The story
Before the First World War, Blankenberge was an exclusive holiday resort frequently attended by Royalty. Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg as well as his sister Archduchess Elisabeth Amalie of Austria and her husband Prince Aloys of Liechtenstein and his niece Archduchess Marie Valerie of Austria were regular holiday makers in Blankenberge. They stayed in a special wing of the Grand Hotel des Bains et des Families. The Archduke enjoyed his walks to Wenduine and attended service daily at the St Rochus church. The Archduke and his wife were planning to travel again to Blankenberge after their last official engagement before the summer holiday at Sarajevo in 1914 where they were killed.
Blankenberg (so spelt) also figures in Phineas Finn by Anthony Trollope as the scene of a duel between Finn and another character, Lord Chiltern.
The tenor Enrico Caruso attended Blankenberge for a performance in 1910.
After the First World War the Blankenberge police station was bombed by an unknown perpetrator. The blast killed 2 officers and wounded 2 others.
After World War II it was a regular holiday destination. Notable musical institutions were the "Eden" where popular Flemish artists performed on the board walk. The city hosted "Spécial les vacancies" in 1979 under the mayorship of Willem Content. International artist such as Joe Dassin, Boney M, Plastic Bertrand and Dalida attended this event. Later the Flemisch Private TV broadcaster VTM organised "Tien om te Zien" with musical performances of Flemish artists. Today the Flemish public radio organises yearly the "Radio 2 Zomerhit".
The films Franz (1971) by Jacques Brel with Barbara, Isabelle and Lust (1975) with Anicée Alvina, Rimbaud Verlaine (Total Eclipse) (1995) with Leonardo DiCaprio and Le Tout Nouveau Testament (2015) with Catherine Deneuve, Benoît Poelvoorde and François Damiens were notably filmed in the city (or at least in part).
The World's Largest Sand Sculpture Festival, featuring giant sand sculptures (Zandsculptuur) took place on the beach in June until 2012.
From Wikipedia’s article on Blankenberge, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4