Lange Max Museum
| Lange Max Museum | |
 Lange Max Museum | |
  Near Koekelare, Belgium | |
| Established | October 2014 |
|---|---|
| Location | Site Lange Max, Clevenstraat 2, B 8680 Koekelare, West Flanders, Belgium |
| Coordinates | 51°07′01″N 2°58′56″E / 51.116893°N 2.982338°E |
| Type | World War I Military Museum |
| Director | Rudy Willaert |
| Curator | Gerdi Staelens |
| Owner | vzw Lange Max |
| Nearest car park | On site |
| Website | www.langemaxmuseum.be/ |
The Lange Max Museum (LMM) is devoted to the German 38 cm SK L/45 "Max" gun and the German occupation of Koekelare and the nearby area in World War I. The focus on the German side of the war makes it a unique museum in Belgium. The museum is named after the nickname of the German gun "Lange Max", which was one of the biggest guns of the world in 1917 and located in Koekelare.
The museum was opened in October 2014 by the Minister-President of Flanders, Geert Bourgeois. It is located on a domain called Site Lange Max, which includes a farmyard. At the site one can see other protected monuments: a bakehouse, the artillerie platform and a former German mess. In the museum one learns more about "Lange Max" gun, the former biggest gun of the world in 1917 that bombarded Dunkirk and also Ypres. Dunkirk is located at about ± 45 km from Koekelare. The information is available in four languages: Dutch, German, English and French. Audio guides in Dutch, English and German are also available.
Famous visits
During the Interbellum the Pommern battery was one of the most successful attractions in the battlefield tourism in Belgium. It was featured in the Michelin Guide "L'Yser et la côte belge". Famous visitors to the Site Lange Max over time include:
- Winston Churchill, around the Interwar period.
- Hirohito, 124th Emperor of Japan
- Prince Edward, future King of the United Kingdom and Emperor of India (10 December 1918).[1]
- Prince George, future King of the United Kingdom and Emperor of India (10 December 1918).[2]
- Raymond Poincaré, French President (9 November 1918).[3]
- Prince Leopold, future King of the Belgians (9 November 1918).[4]
- Geert Bourgeois, Minister-President of Flanders (October 2014).
- Eckart Cuntz, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany (8 November 2014).[5]
- Royal Thai Embassy to Belgium, (17 January 2015).[6]
- Bart Tommelein, Vice Minister-President and Flemish Minister for Finance, Budget and Energy in the Bourgeois Government (March 2016).
- Sven Gatz, Flemish Minister for Culture, Youth, Media and Brussels in the Bourgeois Government (June 2016).
nearby
- at 2.7 km you will find Hovaeremolen (Koekelare) which was used as an observationpost during World War I.
- 3 km from the museum you will find the Käthe Kollwitz Museum in Koekelare.
- at 3.1 km you will find the Fransmansmuseum in Koekelare.
- 6 km from the museum you can find the World War I Vladslo German war cemetery.
- at 10 km you find the IJzertoren.
- at 11 km you will find Dodengang.
Awards and Recognition
- 2014: Culture award (Gerdi Staelens, for Lange Max Museum)[7]
- 2015: Raf Seys Price[8]
- 2015: Nomination Heritage Price 2015 West Flanders Province (one of the 20 projects selected out of 500 entries).[9]
Image gallery
- 'Long Max' in Koekelare biggest gun of the world in 1917.
- Long Max (also known as Leugenboom gun) in Koekelare.
_-_Fonds_Berthel%C3%A9_-_49Fi1709.jpg)
Picture of Battery Pommern (= 'Long Max' gun) in Koekelare
Flemish Minister for Culture Sven Gatz visiting the Lange Max Museum (June 2016).
References
- ↑ THE BRITISH ARMY ON THE WESTERN FRONT, 1914-1918
- ↑ THE BRITISH ARMY ON THE WESTERN FRONT, 1914-1918
- ↑ Battlefield tourism on the coast after WWI - VLIZ
- ↑ Battlefield tourism on the coast after WWI - VLIZ
- ↑ Eckart Cuntz, ambassadeur Duitsland bezoekt Lange Max
- ↑ Koninklijke Thaise ambassade bezoekt het Lange Max Museum - Koekelare - 17/01/2015
- ↑ (NL) Cultuurprijs voor werk aan nieuwe Lange Max Museum
- ↑ (NL) Eerste RAF SEYS PRIJS gaat naar de Lange Max!
- ↑ (NL) Erfgoedprijs 2015: de winnaars
- Raf Seys, Commeine L.: Lange Max : het groot kanon van Leugenboom, Devriendt, Koekelare, 192 p.
External links
Media related to Lange Max Museum at Wikimedia Commons
Coordinates: 51°07′01″N 2°58′56″E / 51.1169°N 2.9823°E