'hand'. On June 26, 1827, Joseph Henricus De Koninck, then husband to Elisabeth Cop, bought De Plaisante Hof. However, he died soon afterwards and his widow who then remarried Johannes Vervliet who bought back the goods from the inheritance in 1833. At that time Belgium was barely three years old (created in 1830). He turned the inn into a brewery which he named 'De Hand' (The Hand), after the toll sign mentioned earlier. By the time Johannes Vervliet died in 1845, the brewery's name was successful and its beer had become well known. The name De Koninck appeared for the first time with Vervliet's stepson, Carolus De Koninck, who continued the business. When he died in 1883, he was succeeded by his son François Joseph, and later by his daughter Josephina Joanna, as head of the family business. Sales were consistently good and the barley-based beer had become the most popular drink in the city of Antwerp. In 1912, the family business at the corner of the Mechelsesteenweg and the Boomgaardstraat was changed into a Limited Liability Company, Brewery Charles De Koninck, with Josephina De Koninck as principal shareholder. Florent Van Bauwel was appointed executive. According to the brewery's records, Van Bouwel applied himself so well, especially during the First World War, that Miss De Koninck favored him to take over the company. In 1919, Van Bouwel entered into a partnership with the Van den Bogaerts of Willebroek. Later, Florent Van Bauwel and Joseph Van den Bogaert were succeeded by their sons Joseph Van Bauwel and Modeste Van den Bogaert. Dominique and Bernard Van den Bogaert, sons of Modeste, continued leading the brewery after his death. In 2010, the brewery was sold to the Duvel Moortgat Brewery but still acts as an autonomous brand within the group. References External links Brouwerij De Koninck Brewery details from BeerTourism.com Breweries of Flanders Companies based in Antwerp