De Kempen or The Campine is a region situated in the north-east of Belgium and in the south of The Netherlands. In Belgium, the region starts approximately at the axis Essen-Lier-Bonheiden (see map below), and stretches over two provinces in an eastern direction up to the border with Germany. Depending on the province, the region is also known as the Antwerp Campine, or the Limburg Campine.

Traditionally, the Campine has always been a region with a poor sandy soil covered with forest, fens and moorlands. Therefore, it was relatively thinly populated up to the late Middle Ages. In those days, it was a popular settling ground for monks seeking quite surroundings, and there are several monasteries. Industrialisation mostly attracted polluting or dangerous industries (ore processing, gun powder). The region also has many military domains, mainly because of its infertile and hence, cheap land. The advent of chemical fertilisers had a dramatic effect on the region and most of the previously unproductive soil that was fit for grazing by goats and sheep only, is now cultivated. The prosperity of the population increased, and the original Campine vegetation can now only be found in protected areas.