strategic location. The city was liberated by Canadian troops on 8 September 1944. Ultimately, the many German and British raids on Ostend ended up destroying many historic houses as well as iconic buildings along the coast as well as in the inner city like the city hall,
Kursaal, post office and
Hippodrome Wellington. No other Belgian city was bombed as often and faced as much destruction as Ostend: 407 Allied bombs were dropped on the city, making Ostend the most bombed city in Belgium. Because of this, many of the damaged houses and public buildings were left standing in the city for years. It was ultimately decided that the remnants of said buildings, such as civilian houses and luxury hotels, would be torn down instead of restored after the war and reconstructed with
modernist apartment blocs due to an increasing demand in these types of buildings from the tourist sector.
21st century Ostend's Winter in the Park festival draws more than 600,000 people to the seaside city. During December, Ostend's Christmas market, one of the largest in Europe, features vendors and food sellers along with ice skating, music and other events. A light-show tunnel on one of the major shopping streets attracts and amuses visitors from all over Belgium, Europe and beyond. ==Demographics==