Knokke

Knokke is one of a group of communities that are all grouped in the administrative community Knokke-Heist, in the province of West Flanders in Flanders, Belgium. Knokke itself has 15.653 inhabitants (2003).
Knokke is the most North-Eastern seaside resort of the Flemish coast. It lies close to the Dutch border and is separated from the Dutch territory by Zwin, a beautiful and extremely interesting natural reserve.

It is famous for its beaches, and for the dike system to which it owes its origins. Knokke came into existence because of the construction of dikes that were meant to protect the area around the 'Zwin' sea-arm. Originally a simple vacation haven for the humble city folk of Brussels, in the early 1800s a lot of painters, such as James Ensor, Alfred Verwee and others, started to frequent the small hamlet to paint its beautiful vistas. The artists rented a small miller's cottage and founded there the Cercle des Artistes in 1880. It gradually became a resort town with upscale clientele, restaurants and shops.

Knokke also has one of Belgium's ten casinos. In this casino you can find wall paintings of Keith Haring, Rene Magritte and Paul Delvaux. In the Kroonluchterzaal (Dutch for Chandelier room) you will see a huge chandelier of 6 tons made of Venetian crystal. It was designed by Architect J. Selis and designer Al. David.