Vlissegem, Klemskerke and the dunes (until 1886)
Long before there was a resort, two polder villages lay here behind a wide belt of dunes.
- Fishermen and salt makers: fishermen and salt makers already lived around Klemskerke in the Bronze and Iron Ages, and Roman remains have also been found.
- Vlissegem (988): remains of settlement from the 9th to 11th centuries have been found on a mound in Vlissegem, and the village is first mentioned in 988.
- Clemeskirca (1003): Klemskerke is mentioned in 1003 as Clemeskirca, the church of Clemens; the dikes of the 10th and 11th centuries made permanent settlement possible.
- A hamlet in the dunes: where De Haan now lies, for a long time there were only a few huts, sheltered by the dunes that also protected the polder villages from the sea.
- The dune forest: planting during the 19th century created a large green dune forest, which still defines the character of De Haan.
The Concessie and the Belle Époque (1886 to 1914)
With the arrival of the tram, a green resort full of villas grew up in the dunes, and it still defines De Haan today.
- The steam tram (1886): from 8 August 1886 the steam tram ran between Ostend and Blankenberge via Bredene village, making De Haan accessible for the first time.
- Opening of the resort (1888): on 22 July 1888 the resort and its first hotel were officially opened.
- The Concessie (1889): by Royal Decree of 29 July 1889 the architects Eduard Colinet and Passenbronder were granted a concession on 50 hectares of dunes; from this grew the villa district of the Concessie.
- A villa park: only one sixth of the land could be built on, and Hermann-Josef Stübben's town plan of 1910 banned high-rise buildings and kept as much forest as possible against the wind.
- Casino (1899): a casino was built in 1899 but demolished again in 1929; English and French visitors in particular found their way to De Haan.
- Sint-Monicakerk (1902): after the Willibrordus chapel of 1897, the Augustinian fathers built the neo-Gothic Sint-Monicakerk between 1899 and 1902, enlarged in 1934.
- Golf (1903): to attract English tourists, King Leopold II proposed in 1902 to turn the dunes at Vosseslag into a golf course; the Royal Ostend Golf Club was founded in 1903.
- The tram station (1905): in 1905 the present double-track tram line via Bredene-Bad opened; De Haan's old tram station is the only old tram station in Belgium still served by a regular tram.
- More about the Concessie: the villas, the tram station and a Belle Époque walk are on the page about the Concessie.
Albert Einstein in De Haan (1933)
In 1933 De Haan became the refuge of the world's most famous scientist for half a year.
- Fleeing the Nazis: when Hitler came to power in 1933, Albert Einstein, on his way back from America, decided not to return to Germany; he arrived in Antwerp on 28 March 1933.
- By tram to De Haan: Einstein took the train to Ostend and then the Coastal Tram to De Haan, where he and his wife Elsa moved into villa Savoyarde on the Shakespearelaan.
- Visitors: in De Haan he received friends such as the painters James Ensor, Félix Labisse and Alfons Blomme and the writer Aldous Huxley.
- Under guard: from 12 April 1933 the local gendarmerie was tasked with discreetly ensuring his safety; Einstein left in September 1933.
- The statue (2006): since 16 December 2006 a statue by Johnny Werbrouck on the Normandiëlaan has recalled his stay.
- More about Einstein: read his full story and follow a walking route past villa Savoyarde and the statue on the page Albert Einstein in De Haan.
Atlantic Wall, liberation and merger
After the war De Haan continued to grow, and in 1977 it became the main town of a new municipality.
- The Atlantic Wall: in the Second World War De Haan was part of the Atlantic Wall; hotels were requisitioned and the beach and dunes were off limits.
- Liberation (1944): on 9 September 1944 De Haan was liberated by the Canadian army.
- Campsites and bungalows: after the war new housing estates were built, and from the 1960s campsites and a bungalow park too.
- Vosseslag: the name Vosseslag refers to the path through the dunes that led the fishermen of Klemskerke to the beach; since the 1960s it has mainly been a camping area.
- Merger (1977): in 1977 Vlissegem, Klemskerke and Wenduine were merged into the municipality of De Haan, with the resort as its centre.