Forest Chapel of Our Lady of Distress (Buggenhout Forest)

The Boskapel was founded in the early 16th century by Jacoba van Heffene, the widow of knight Jan de Rijcke, drossaard of Grimbergen and Buggenhout, on the spot where the knight was killed by a wild boar on 4 December 1504 during a hunting party. A statue of the Distress of God was placed in the chapel and gradually the small place of worship was visited more and more. The chapel was partly destroyed and robbed by the iconoclasts at the end of the 16th century. The statue of the Distress of God could be saved by the parishioners, but the memorial stone for Jan de Rijcke was destroyed. After the siege of peace, the chapel again became an important place of worship. However, the place of worship soon became too small and Princess Ernestine van Arenbergh, wife of Alexander II de Bournonville, Prince of Buggenhout, insisted on an extension of the chapel. She died in 1663 without any changes to the chapel, but ordered in her will to make a stone facade statue of Our Lady in Distress (Pieta).
The wife of Knight Jan van Boom, Martina van Waerbeke, the great-granddaughter of the deceased drossaard, agreed with Prince Alexander to enlarge the chapel. Work started in 1664 and was completed in 1667. The old chapel was preserved and was integrated as the choir of a new, more spacious place of worship. The front building was 13 meters long and 7.5 meters wide and was built in Rupelmond brick with a vault in white stone. The bell tower on the chapel dates from 1764.
The Boskapel grew into a true place of pilgrimage and in 1683 and 1773 Pope Innocent XI and Pope Clemens XIV granted a plenary indulgence on the third Sunday after Easter. During the French Revolution the chapel was closed, but from May 1798 the ceremonies in the chapel were resumed and continued uninterrupted.
In 1885 the chapel was repaired by Janssens-Lammens from Ghent and restored in the third quarter of the 20th century at the initiative of the parish priest.
(Inventory of Immovable Heritage)

The forest chapel has been Buggenhout's most famous monument for centuries. According to legend, this 500-year-old Baroque chapel was built by Jacoba van Heffene to commemorate her husband Jan De Rijcke. He shot next to a wild boar during a hunt, after which the animal turned on him. A memorial plaque in the chapel tells the story of the fatal accident.The Boskapel is dedicated to Our Lady of Need and is still a place of peace and reflection today. Around the chapel there is a circle of 15 statues of rock sculptures.Source: buggenhout.be/product/1067/boskapel

The chapel was built in 1504 and extension works took place from 1664 to 1677. These works lasted thirteen years because of wars and looting in the area. The de Bournonville family, the then lords of Buggenhout, adorned the gable with their coat of arms, which later became the coat of arms of the municipality. To complete the works, a stone statue of Our Lady of Need of God, to whom the chapel is dedicated, was placed above the entrance. The sculptor was Filip De Backer.The simple turret was built in 1764. On the outer facade are seven bas-reliefs in terracotta by the Leuven sculptor P.F. from Passel. These works of art represent the Seven Woes of Mary and were installed in 1858.Inside we find a beautiful baroque interior. Above the altar (1680) is a statue of the Emergency of God in a niche. On the sides we find portico altars of Saint Eligius (1765) and Saint Rochus (1768) by Antoon van Brunswyck. A confessional, communion rail and some paintings complete the interior. (source Wikipedia)