OUD-HEVERLEE

The town is situated at the juncture of Vaalbeek Valley and the plateau, between the marshy river areas and the thin farmland stretching between the Heverlee and Meerdaal Woods. It is difficult to say whether Heverlee or Oud-Heverlee is the oldest town. Both villages had very plain origins, including the formation of their respective parishes. One town had a full church, while the other had a branch church. The towns quickly grew to equals in terms of their parishes, however, they continued to be served by the same pastor until into the 18th century.

Both St. Lambert's Church in Heverlee and St. Anne's Church in Oud-Heverlee were originally built in the 11th century. The patronage of the two parishes belonged to St. Bartholome's Church in Liege. St. Anne's Church in Oud-Heverlee is believed to be the primary church based on one historical document. Pastor Johannes Molanus (1533-1585) was the pastor of the two churches, and had his living quarters in Oud-Heverlee when he wrote his work "Historiae Lovaniensium." The work contains the following statement in Latin, "Ecclesia S. Lamberiti in Hererlis…. Est filia ecclesiae Outheverlis," but he provides no other proof of the matter. Perhaps the names of both towns are based on the word “hefft”. The prefix Oud can mean old, but may also be derived from the word “hout”, meaning forest or timber.

Besides having the same ecclesiastical leadership, both towns also shared the same lord. Between 1370 and 1446 control of the towns passed through the families van Berlaar, van der Bruggen, Godenaers and van Graven. In 1446 govenership of the two towns was given by Raas van Graven to Antoon van Croy. In the 17th century the towns passed to the Duchy of Arenberg. In the center of the Oud-Heverlee region, near the ponds from the Zoet Water, is a small manor, Steenbergen. The manor, a possession of the van Wesele family, had both a brewery and a mill. The last lord of the family was Everard van Wesele (died 1484) and was court doctor to Maximilian of Austria and Marie from Burgandy. Everard’s grandson Andries van Wesele, also known as Andreas Vesalius (1514 – 1564) was the personal physician to Karel V and Philip II, as well as the founder of scientific anatomy. Control passed to the family van Dongelbergh in the 17th century, and to the family van Herkenrode in the 18th century.

Steenbergen developed a reputation as a pilgrimage site. In 1651-1652 the lord Hendrik van Dongelberge erected the Baroque Onze Lievre Vrouw chapel. A disagreement developed between Hendrik and the pastor Renerus Geloes as to the right to read mass. Hendrik insisted that he had a right to do so, having paid for the construction of the chapel. The quarrel continued through 1666, even with the successor to Renier Geloes, pastor Joannes Dewint. Finally it was decided that the chapel alter would be sealed with 2 locks, the pastor would get 1 key and the baron would get the other. In order to open the altar both must be present. The contents were to be given to the deacon and the pastor of St. Kwinten in Leuven. These two along with the pastor and the baron would decide on how to spend the assets of the chapel.

Around 1700 the lord of Steenbergen, Simon van Herkenrode, and the pastor of Oud-Heverlee, Johannes-Claudius Damiens, organized a devotion for St. Hubertus. Between 1731 and 1744 the printed St. Hubertus “prenjes” and baked St. Hubertus bread.

In 1759 Duke Karel-Maria-Raymond van Arenberg purchased the Steenbergen manor for 58,140 gulden and 12 stuivers.

last updated 4/27/06