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Aalst, Belgium

Aalst (Alost) ('Oilsjt' in the local dialect) is a city and municipality on the Dender River, 19 miles northwest from Brussels. It is located in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Aalst itself and the villages of Baardegem, Erembodegem, Gijzegem, Herdersem, Hofstade, Meldert, Moorsel, and Nieuwerkerken-Aalst. The current mayor of Aalst is Ilse Uyttersprot, from the CD&V (Christian-Democrats) party. The town still has a feud against Dendermonde (situated north along the same river), which dates back from the Middle Ages.

History

The first historical records on Aalst date from the 9th century, when it was described as the villa Alost, a dependency of the Abbey of Lobbes. During the Middle Ages, a town and port grew at this strategic point, where the road from Bruges to Cologne crossed the Dender. In the 11th century, Aalst was transferred from the pagus of Brabant to the County of Flanders. Its frontier position on the border of the Holy Roman Empire allowed it, however, to keep a certain degree of independence. Its relation with Brabant has been preserved in the city’s white and red coat of arms, the colours of Lotharingia.

Construction of the town hall began in the middle of the 12th century, and is the oldest surviving hall in Belgium. Several manuscripts from this period still survive in the town archives. The town hall, and the city itself, were almost entirely destroyed by fire in 1360. The town was soon rebuilt and a new belfry in gothic style was build in the 15th century. This was a time of great prosperity for the city, dominated by the powerful weavers' guild. It is also at that time that Dirk Martens, a local citizen, became the Southern Netherlands’ first printer, founding a printing shop in 1473 that published books by various authors including Christopher Columbus; Martens would later become a professor at the Catholic University of Louvain.

Aalst suffered considerably under the Eighty Years' War (1568-1648). It was later taken by France in the War of Devolution of 1667, then occupied by France until well into the 18th century along with Southern Flanders in general. The textile-based economy flourished under the French. The 19th century was marked by the social crises engendered by the Industrial Revolution, with Father Adolf Daens, with his Christene Volkspartij, emerging as the local defender of the workers' rights. The 20th century was marked by occupation by the Germans during both world wars.

Industry

The textile industry is still vibrant in Aalst in part because of the French occupation. Aalst produces not only the textiles themselves but manufactures many of the needed machines. The more rural regions are noted for their production of hops which are sold to the old breweries there.

Events

Aalst is famous for its carnival festivities, celebrated every year in February. A Prince Carnaval is elected, who is allowed to "rule" the city for three days. A big parade crosses the city on Sunday, with about 70 groups of costumed volunteers and parade cars. Carnaval Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday (by tradition, the day before Ash Wednesday), is known as the day of the 'Voil Jeannetten' (literally: "the Dirty Jennies"), i.e. men dressed as women. The festivities traditionally end with the "Burning of the Doll", happening on Tuesday evening.

Sites of interest

The famous St. Martin's Collegiate Church, in Gothic style, dates back to 1480. It contains a famous painting by Rubens, "Saint Roch beseeching Christ to terminate the Plague at Aalst".
Aalst is also proud of a beautiful tabernacle (dated 1605), which features sculptures made by Hieronymus Duquesnoy the Elder.
The belfry in the town hall, one of the oldest and most handsome of Flanders, contains a 52-bell carillon. Together with the adjacent Aldermen’s House, it was classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1999.
The statue of Dirk Martens (1446-1534), first bookprinter in the Netherlands.

Famous inhabitants

Pieter Coecke van Aelst (1502-1550), painter
Adolf Daens (1839-1907), priest and politician
Franz Cumont (1868-1947), archeologist, historian, and philologist
Louis D'Haeseleer (1911-1988), politician
Louis Paul Boon (1912-1979), writer
Mark De Bie (b. 1939), television writer
Sabine Appelmans (b. 1972), tennis player
Peter Van Der Heyden (b. 1976), Belgian and international soccer player
Rik D'Hiet (b. 1965), television writer (Recht op Recht, Flikken,...)
Patrick Lateur (b. 1949), translator of Greek and Latin texts, poetry writer
Jean-Paul Floru (b. 1969), British Conservative Party politician, City of Westminster Councillor
Dimitri Verhulst (b. Aalst, 1972), writer and poet.