Sven van Calster

The Legend Of The Greedy Ferryman

Based on the legend of 'The Black Ferryman'

In 1794, French troops plundered churches and monasteries throughout what was then known as the Austrian Netherlands. The Sint-Bernardus Abbey in Hemiksem (Belgium) also felt the threat of danger.

On a stormy November evening, there was heavy pounding at the abbey gate. A group of French soldiers demanded entry. The porter looks through the peephole and immediately realizes what is about to happen. He hurriedly warns Abbot Hugo and the other fathers and brothers. Weeks earlier, they had already stowed their valuables in boxes, knowing full well what the French looters had done elsewhere. Now they add the shrine with the consecrated hosts, along with gold and silver chalices and other valuable objects. In silence, they hurry to the boats on the Vliet - simple fishing boats that they used to sail on the Scheldt. Three boats are loaded to the brim with crates. The abbot, two fathers and twelve brothers board the heaviest boat, which contains the most valuable crate.

The wind chases across the water and the Vliet churns restlessly. But it only gets really dangerous on the Scheldt. Dark waves crash against the boats, which are quickly driven apart. It is so dark that no one can see the others. Then a wild gust of wind hits. A high wave breaks over the overloaded boat, filling it with water in an instant and capsizing it. The boat, the monks and their treasure sink into the black, bubbling Scheldt.

A servant of the abbey becomes obsessed with the thought of the lost wealth. He vows to find the chest again. A few days later, by moonlight and at low tide, he sets off in search of it. But that same night, the deceased abbot appears to him in a dream, raises his finger in warning and repeats: 'Woe to the greedy! It will come to a bad end!'

Despite this, the servant stubbornly and resolutely sets off with ropes and hooks. About twenty meters from the shore, he discovers something at the bottom: the crate. With all his strength, he ties it down and tries to pull it on board. For a moment he seems to succeed... but then the heavy load slides back into the water. The crate drags the boat with it and the servant, caught in the ropes, is pulled into the depths.

Since then, the sailors whisper that a sinister voice can be heard over the howling of the wind, especially during storms: 'Woe is me, the greedy one! Deliver me from my gold and my money! Woe is me...'

The Black Ferryman wanders the Scheldt forever, tied to his crate. Sometimes he can be seen as far as Vlissingen, but it is said that his lament is heard most often between Hemiksem and Rupelmonde.