Sint-Helenasluis

Sint-Helenasluis
The area surrounding the Driebek, formed by the Gete, the Borggracht and the Sint-Helena lock, dates from the 14th century. The lock was formerly called the Rose. She obtained the current name in the 19th century from a few Tienen sympathizers of Napoleon. Two of them, Antoine Pasch and Charles Verlat, applied to start an inn at the lock. In 1870 the inn was named Ile Saint-Hélène after the island to which Napoleon was exiled. The inn name was later also used to indicate the lock and the vests.

In the early 1980s, the Sint-Helena lock was restored. It is one of the many locks that were located on the Gete and its tributary, the Mene, and which controlled the water flow for the water mills. The lock building (17th century) is mainly made of brick and sandstone. It is based on a round arch that spans the Borggracht. The restored building shows only a few features of the traditional style: the side gable with top piece laid in braids and the scaffolding holes under the roof frame.
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