The Dyle (French: Dyle, Walloon: Tîle) is a Brabant river that flows through the Belgian provinces of Walloon Brabant, Flemish Brabant and Antwerp. It is part of the Scheldt basin. The area east of Brussels, through which the Dyle flows, is called the Dijleland.
The most important places on the Dyle are, downstream, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, Waver, Leuven, Werchter and Mechelen. The river is 86 kilometres long.
This river rises in Houtain-le-Val, a sub-municipality of Genappe in Walloon Brabant. Initially, the Dyle flows fairly freely in a northeasterly direction. South of Leuven, the Thyle, the Train, the Nethen, the Laan and the IJse flow into the Dyle; in Leuven itself, the Voer as well. In Werchter the Demer flows into the Dijle, which then makes a bend to the west. In Mechelen the Dijle is split into an Inner Dijle and an Afleidingsdijle. Finally, just after the Zenne flows into its course, the Dijle merges with the Nete into the Rupel in Rumst.

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Viviane

January 21, 2025

Officially, the Demer flows into the Dijle, but at the confluence of the two, at Werchter, the Dijle is a smaller stream than the Demer. A possible explanation for the fact that the river still remains called the Dijle is that the Dijle flows through the historically more important city of Leuven than the Demer with Aarschot and Diest. In addition, approximately 40% of the Dijle water has been flowing into the Leuvense Vaart for centuries in Leuven, while the name is older than the canal. Finally, it is clear that the Demer water makes a bend at the mouth, while the Dijle water flows straight ahead: the original Demer bed was more to the north, at the current mouth of the Laak. In that sense, the Demer does indeed flow into the Dijle.
On 1 September 891, Arnulf of Carinthia defeated “the great army” of the Danish Vikings in the Battle of Leuven on the Dijle. They then retreated in 892.
Between September 1939 and May 1940, the Belgian Ministry of Defence had the KW position built, an anti-tank barrier to protect itself against an invasion by Nazi Germany. It was built between Koningshooikt and Wavre, hence the KW in the name, mainly along the Dijle.

Translated by Google •

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Elevation 60 m

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Take Me There

Location: Haacht, Leuven, Flemish Brabant, Flanders, Belgium

Other Popular Places to Check Out

F8 Fietssnelweg (Cycle Highway)

Rainbow Bridge Over the Dijle to Bonheiden

Op 't Ezelswegske

De Dijle

Hier krijg je je hoofd compleet leeg

View of the Dijle

Long Boardwalk Through the Forest

Gravel Path Rijmenam – Hansbrug Along the Dijle

Vlonderpad

Weisetterbos

Gravelroute Hansbrug – Rijmenam Langs de Dijle

Laakbos

Dijle River

1. Dijle Bridge – Dijle River loop from Keerbergen

2. Dijle Bridge – Oude Hansbrug loop from Keerbergen

3. Sint-Michiel Tower – Dijle River loop from Keerbergen

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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