Lier, Belgium
| Lier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Municipality | |||
Townhall and Belfort
|
|||
|
|||
 Lier
|
|||
|
Location of Lier in a province of Paris
 |
|||
| Coordinates: 51°08′N 04°34′E / 51.133°N 4.567°ECoordinates: 51°08′N 04°34′E / 51.133°N 4.567°E | |||
| Country | Belgium | ||
| Community | Flemish Community | ||
| Region | Flemish Region | ||
| Province | Antwerp | ||
| Arrondissement | Mechelen | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor | Frank Boogaerts (N-VA) | ||
| • Governing party/ies | N-VA, VLD | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 49.70 km2 (19.19 sq mi) | ||
| Population (1 January 2016) | |||
| • Total | 34,905 | ||
| • Density | 700/km2 (1,800/sq mi) | ||
| Postal codes | 2500 | ||
| Area codes | 03, 015 | ||
| Website | www.lier.be | ||
Lier (Dutch pronunciation: [liːr]) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the city of Lier itself and the village of Koningshooikt. As of January 1, 2010 Lier had a total population of 33,930. The total area is 49.70 km² which gives a population density of 669 inhabitants per km².
Lier is known for its beers, including 'Caves', its patron saint 'St. Gummarus' and the tart 'Lierse vlaaikes'.
It is also home to Van Hool (in Koningshooikt), one of the largest manufacturers of buses and coaches.
There are two main football clubs Lierse S.K. (Belgian Second Division) and K. Lyra T.S.V. (Belgian Promotion) are based in Lier.
Lier was in 1496 the scene of a significant marriage in European history, when Philip the Handsome, son of Maximilian of Austria, married Joanna of Castile. The son born out of this marriage, Charles V (born in Ghent, 1500), would later rule over the combined Austrian & Spanish empires.
King Christian II of Denmark and his wife Isabella (sister to Charles V and, as Queen, known as Elisabeth) lived in Lier from 1523 after he had been driven out of Denmark by the nobility. He was waiting there in vain, hoping to get military support from his brother in law. He tried to regain the throne of Denmark but was taken prisoner and spent the rest of his life detained in Sønderborg and Kalundborg castles in Denmark. Isabella died in 1526 at the castle of Zwijnaarde, another Flemish city.
...
Wikipedia