Oude Rode Ogen or Old Red Eyes, otherwise known as The Beast of Flanders is a Dutch bogeyman

Bogeyman

A bogeyman is an amorphous imaginary being used by adults to frighten children into compliant behaviour...

, ghost

Ghost

In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...

 or monster

Monster

A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...

 whose tales and sightings began after a true series of events.

Legend

The legend of Oude Rode Ogen began in the Flanders

Flanders

Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

 region of Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 in the late 17th century after reports of children turned up missing and believed to be victims of a cannibalistic shape shifter. Witnesses claimed of seeing a large naked black man running away after trying to steal a young girl from her bed, he was shot at and seen to change into a large black dog

Black dog (ghost)

A black dog is the name given to a being found primarily in the folklores of the British Isles. The black dog is essentially a nocturnal apparition, often said to be associated with the Devil, and its appearance was regarded as a portent of death. It is generally supposed to be larger than a normal...

. A homeless black man was soon found living near Nekkerspoel

Nekkerspoel

Nekkerspoel is a hamlet of Mechelen, Flanders, Belgium, immediately east of the city. The name means pool of one or more Nekkers or water demons , and it is assumed that in earlier centuries locals taking a shortcut trodding through the marshlands of which the Mechels Broek still remains, may have...

 and without trial was lynched and skinned alive. The skin is said to be buried in the basement of St. Rumbold's Cathedral in Mechelen

Mechelen

Mechelen Footnote: Mechelen became known in English as 'Mechlin' from which the adjective 'Mechlinian' is derived...

.

During the early 18th century till present a ghostly dark figure with fiery red eyes has been seen in Mechelen and surrounding areas. It is said that he seeks his skin to become whole again as the demonic figure he once was. During the 20th century the ghostly being became known as The Nikker (De Nekker or The Nigger), a story told to children that stayed up past their bedtime that they'd be eaten alive if they didn't go to sleep.

Physical description

Oude Rode Ogen was said to have been a 7 feet (2.1 m) black man who changed into a large black dog with fiery red eyes. In more recent times he has taken form of a dark shadow figure with red eyes whose late evening appearance is usually followed by a menacing dog's growl. Sightings of De Nekker was believed to have left people deaf, dumb and blind according to the book Beast of Flanders by Vincent Menten.