OLV-ten-Poelkerk

Northeast Belgium


The impressive if oddly shaped church of OLV-ten-Poel has a soaring 70m 15th-century tower in white stone capped by a 1654 baroque spire and fronted with empty statue niches.

It dominates Tienen's large main square, which is a large, partly tree-shaded cobbled space and still attractive despite being used partially as a car park.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Northeast Belgium attractions

1. Het Toreke

0.1 MILES

Tucked into the yard behind the tourist office (from where you access it), this museum's collection mostly celebrates the rich grave finds from Roman…

2. Sint-Germanuskerk

0.15 MILES

Sitting on Tienen's central rise, Sint-Germanuskerk's remarkable early-13th-century belfry is a towering Romanesque structure topped by 16th-century…

3. Grimde Necropolis

0.96 MILES

Push open the door of this 13th-century former church and you'll see not pews but the flower-decked graves of 145 brave Belgians who died in August 1914…

4. Drie Tumuli

1.05 MILES

The most unique evocation of Tienen's rich Roman heritage is this trio of grave mounds commemorating Marcus Probius Burrus. Left overgrown for a century…

5. Sint-Gorgoniuskerk

3.2 MILES

Claiming to be Belgium's largest rococo church, the 1759 Sint-Gorgoniuskerk rises from the town's cute central square. More impressive inside than out, it…

6. St-Leonarduskerk

7.44 MILES

Partly dating to the 13th century, St-Leonarduskerk is topped with a fanciful tower reminiscent of a galleon’s crow’s nest. Miraculously, given Zoutleeuw…

7. Stadhuis

7.47 MILES

Opposite St-Leonarduskerk, the old town hall building is a 19th-century faux-medieval delight with majestic pre-Raphaelite murals in the ground-floor hall…

8. Kasteel van Horst

9.84 MILES

Ringed by a reflective moat, picture-perfect, medieval Kasteel van Horst enjoys a delightful rural setting. The interior is undergoing long-term…