6-636: Zottegem ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈzɔtəɣɛm] , Sotteghem and Sottegem in older English and French language sources) is a city and municipality located in Belgium and more particularly in Flanders , in the province of East Flanders . The municipality comprises the town of Zottegem proper and the villages of Elene, Erwetegem , Godveerdegem , Grotenberge , Leeuwergem , Oombergen , Sint-Goriks-Oudenhove , Sint-Maria-Oudenhove , Strijpen and Velzeke-Ruddershove . On 1 January 2018, Zottegem had
12-586: A total population of 26,373. The total area is 56.66 km which gives a population density of 470 inhabitants per km. Zottegem is part of the hilly geographical area of the Flemish Ardennes ( Vlaamse Ardennen ); the hills and cobblestone streets ( Paddestraat ) are regular locations in the springtime cycle classics of Flanders. The city is known for its ties with Lamoral, Count of Egmont . Lamoral has an Egmont Castle ( Egmontkasteel ), an Egmont museum ( Egmontkamer ) and two Egmont statues in
18-602: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . City status in Belgium City status in Belgium is granted to a select group of municipalities by a royal decree or by an act of law. During the Middle Ages , towns had defined privileges over surrounding villages. As the nobility strengthened their power over regions in feudal Europe, they bestowed on towns the rights to organize annual fairs, levy tolls or build walls and other defense works. Under
24-666: The French occupation of Belgian provinces, these privileges were abolished and replaced by an honorific title of city (Dutch: stad , French: ville ). This was imposed upon the Belgian provinces by order of the French Convention Nationale on 2 Brumaire Year II (23 October 1793). A number of towns lost their title of city. At the time of Dutch rule and incorporation into the United Kingdom of
30-502: The Netherlands (1815–1830), some towns recovered their city title. On 30 May 1825, a royal decree was published and included the list of the towns that were granted the title. Even with Belgian independence (1831-) this list was scarcely changed. After the merging of municipalities throughout Belgium in 1977, some towns had the opportunity to apply for the title of city . The request had to be based on historical facts such as having
36-596: The centre of Zottegem. He is buried in Egmont's crypt ( Egmontcrypte ) under the church. Leeuwergem Castle in Elene is an 18th-century stately home. There also the ruins of an 18th-century windmill can be found. Breivelde Castle in Grotenberge is surrounded by an English landscape garden. The archaeological museum of Velzeke exhibits findings from Gallo-Roman culture . This East Flanders location article
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