diff --git a/lmdb++.h b/lmdb++.h
index ab75f8c..a1a0361 100644
--- a/lmdb++.h
+++ b/lmdb++.h
@@ -1194,6 +1194,9 @@ class lmdb::env {
   env& open(const char* const path,
             const unsigned int flags = default_flags,
             const mode mode = default_mode) {
+#if defined(_WIN32)
+	CreateDirectory(path, NULL);
+#endif
     lmdb::env_open(handle(), path, flags, mode);
     return *this;
   }