{"id":48871,"date":"2021-03-01T14:07:35","date_gmt":"2021-03-01T14:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.museum-aarschot.be\/xvi-clement-and-colette-jamar-swerts\/"},"modified":"2021-03-01T14:07:35","modified_gmt":"2021-03-01T14:07:35","slug":"xvi-clement-and-colette-jamar-swerts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.museum-aarschot.be\/en\/xvi-clement-and-colette-jamar-swerts\/","title":{"rendered":"XVI Cl\u00e9ment and Colette Jamar Swerts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

XV Trop aim\u00e9e<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Cl\u00e9ment Jamar (52) beams as never before with his wife Colette Swerts (52) at his side at the wedding of Godfried and Mia (photo: Bokrijk 1962)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Henri Swerts (1888-1979), the strapping bonpapa<\/strong>. Discover his story here.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Colette Swerts, the mother-in-law of Godfried Van Kerckhoven, came from the North Limburg municipality of Heppen, later a sub-municipality of present-day Leopoldsburg. Her father Henri was born on 17 November 1888 in Koersel, the son of Petrus Swerts (1850-1891) and Maria Vanherle (1848-1934).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With the help of a dog cart, Henri Swerts sells<\/strong> to the soldiers of ‘t Kamp.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The handsome hunk starts his career as a notorious cage fighter in Li\u00e8ge. The Swertses are knife-fighters, brawlers. Henri can hardly write but counting is his strength. With his dog cart he travels around Leopoldsburg and sells steadily to the soldiers of ‘t Kamp. At the time of the big manoeuvres up to 140,000 men bivouac in ‘Bourg-L\u00e9opold’. As a soldier he is selected because of his stature to be part of the Royal Palace Guard in Brussels. Because of the monotony at the palace Henri decides to catch forty winks. Palace guard Henri takes off his bearskin cap and lies down in ‘un fauteuil royal dor\u00e9 feuille d’or’ but is caught by little Princess Marie-Jos\u00e9, who snaps at him. During the First World War Henri is called up to fight but he hides. He knocks together a wooden chest, shoves it under the hay, and crawls into it when they come looking for him. That way he can keep working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not step by step, but everything at once:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of young Henri’s boldest schemes takes place along the *Beverlo Canal. There he toils as an unloader of inland barges. Henri unloads 70 kg sacks of coal and grain from canal boats. Between that canal and his home he sees trains with wagons full of coal coming from Antwerp slow down, to stop a little further on at ‘t Kamp station. Our cunning fellow strikes a deal with an engine driver to have the trains stop briefly right in front of his farm. Henri, waiting for the trains, quickly pulls a wagon open and lets the ‘black gold’ thunder out. Tree branches, hay and leaves are ready to quickly cover the pile of coal. In this way he transforms his farm and its surroundings into an unmissable trade in coal, seed and grain on the Beverlo Canal. Years later in the magazine ‘Ons Bestaan’: “The time when skipper Vanherck-Possemiers brought 250 tonnes of coal to Leopoldsburg for the merchant Henri Swerts remains a lasting memory.” – “Ons bestaan, Leopoldburg families”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*The canal was extended to Leopoldsburg at the time to supply the cavalry there. The canal is still open and ends there. In the ‘basin’ of the canal, close to where his trade was located, there is now a marina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tout est bon dans l’cochon<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bourg-L\u00e9opold – Camp de B\u00e9verlo – le ballon captif – the balloon<\/strong> Leopoldsburg zeppelin (1918<\/strong>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swerts makes a big announcement: “I get the food leftovers from the military barracks and am having a pig farm built. The blighters will gobble up all the leftovers.” Colette laughs: “Then we saw a zeppelin fly past. Nobody had ever seen anything like it. People came out and shouted: ‘There’s a great big pig hanging in the air!'” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the main developments about the farm of Henri Swerts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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(around 1920) At the annual horse market in Sint-Truiden Henri Swerts each time buys some fifty discarded horses from the military cavalry. Once home the horses often fall over from weakness. “The horses are put between a row of straw bales so that they do not fall over.” Henri tends and heals the horses and lets them run in the meadows. When they are strong and healthy again he sells them on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marriage of Henri Swerts to Berthilia Maes<\/strong> (1909)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption is the parish church of Leopoldsburg. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Henricus and Berthilia Swerts Maes <\/strong>(photo: 1909)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The marriage of Henri to Berthilia comes as a total surprise. Soon after, following a ‘secret’ pregnancy, Berthilia and Henri welcome their first child. The girl, named Colette, is the first of six children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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top: Theresia Swerts (1883-1917) – Guillaume Maes (…-1942) – Remy Swerts (1875-1957) – Frans Swerts (*brawler) (1877-1971) – Pierke Put (1881-?) Louis Swerts (uncle of the farm)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

bottom: …. – Berthelia Maes<\/strong> (1890-1942) – Henri Swerts –<\/strong> Josephine Van Herle <\/strong>(1848-1934)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*What does Frans Swerts do after an exchange of words between him and an unjust opponent of his family? Take the pitchfork in his hands and run the opponent through with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The forgotten Leopoldsburg woman Colette Swerts: “Her life reads like a fairy tale.”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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young Colette at home, with the railway in the background<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To teach her to swim, Henri throws his daughter Colette into the canal several times and, with a tow rope tied under her arms, hauls her through the cold water. Because of his harsh approach, Colette has a shivering fear of water for the rest of her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Henri is in a tizzy about his eldest daughter Colette: what is going on?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Carmelite convent of Leopoldsburg<\/strong> (photo: 2025) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(1922) Father Edward Poppe leaves his working-class parish of Sint-Coletta in Ghent to found the <\/strong>Carmelite convent in Leopoldsburg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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the<\/strong> convent door in Leopoldsburg <\/strong>(photo: 2025)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a young girl Colette often pulls this doorbell. A few times a week she hands in a basket of food here for the Carmelite nuns. During the conversations with the cloistered sister the little grille in the door stands between them. Colette lends her ear to Father Poppe (1994-1924). The man, canonised in 1999, convinces Colette to live as a woman consecrated to God, in seclusion from the world. Father Henri is thunderstruck when he learns of this plan and threatens to hang his pious daughter. Henri nevertheless keeps supplying free coal to the convent. Colette puts away her plan of the ‘little cloistered sisters’ (as she calls the Carmelites) and then arranges instead to stay living in seclusion at the parental farm with her eldest brother Louis and not to marry. This plan too is blown apart when the dutiful and deeply devout Colette in 1938, like a bolt from the blue, introduces her completely unknown partner Cl\u00e9ment Jamar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Discover the magical farm ‘Immert’<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In 1901<\/strong> the parental farm ‘Immert’ of Colette was built<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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calling card <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Colette cycles around the whole area visiting churches, chapels and convents where she knows all the ‘little sisters’ and ‘little priests’. Every year she goes on pilgrimage towards Scherpenheuvel and Diest to the ‘holy little father’. Colette prays daily for ‘Our Dear Lord’ and ‘Our Lady’. Weekly she goes to mass but also to the cinema in Hasselt. Deeply Christian Colette abhors loose morals. Because of the enormous military presence there are quite a few brothels in Leopoldsburg: she calls them kabardoesjkes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a real Colette classic<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Colette has found access to the officers’ mess <\/strong>. There she secretly takes food from the kitchen that she passes on to help the poor. Until she is finally caught. Colette is not punished because she sympathises with ‘the poor little people’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Colette Swerts<\/strong> (1910-2002)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brothers and sisters of Colette<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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neatly dressed Louis and on the pony; curly-headed Guillaume <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Guillaume Swerts<\/strong> (1924-2020), named after his godfather and war martyr Guillaume Maes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Maria Swerts<\/strong> (1913-1996)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Josephina Swerts (….-….)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ren\u00e9 Swerts<\/strong> (1932)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Louis Swerts <\/strong>(1915-1996) “Louis was supple and strong. He took a run-up and jumped on the horse from behind. Without a saddle he galloped through the meadow.” – Colette<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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(2026) Surprise in Leopoldsburg: twenty-four years after the death of Colette, her portrait as a young girl, standing next to the farm ‘Immert’. charcoal on paper – by Dirk Sevenants – exhibition – Zolder – Luchtfabriek ZLDR <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Colette herself always dreamed of writing a book. During her lifetime that never happened, but now this little work of art is a tribute to her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dirk Sevenants lives on and owns the farm ‘Immert’ of the Swertses. The young programmer in the steel industry is also a technical draughtsman. He is perfecting his skills at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zolder. Dirk is passionate about the past of his house in the Asbeekstraat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The drawing ‘Colette Swerts’ is on display in Zolder – De Luchtfabriek – 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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view behind the farm ‘Immert’ <\/strong>(photo: 2025) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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During the Second World War the flight route from England to Germany of Lancaster bombers of the Royal Air Force lies above the farm ‘Immert’ of the Swertses. Behind the meadow the German army has set up an anti-aircraft gun. During the night of 12 May 1944, British bombing raids accidentally hit the garden estate in Beverlo a little further away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Eighty civilians of Beverlo lose their lives. The Australian pilot John Balmer also dies when his plane is shot down. “Pilots thought they were attacking a German camp. A mistake with a leaden toll.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A broken heart, does it really exist?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“Mother died of grief when she learned that her brother Guillaume Maes had been killed in the Second World War.” – Colette<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Berthilia Swerts Maes<\/strong> (1890-1942) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(1942) Particularly tragic: after the loss of her beloved brother Guillaume Maes ‘her heart is broken’. It is an illness that affects people who are otherwise often healthy.
‘Broken heart syndrome’ is a (rare) form of acute heart failure caused by a reduction in the pumping function of the heart. The syndrome occurs more often in women, especially after the menopause. But it also occurs in people with psychological stress or trauma, for example through the loss of a loved one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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