Watermolen van Tielen, Protected watermill in Tielen, Belgium

Watermolen van Tielen is a brick watermill on the Aa at Watermolenstraat 6 in Tielen, Kasterlee. Its steep red-tiled roof carries two rows of green-framed dormers, five below and four above with a skylight between them. The taller right section has a large black water wheel set in a white-painted recess.

A watermill on the Aa was first recorded on 24 November 1428, when Catherina de Papen, wife of Daniël van Ranst, appeared in the feudal register of Jan III of Brabant. The mill collapsed in 1565 after heavy ice drift on the Aa, and the present building was erected in 1681. It remained part of the inheritance of the Lords of Tielen until 1918, when it was first sold, to Fik Dionys.

The mill belonged to the lords of Tielen, who collected a tax in water power and required the village farmers to grind their grain here. The lord appointed the miller, who ran the mill as servant or tenant and had to scoop part of the grain into the lord's sack as tax. The mill stayed with the castle of Tielen until 1918, when it was first sold, to Fik Dionys; his son Louis Dionys was the last miller.

The mill building sits along Watermolenstraat and is viewable from outside, though interior access may be limited. Visitors should be prepared for damp conditions around the riverwork and wear sturdy shoes.

The mill stayed with the castle of Tielen and the estate of the Lords of Tielen until 1918, when mill, house, stable and bakehouse were sold for the first time, to Fik Dionys. His son Louis Dionys became the last miller. The wooden wheel was replaced by a metal one in 1943.