Zuid (Antwerp) - History

History

Antwerpen Zuid (Antwerp South) came into being as a distinct district with the demolition of the Citadel or Zuidkasteel, which was originally built by the Spanish occupier. Demolition works were started in 1874. The street plan was approved by Royal Decree in 1875. It is said to have been inspired by Haussman, giving rise to the nickname “Le Petit Paris”. Work was started on the excavation of the Zuiderdokken (Southern Docks) in the same year. The area was developed over the next 25 years, with most of the major public buildings being completed in the final decade of the century. Landmarks in the history of the district include:

• two World Fairs, held respectively in 1885 and 1894 (see list of world's fairs);

• the completion of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in 1890;

• the completion of the “Dutch” Synagogue in the Bouwmeestersstraat in 1893 (see Jewish Community of Antwerp);

• the opening of the Parein biscuit factory in the Brusselsestraat in 1894;

• the completion of the St. Michiels church (Amerikalei) in 1897;

• the completion of the buildings of the State Commercial College (Handelshogeschool) (Schildersstraat) likewise in 1897 and now occupied by the Higher Institute for Translators and Interpreters;

• the opening of the South Station in 1898;

The Petit Paris cachet, the agreeable street plan, its monuments and cultural attractions made “het Zuid” or “Le Midi” a fashionable place to live until the Second World War. During the war the area sustained considerable V bomb damage, with the first bomb to hit Antwerp landing on the corner of the Schildersstraat and the Leopold De Waelplaats.

After the war the area went into a long period of decline. Probable reasons include the flight to the suburbs, the decline of the Southern Docks, and the closure of the South Station, with the latter being demolished in 1965.

The low rents made the area attractive to both immigrants and those seeking a bohemian lifestyle. The rock bottom prices, for example, made it possible for Anny De Dekker to open the “Wide White Space Gallery” (1966–1976) on the ground floor of Het Bootje, an architecturally eclectic house on the corner of Schildersstraat and Plaatsnijdersstraat, and now a listed monument.

The Southern Docks were filled in 1968 and 1969, and became parking space. A new building for the Court of Appeals was built on the former access to these docks. This and the demolition of the Hippodrome in 1972 sealed the fate of “het Zuid” as a forgotten area of town with only a certain faded charm to offer.

Eventually the fundamentally good quality of the housing stock combined with the area’s inherent attractions, changing attitudes toward urban living, and the impetus provided by International Rubens year in 1977, which brought hundreds of visitors to South Antwerp, led to a revival in fortunes.