In Stormen Sterk Windmill, Gierle

The In Stormen Sterk windmill is located along the Molenstraat in Gierle. There has been a mill on this site since 1499. Whenever the mill was damaged by storms, fire or destruction, a new one was built. This was also the case in 1837 when a hurricane destroyed the previous mill. In Stormen Sterk is a stone ground sailor of the outside porter type. This means that the sails are sailed up on the outside and set to the wind with a cross reel. These blades have a wingspan of no less than 26.5 meters, which makes the mill one of the largest in the country! No wonder that the mill was protected as a monument in 1981. The mill still raises its blades every last Sunday of the month. A team of volunteer millers shows you the mill. In 2006 Kempens Landschap bought the mill, after which the municipality of Lille took the monument on a long lease. After a thorough restoration of the interior and exterior, the mill was reopened in April 2014. Kempens Landschap will continue to assist the millers and support the municipality in the maintenance and opening of the monument.

This mill has seen and experienced a lot. It bears the wonderful name "In Stormen Sterk", which means something like "In strong storms". It is located in the center of Gierle, a small village with only 4,200 inhabitants. You can visit the mill every last Sunday of the month, five hobby millers make it possible for it to be brought back to life.

Fanfact on the side: A famous resident is Louis Neefs, who has already participated twice for Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest. A statue in the center of the village commemorates these heroic deeds.

The windmill, In Stormen Sterk is a ground sailer from 1837.
The mill was extensively restored in 1976 and 2013.
Historical interpretation:
A standard mill already existed on this site, which was built in 1499 on behalf of the lord of Turnhout. The mill first turned on 25 December 1500.
A hurricane knocked this mill over on 29 November 1836. On 16 May 1837, the Permanent Deputation of the province of Antwerp granted permission to Jan Frans De Backer to build a new mill: the current stone ground sailer. In a stone above the entrance gate we read the year 1837 and the initials of the builder-miller and his wife: "I.F.D.B. - A.M.I.". Many wooden parts in the stone mill were reused. It is said of this mill that on 15 November 1844, fifty people stood on the gallery to follow the funeral procession of MP De Nef. The weight of these people caused this scaffolding to collapse, resulting in five deaths and sixteen injuries. Because of this fact, the mill is also called the Tragic Mill. More information on site…