Different traces lead through the history of ’s Gravenmoer: from the Gothic Martinuskerk to a Langstraat farmhouse and a former neo-Gothic church. There are also paths through the countryside around the village. For planning your trip, you can distinguish between two main focuses: architectural and church history on the one hand, and landscape and waterways on the other. Which side you focus on more depends on what you would like to discover during your stay.
Churches and a farmhouse in historical comparison
The Martinuskerk in ’s Gravenmoer dates from the 15th century and is an example of Gothic architecture. A major fire destroyed all the church’s roofs and vaults in 1672. During reconstruction around 1680, the choir and nave were given wooden barrel vaults. This means that the medieval origins and the post-fire rebuilding belong to two different phases of construction: the vaults mentioned here were added during the reconstruction, not as part of the original church.
The former church at Waspikse Weg 5 tells a different story. The neo-Gothic building dates from around 1900/1923 and is now a residence. It has cultural and historical significance for the development of the Reformed Church in the Langstraat and is considered a comparatively rare example of a Reformed church in Noord-Brabant. In contrast with the Martinuskerk, the focus here is on a later construction date, its current residential use and the building’s regional significance.
Huis Vreeden Lust complements the churches with the Langstraat’s farmhouse architecture. The farmhouse dates from around 1800; its cellars are older. There is a Louis XVI-style sundial in the garden. Taken together, these features offer a variety of details for exploring local architectural history: a Gothic church with traces of its reconstruction, a former church building, and a farmhouse with older cellars and a sundial.
A historical trail at Vaartweg
The farmstead known as Ravensbosch at Vaartweg 25 is associated with the history of the Bende van de Witte Veer. Above its door is a sandstone head that is thought to depict Swarte Johannes, the gang’s leader. The identification of the head is uncertain. The farmstead thus adds another locally rooted historical story to the area’s architectural and church history.
Paths, water and landscape
A natural Ecopad connects ’s Gravenmoer with Dongen and Klein-Dongen-Vaart. The Ronde door Gemeente Waalwijk offers a different point of reference: its 30-kilometre route passes by the village. In the surrounding area, it runs along picturesque dikes, beside the Donge River and along wide ditches that were once dug to transport peat. These differences make trip planning straightforward: the Ecopad links three named places, while the Ronde has a known route length, described landscape features and ditches with a recorded former purpose.
The ’s-Gravenmoersche Vaart also has a documented history. It was dug in the 16th century after an older canal to the west had silted up during the 15th century. Bieslant offers a different landscape focus: this landscaped nature area includes various tree and shrub species as well as grass strips. When choosing activities, you can therefore distinguish between waterways, dikes and a landscaped nature area.
There is a car park at Dorpshuis De Geubel, Hoofdstraat 4, 5109 AC, ’s Gravenmoer, for walks along the Donge and the ’s-Gravenmoerse Vaart. Check local parking conditions before your visit.
Discover more destinations: Dongen
Go to the main travel guide: Dongen.
