Geuzentoren (Viewfinder of the Flemish Ardennes)

In the middle of the forest lies the fairytale Geuzen Tower. It was built on a dolmen. Here - according to legend - the poets Karel Maria Polydoor (Pol) de Mont and Omer Wattez coined the name "Flemish Ardennes".

Poet and author (today one would say activist) Wattez (1857-1935) lived in a time when Flemish language, culture and way of life was suppressed. Seeing one's own homeland as an attractive travel destination was already considered a political issue and also a bit crazy, then giving the whole thing a poetic name - "Flemish Ardennes" - was a courageous act of emancipation, almost a coming out.

Even then, Wattez was striving for a balance between man and nature - albeit more out of a romantic understanding and less for ecological reasons - and fought against the pollution of the Scheldt.

Located on one of the highest peaks of the Muziekbos, a round tower built in iron sandstone.

The Geuzentoren is one of the 19th century foils. Back then it was the custom for the wealthy bourgeoisie to have fantasy buildings or romantic-looking outbuildings built on their estate. All this to impress or out of prestige.
In times long past, this Geuzentoren was also called the binoculars of the Flemish Ardennes. Know that in the 19th century the trees did not reach that high. When you stood on top of the Geuzentoren, you had a very distant view of the meadow area. This is also where the name, the pronunciation of the Flemish Ardennes, is said to have been used for the first time when Omer Wattez and his friend, the poet Pol De Mont, admired the landscape after an inspiring walk on the tower. Pol De Mont is said to have grouped out the legendary words 'But these are the Flemish Ardennes'. Since then, it has been the pet name for the Pearl of a region in the Flemish country.