BAARLE-HERTOG

((Flemish), ) French Baerle-duc, municipality, Antwerp province, Belgium, enclave (2.7 sq mi ) in Noord-Brabant province, southern Netherlands, 4 mi (6 km) north of the Belgian border. It has been a separate commune since 1479, when the town of Baarle was divided into Baarle-Hertog and Baarle-Nassau for purposes of noble inheritance. The status of the enclave was confirmed after Belgian independence by the Belgium-Netherlands Separation Treaty (1839). The enclave was an important information centre for the Allies in World War I because of its nearness to occupied Belgium; during World War II, however, it was damaged. It is a market for the surrounding agricultural area. Pop. (1983 est.) mun., 2,101.