De Rammelaars is a low-lying, swampy area. From the middle of the 19th century, the Kempen was converted on a large scale into an agricultural area with larger and drier plots. De Rammelaars was spared, precisely because it was so wet and remote. It is therefore a rare witness to the once common Kempen stream valley landscape with small grasslands surrounded by wooded edges and rows of trees, and alder marshes. Upwelling of ferrous groundwater or seepage can be seen in the rusty color of streams and some ponds.
In the Rammelaars you can still see the contours of peat pits where the peat layer was dug out until the end of the 19th century. Peat was used as a fuel, including for the smelting of iron ore that was mined in the region. This low quality iron ore was smelted into iron. After peat extraction stopped, nature took over the landscape again and the vegetation evolved into alder marsh forest. In addition, water management is organized on the basis of the extensive canal system that was constructed at the beginning of the 19th century.
The name of the area refers to the many rabbits and hares that live there, a male rabbit or hare is a rattle.