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27-464: The etymology of the name Lier is still under debate. It most likely refers to the river Nete and the muddy soils that surround it. The Latin name of Lier is Lyra , the suffix of which (-ara) is probably derived from the Germanic or Celtic reference to river . Alternatively, the origin might be the Germanic words Ledo or Ledi , which both refer to a location near the confluence of rivers (in this case

54-627: A skeleton of a mammoth was unearthed at the site of the current city hall buildings. It was the first mammoth skeleton to be discovered in western Europe. At the start of the WWI, King Albert and his Chiefs of Staff were temporarily headquartered in Lier, before retreating to Temse as German lines advanced. Being part of the redoubt of Antwerp , the city suffered heavily under German artillery fire, leaving much of its medieval structures damaged beyond repair. Most medieval-style structures that exist today (including

81-597: A previous marriage. He enjoys football, small PC applications and gastronomy. De Winne appeared on screen during the concerts of rock band U2 on their 360° Tour (and on their U2360° at the Rose Bowl concert video) in pre-recorded segments from the International Space Station, reciting lines from the band's songs " Your Blue Room " and " In a Little While ". [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of

108-533: A six-month mission aboard the International Space Station in 2009. On 21 November 2008, NASA announced changes to the Expedition schedule, with De Winne becoming Commander of Expedition 21 . On 27 May 2009 De Winne launched aboard Soyuz TMA-15 , becoming the first astronaut from the European Space Agency to command a space mission. De Winne is married to Lena Clarke De Winne . He has three children from

135-601: Is a Belgian Air Component officer and an ESA astronaut . He is Belgium's second person in space (after Dirk Frimout ). He was the first ESA astronaut to command a space mission when he served as commander of ISS Expedition 21 . ESA astronaut de Winne serves currently as Head of the European Astronaut Centre of the European Space Agency in Cologne/Germany (Köln). De Winne graduated in 1979 from

162-625: Is a river in northern Belgium , right tributary of the Rupel . It flows through the Belgian province of Antwerp . It is formed in Lier , at the confluence of the rivers Grote Nete and Kleine Nete . It flows through Duffel and joins the river Dijle in Rumst to form the river Rupel. It drains nearly 60% of Antwerp province. The Grote Nete (Big Nete) river is about 85 km long and has its source near Hechtel in

189-571: Is also patron city to the Belgian Army's Second Artillery Regiment (now termed the Artillery Battalion ). Some might argue that Lier is a part of the Antwerp suburban area, making it a district on itself, but generally, Lier is divided into five main districts: Leuvensepoort, Mechelpoort, Lisp, the city centre and Koningshooikt . The last is a historic village that was administratively joined to

216-576: The Minor and Major Nete ). Other explanations include the old Dutch word laar (clearance in the woods) or the word liere (parapet). There is also a resemblance to the Swedish word leira , which means muddy shore , or the Icelandic word leir , which means clay . An all together different explanation is the Germanic word hieura , which refers to a hillock type of country. There is scant record of Lier predating

243-804: The NATO Operation Allied Force in the Balkans , De Winne commanded the Dutch-Belgian Deployable Air Task Force . He completed 17 combat sorties. For his achievement during this operation, the Dutch government awarded him the degree of Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau . De Winne has collected over 2.300 flying hours in Mirage, F-16, Tornado and Jaguar . He also serves as the Chairman of

270-740: The Royal School of Cadets in Lier . In 1984, he graduated from the Royal Military Academy with the degree of Master of Sciences in Engineering (Polytechnics). De Winne followed the elementary flying school of the Belgian Air Component at Goetsenhoven . After graduating he flew Dassault Mirage 5 airplanes for the Air Force until he was attached to SAGEM in Paris to work on the safety of

297-777: The Southern Netherlands (1792–1815) there was a département named after the river Nete, see Deux-Nèthes . In the valley of the Grote Nete lies the Scheps natural landscape , between Olmen and Scheps . This Antwerp Province location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to a river in Belgium is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Frank De Winne Frank, Viscount De Winne (born 25 April 1961, in Ledeberg , Belgium)

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324-570: The 7th century. Saint Gummarus himself was born in the 7th century and died on 11 October 714. He was canonised in 754. In 1194 Lier was given oppidum status and in 1212 granted municipal rights. The Lier beguinage was founded in 1258 and in 1998 was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the Flemish Béguinages site. The last surviving beguine died in 1994. In the 14th century, Duke Jan II wished to reward

351-770: The Belgian Armed Forces Flying Personnel Association. He currently holds the rank of Brigadier-General . In October 1998, Frank De Winne was selected as an astronaut candidate by the European Space Agency . In January 2000, he joined the European Astronaut Corps, whose homebase is the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne , Germany. He provided technical support for the X38 Crew Return Vehicle project division within

378-667: The Belgian province of Antwerp . North of the Grote Nete flows in south-western direction along the towns Herentals and Nijlen before joining the Grote Nete in Lier. Tributaries, all coming from the North, include the Wamp  [ nl ] near Kasterlee , the Aa  [ nl ] near Grobbendonk , and the Molenbeek-Bollaak  [ nl ] near Nijlen . During the French occupation of

405-658: The Belgian province of Limburg . It flows in a western direction along the towns Geel , Westerlo and Heist-op-den-Berg before joining the Kleine Nete in Lier. Its main tributaries are the Molse Nete  [ nl ] near Geel, the Grote Laak  [ nl ; sv ] near Westerlo, and the Wimp  [ nl ] near Herenthout . The Kleine Nete (Small Nete) river is about 50 km long and has its source near Retie in

432-603: The City of Lier for joining his fight against the City of Mechelen . He offered the city the choice of either hosting a university or a livestock market. The city notoriously selected the livestock market option, upon which the Duke is reported to have sighed: "Oh, those wretched sheep heads ". Today, a herd of bronze sheep near the Zimmer tower serves as a reminder to this fateful decision. The university

459-515: The Danish and Norwegian throne, but was taken prisoner and spent the rest of his life detained in the Danish castles of Sønderborg and Kalundborg. Isabella died in 1526 at the Castle of Zwijnaarde . A conspicuous feature of the market square is a headstone (witches-stone, placed in 1974) that marks the spot where Lier's last witchcraft-related execution is traditionally believed to have taken place. In 1860,

486-763: The Directorate of Manned Spaceflight and Microgravity, located at the European Space Research and Technology Centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands. In August 2001, De Winne took up training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Center near Moscow, Russia . Training included elements of Basic Training for the International Space Station as well as training as a Soyuz flight engineer. De Winne's first spaceflight (30 October - 10 November 2002)

513-847: The Mirage. In 1991, De Winne completed the Staff Course at the Defence College in Brussels with the highest distinction. In 1992, De Winne received his degree as test pilot from the British Empire Test Pilots' School in Boscombe Down , receiving the McKenna Trophy as well. From December 1992, Major of Royal Belgian Air Component De Winne operated as a test pilot for the Belgian Air Force. From January 1994 until April 1995, he

540-532: The World Wars. From 1955 to 1997 the barracks housed the Royal School of Cadets (cadet school for the Belgian army). A prominent alumnus of this school is Belgian astronaut Frank De Winne . The site was vacated by the army in 1998, acquired by the city, and now houses city hall and the police department. Two artillery pieces are on display on the city hall's patio, as a reminder of the building's past. The city of Lier

567-586: The history of Europe, for Charles V , who was born to this marriage ( Ghent , 1500), would go on to rule both the Holy Roman Empire and the Spanish Empire . King Christian II of Denmark , accompanied by his spouse Isabella (sister to Charles V and known as Queen Elisabeth ), lived in Lier until 1523, after having been expelled from Denmark by the local nobility while waiting in vain for military support from his brother in law. He attempted again to regain

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594-569: The onboard computer failed, De Winne was faced with the choice of crashing in the IJsselmeer or of ejecting over densely populated area. However, De Winne was able to land his crippled plane at Leeuwarden air base , a feat which earned him the Joe Bill Dryden Semper Viper Award , the first non-American ever to get this award. In August 1998, De Winne became commander of the 349 Squadron operating from Kleine Brogel . During

621-474: The town as a sub-municipality in 1977. In 2004, Lier was the host for the third episode of Fata Morgana , the TV show in which Belgian celebrities gave a city or town several challenges. The theme was "Lier 2020" and the inhabitants succeeded in completing all challenges. Nete (river) The Nete ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈneːtə] ; French : Nèthe , French pronunciation: [nɛt] )

648-517: The town hall and its belfry) are therefore replicas, built shortly after the War. Lier is routinely referred to with the rhyme Lierke Plezierke (which roughly translates as "fun in Lier"). This expression originates from a booklet Felix Timmermans wrote in 1928, in celebration of the 50th wedding anniversary of a neighbouring couple. The strong ties Lier had developed with the Belgian military ever since in 1888 artillery barracks were built, continued after

675-526: Was a trip as a flight engineer to the International Space Station in 2002, traveling to the station aboard Soyuz TMA-1 and returning aboard Soyuz TM-34 . During his time in space, De Winne carried out successfully a programme of 23 experiments in the fields of life and physical sciences and education. He was the back-up crew member for Léopold Eyharts of ISS Expedition 16 . On 20 September 2007 ESA announced that De Winne would take part in

702-507: Was eventually seeded in the city of Leuven , in 1425, as one of Europe's first and today most prominent universities. The nickname Schapekoppen (which translates to Sheep Heads ) is still used in Flanders to refer to inhabitants of Lier. In 1496, Lier was the scene of the marriage between Philip the Handsome , son of Maximilian of Austria , and Joanna of Castile . This marriage was pivotal to

729-856: Was responsible for flight safety of the 1st Fighter Wing operating from Beauvechain air base . From April 1995 to July 1996, he was attached as senior test pilot to the European Participating Air Forces at Edwards Air Force Base in California where he worked on the mid-life update of the F-16 aircraft, focusing on radar testing. From 1996 to August 1998, he was senior test pilot in the Belgian Air Force, responsible for all test programmes and for all pilot-vehicle interfaces for future aircraft/software updates. On 12 February 1997 De Winne encountered engine problems while flying in an F-16 Fighting Falcon over densely populated area near Leeuwarden . After

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