Aalst (; french: Alost, ;

Brabantian Brabantian or Brabantish, also Brabantic or Brabantine ( nl, Brabants, Standard Dutch pronunciation: , ), is a dialect group of the Dutch language. It is named after the historical Duchy of Brabant, which corresponded mainly to the Dutch provi ...

: ''Oilsjt'') is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

on the

Dender The Dender (Dutch, ) or Dendre ( French, ) is a 65-kilometre (40 mi) long river in Belgium, the right tributary of the river Scheldt. The confluence of the two rivers is in the Belgian town of Dendermonde. The Western or Little Dender is 22 kilome ...

River, northwest from

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

in the

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

East Flanders , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of Oost-Vlaanderen.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van O ...

. The municipality comprises the city of Aalst itself and the villages of Baardegem, Erembodegem, Gijzegem, Herdersem, Hofstade, Meldert,

Moorsel Moorsel is a village in the Denderstreek in the province East Flanders in Belgium, a '' deelgemeente'' of the city of Aalst. The village belongs to a league of neighbouring villages, which call themselves the ''Faluintjesgemeenten''. Moorsel is ...

and Nieuwerkerken. Aalst is crossed by the

Molenbeek-Ter Erpenbeek The Molenbeek-Ter Erpenbeek or in popular language Molenbeek (English: Millbrook-Ter Erpenbrook) is a brook in the Denderstreek, Belgium. The stream has a length of approximately 25 kilometers. The source of the Molenbeek is in Godveerdegem and th ...

in Aalst and Hofstade. The current mayor of Aalst is Christoph D'Haese, from the

New-Flemish Alliance The New Flemish Alliance ( nl, Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie, N-VA) is a Flemish nationalist and conservative political party in Belgium. The party was founded in 2001 by the right-leaning fraction of the centrist-nationalist People's Union (VU). T ...

party. The town has a long-standing (folkloric) feud with

Dendermonde Dendermonde (; french: Termonde, ) is a city in the Flemish province of East Flanders in Belgium. The municipality comprises the city of Dendermonde and the towns of Appels, Baasrode, Grembergen, Mespelare, Oudegem, Schoonaarde, and Sint-Gillis-b ...

(north along the river), which dates from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

History

The first historical records on Aalst date from the 9th century, when it was described as the ''

villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became s ...

Alost'', a dependency of the Abbey of

Lobbes Lobbes (; wa, Lôbe) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 Lobbes had a total population of 5,499. The total area is 32.08 km² which gives a population density of 171 inhabitants per k ...

. During the Middle Ages, a town and port grew at this strategic point, where the road from

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

crossed the

. While it was within the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

it was considered the capital of the province of

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

. In 1046, Aalst was transferred to the Countship of Imperial Flanders, and absorbed a portion of

Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...

, and in 1173 it was united with the remainder of the Flanders province. Its frontier position on the border of the

allowed the town 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 Lotharingia ( la, regnum Lotharii regnum Lothariense Lotharingia; french: Lotharingie; german: Reich des Lothar Lotharingien Mittelreich; nl, Lotharingen) was a short-lived medieval successor kingdom of the Carolingian Empire. As a more durable ...

. Construction of the town hall began in the middle of the 12th century, making it the oldest surviving town hall in Belgium. Several manuscripts from this period still survive in the town archives. During the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...

the town of Aalst allied themselves with Louis de Male against

Philip van Artevelde Philip van Artevelde (c. 1340 – 27 November 1382) was a Flemish patriot, the son of Jacob van Artevelde. Because of his father's prominence he was godson of English queen Philippa of Hainault, who held him in her arms during his baptism. La ...

and sent troops in the victorious

Battle of Roosebeke The Battle of Roosebeke (sometimes referred by its contemporary name as Battle of Westrozebeke) took place on 27 November 1382 on the Goudberg between a Flemish army under Philip van Artevelde and a French army under Louis II of Flanders who ha ...

. 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 Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style was built in the 15th century. This was a time of great prosperity for the city, dominated by the powerful weavers'

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

. It is also at that time that

Dirk Martens Dirk Martens ( la, Theodoricus Martinus) (1446 or 1447 – 28 May 1534) was a printer and editor in the County of Flanders. He published over fifty books by Erasmus and the very first edition of Thomas More's ''Utopia''. He was the first to print ...

, a local citizen, became the

Southern Netherlands The Southern Netherlands, also called the Catholic Netherlands, were the parts of the Low Countries belonging to the Holy Roman Empire which were at first largely controlled by Habsburg Spain (Spanish Netherlands, 1556–1714) and later by the A ...

’ first printer, founding a printing shop in 1473 that published books by various authors including

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

; Martens would later become a professor at the

Old University of Leuven The Old University of Leuven (or of Louvain) is the name historians give to the university, or ''studium generale'', founded in Leuven, Brabant (then part of the Burgundian Netherlands, now part of Belgium), in 1425. The university was closed in ...

, and he was laid to rest in the . Aalst suffered considerably under the

Eighty Years' War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Refo ...

(1568–1648). It was later taken by the French

Marshal Turenne Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, vicomte de Turenne (11 September 161127 July 1675), commonly known as Turenne , was a French general and one of only six Marshals to have been promoted Marshal General of France. The most illustrious member of the ...

in the

War of Devolution In the 1667 to 1668 War of Devolution (, ), France occupied large parts of the Spanish Netherlands and Franche-Comté, both then provinces of the Holy Roman Empire (and properties of the King of Spain). The name derives from an obscure law known ...

of 1667, then occupied by

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

until 1706, when it became independent once more following the

Battle of Ramillies The Battle of Ramillies (), fought on 23 May 1706, was a battle of the War of the Spanish Succession. For the Grand Alliance – Austria, England, and the Dutch Republic – the battle had followed an indecisive campaign against the Bourbon ar ...

, along with Southern Flanders in general. The textile-based economy flourished under the French. In the 18th century, the Austrians controlled the region. 1830 saw Belgium gain independence and Aalst became part of the country, this ended a long period, starting in 1056, of foreign control, by such as the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, French, and the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

. The 19th century was marked by social crises engendered by the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

, with Father

Adolf Daens Adolf Daens (18 December 1839 – 14 June 1907) was a Flemish priest from Aalst. Daens was a Jesuit from 1859 to 1871, but is especially known for his socio-political involvement after he joined the diocesan clergy. He created the Daensist move ...

and his Christene Volkspartij emerging as the local defender of workers' rights. This was in response to ''

Rerum novarum ''Rerum novarum'' (from its incipit, with the direct translation of the Latin meaning "of revolutionary change"), or ''Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor'', is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on 15 May 1891. It is an open letter, pass ...

'', which established worker rights. However Daens felt this did not do enough. Eventually, he was made to pay for his "splinter movement". In the Pre-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

years, the fascist movement in the

Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...

gained momentum, with the collaborationist ''Vlaamsch Nationaal Verbond'' (

Flemish National Union The (Dutch for "Flemish National Union" or "Flemish National League"), widely known by its acronym VNV, was a Flemish nationalist political party active in Belgium between 1933 and 1945.

) putting down roots in the region. Aalst, along with

and

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

were the strongest subscribers to this line of thought. The 20th century was marked by bombardment and occupation by the Germans during both world wars.

Economy

The

textile industry The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of yarn, cloth and clothing. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry. Industry process Cotton manufacturi ...

is still vibrant in Aalst, in part because of the French occupation. Aalst produces not only the textiles themselves, clothing and footwear, but manufactures many of the needed machines. The more rural regions are noted for their production of

hops Hops are the flowers (also called seed cones or strobiles) of the hop plant ''Humulus lupulus'', a member of the Cannabaceae family of flowering plants. They are used primarily as a bittering, flavouring, and stability agent in beer, to whi ...

, which are sold to the old

breweries A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of bee ...

there. They also have a large active cut flower business in the region.

Carnival

Aalst is known for its carnival festivities, celebrated every year before

Lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...

. During this celebration, the former town hall belfry is the site of the traditional "throwing of the onions". A ''Prince Carnival'' 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. Carnival Tuesday or

Shrove Tuesday Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent), observed in many Christian countries through participating in confession and absolution, the ritual burning of the previous year's Holy Week palms, finalizing one's Lenten s ...

(by tradition, the day before

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and falls on the first day of Lent (the six weeks of penitence before Easter). It is observed by Catholics in the Rom ...

), 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. In recent years the carnival has been accused of anti-Semitism due to the repeated use of derogatory imagery against Jews.

Controversy

In December 2019, anticipating

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

's response to the decision of the carnival organizers to double down on the widely reported use of

anti-Semitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

stereotypes, the mayor of Aalst pre-emptively applied to have his city's carnival removed from the

Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity UNESCO established its Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage with the aim of ensuring better protection of important intangible cultural heritages worldwide and the awareness of their significance.Compare: This list is published by the Intergove ...

. This is the only time such a request has been made. In

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

the Aalst parade included more anti-Semitic costumes. These included floats depicting

Orthodox Jews Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Jewish theology, Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Torah, Written and Oral Torah, Or ...

with hooked noses standing on sacks of gold coins. Israel's ambassador to Belgium stated “What we are asking for is the prohibition of all these antisemitic cartoons, which are beyond good taste, which have nothing to do with a sense of humor and which do not honor an exemplary democracy such as Belgium.” In response, Belgium’s prime minister,

Sophie Wilmès Sophie Wilmès (; born 15 January 1975) is a Belgian politician who served as the prime minister of Belgium from 2019 to 2020. She later served as minister of Foreign Affairs from 2020 to 2022. A member of the Reformist Movement, she is the fir ...

, described the parade as an “internal affair.” UNIA, the Interfederal

Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism Unia or the Interfederal Center for Equal Opportunities (Dutch language, Dutch: , French language, French: :fr:Unia_(institution), Unia (institution) ''Centre pour l'égalité des chances et la lutte contre le racisme'' ) is an independent public ...

, stated in a report that no criminal offences were committed, for the parade had no anti-semitic motive, nor the intent to incite hatred or violence against Jews.

In the media

The Belgian TV police drama, '' 13 Geboden'' (13 Commandments) was filmed in Aalst. The Belgian historical drama ''

Thieves of the Wood ''Thieves of the Wood'' is a 10-episode historical drama based on the life of the 18th-century outlaw leader Jan de Lichte, a native of Aalst in what is now Belgium. It became available to English/Spanish-speaking and Spanish-speaking viewers on ...

'' is set in and around Aalst. The movie

Daens Daens might refer to: * Adolf Daens, Belgian Flemish priest and politician * Pieter Daens (novel), a novel by Louis Paul Boon *Daens (film) ''Daens'' is a 1992 Belgian period drama film directed by Stijn Coninx, after a novel by Louis Paul Bo ...

is set in Aalst, it's about

. It's directed by Stijn Coninx. The movie Niet Schieten also by

Stijn Coninx Stijn, Baron Coninx (born 21 February 1957) is a Belgian film director. Career He studied film directing at HRITCS (currently Ritcs, at Erasmus Hogeschool Brussel). Baron Coninx is best known for his film ''Daens'', which was nominated for a ...

is set and filmed in Aalst.

Sites of interest

* The 15th-century Belfry of Aalst next to the town hall contains a 52-bell

carillon A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a keyboard and consists of at least 23 cast-bronze bells. The bells are hung in fixed suspension and tuned in chromatic order so that they can be sounded harmoniou ...

, the oldest in Belgium. Together with the adjacent Aldermen's House, it was classified by

as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

in 1999 (part of

Belfries of Belgium and France The Belfries of Belgium and France are a group of 56 historical buildings designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, in recognition of the civic (rather than church) belfries serving as an architectural manifestation of emerging civic indep ...

). * The famous "unfinished" St. Martin's Collegiate Church, in

Gothic style Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

, dates back to 1480. It contains a painting by

Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...

, '' Saint Roch beseeching Christ to terminate the Plague at Aalst'', and it also has a tabernacle (dated 1605), which features sculptures made by , whose most famous creation is ''

Manneken Pis ''Manneken Pis'' (; ) is a landmark bronze fountain sculpture in central Brussels, Belgium, depicting a puer mingens; a naked little boy urinating into the fountain's basin. Though its existence is attested as early as the 15th century, it wa ...

''. This church was damaged in 1914. * The statue of

(1450–1534), first printer in the Netherlands. * The old breweries that grow their own

. * The Town square has a gallery with a second statue of Martens along with

Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infan ...

. Aalst belfry.jpg, Belfry of Aalst Sint-Martinuskerk (Aalst) - Buitenaanzicht 03.jpg, Saint Martin's Church Kasteel Terlinden, Aalst (DSCF0381).jpg, Terlinden castle

Notable inhabitants

(1534), the first book printer in the Southern Netherlands *

Pieter Coecke van Aelst Pieter Coecke van Aelst or Pieter Coecke van Aelst the Elder ( Aalst, 14 August 1502 – Brussels, 6 December 1550) was a Flemish painter, sculptor, architect, author and designer of woodcuts, goldsmith's work, stained glass and tapestries.

(1502–1550), painter, sculptor and architect *

(1839–1907), priest and politician * Valerius De Saedeleer (1867–1941), painter * Pieter De Bruyne (1931-1987), designer and interior architect *

Franz Cumont __NOTOC__ Franz-Valéry-Marie Cumont (3 January 1868 in Aalst, Belgium – 20 August 1947 in Woluwe-Saint-Pierre near Brussels) was a Belgian archaeologist and historian, a philologist and student of epigraphy, who brought these often isolated ...

(1868–1947), archeologist, historian, and philologist * Sébastien Verhulst (1907-1944), Belgian international footballer *

Louis D'Haeseleer Louis (Lodewijk) Benoît D'Haeseleer (20 October 1911 – 12 August 1988) was a Belgian clerk and liberal politician. He was the president-founder of the ''Liberale Sociale Werken'' of Aalst. He was alderman and burgomaster of Aalst, member of th ...

(1911–1988), politician *

Louis Paul Boon Louis Paul Boon (15 March 1912, in Aalst – 10 May 1979, in Erembodegem) was a Belgian writer of novels, poetry, pornography, columns and art criticism. He was also a painter. He is best known for the novels ''My Little War'' (1947), the diptych ...

(1912–1979), writer and journalist * Herman Le Compte (1929–2008), physician, gerontologist *

Mark De Bie Mark De Bie (born 5 February 1939 in Aalst - Baardegem, Belgium) is a retired Belgian television writer. He has written Belgian TV series such as '' Alfa Papa Tango'' in 1990 which he co-wrote with Guy Bernaert. He is also credited with acti ...

(born 1939), television writer *

Luc Van den Bossche Luc Van den Bossche (born 16 September 1947, in Aalst) is a Belgian socialist politician and father of Freya Van den Bossche. He graduated as a Doctor in law at the University of Ghent in 1970. Luc Van den Bossche was a Member of Parliament fo ...

(born 1947), socialist politician * Wilfried Wesemael (born 1950), cyclist *

Luc Luycx Luc Luycx (; born 11 April 1958) is the designer of the common side of the euro coins. Luycx is a computer engineer and medallist. He was born in Aalst, Belgium and now lives in Dendermonde. Luycx worked for the Royal Belgian Mint. He designed the ...

(born 1958), designer of the common side of the

euro coins There are eight euro coin denominations, ranging from one cent to two euros (the euro is divided into a hundred cents). The coins first came into use in 2002. They have a common reverse, portraying a map of Europe, but each country in the eurozone ...

Gonda Van Steen Gonda Aline Hector Van Steen (born 8 April 1964 in Aalst, Belgium) is a Belgian-American classical scholar and linguist, who specialises in ancient and modern Greek language and literature. Since 2018, she has been Koraes Professor of Modern Gree ...

(born 1964), classical scholar * Bert Kruismans, (born 1966), stand-up comedian * Ilse Uyttersprot (1967–2020), mayor of Aalst * Patrick Van Goethem (born 1969),

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a s ...

Geert De Vlieger Geert De Vlieger (; born 16 October 1971) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Career De Vlieger was born in Dendermonde. He started his career in his home country playing for Anderlecht and Beveren before mo ...

(born 1971), football goalkeeper *

Sabine Appelmans Sabine Appelmans (born 22 April 1972) is a former professional tennis player from Belgium. She was Belgium's Fed Cup captain from 2007 until 2011. Career Appelmans started playing at the neighbour's court at the age of seven. Her first traine ...

(born 1972), tennis player *

Dimitri Verhulst Dimitri Verhulst (born 2 October 1972) is a Belgian writer and poet. He is best known for his novels ''Problemski Hotel'' and ''The Misfortunates''. Biography Verhulst was an unwanted child in a violent home and spent his later childhood in a fo ...

(born 1972), writer and poet *

Peter Van Der Heyden Peter Van der Heyden (born 16 July 1976) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a left-back. Club career Van der Heyden was born in Aalst, East Flanders. His former clubs include F.C. Denderleeuw, Eendracht Aalst, VfL Wolf ...

(born 1976), Belgian and international footballer * Remco Evenepoel (born 2000), professional cyclist

Transport

* Aalst railway station * Aalst Kerrebroek railway station * Erembodegem railway station

Symbols

Flag

Description: ''A rectangle of proportions 2:3, with three vertical bands of red, white and yellow, with a red sword in the middle band pointing upwards.'' In Dutch: ''"Drie even lange banen van rood, van wit en van geel, met op het wit een rood zwaard paalsgewijze geplaatst."'' Heraldic blazon: ''Terciated by pale Gules, Argent and Or, a sword of the first pointing upwards.''

Coat of arms

Those arms were granted in 1819 and confirmed on 6 February 1841. The oldest known seals of Aalst (13th–14th centuries) show a knight holding a sword in one hand and the Flemish banner in the other, but there is a seal dated 1237 showing the banner with the sword, and even an older seal, dated 1174, with the same features. A later version of the seal (1339–1559) shows a local banner with the sword. A seal from 1407 adds a small shield with the Flemish arms. The arms of Aalst were first shown in the roll of arms of Gaillard (1557). The sword is probably taken from the old seal with the knight. The two shields show the Imperial eagle and the Flemish lion, recalling the odd status of the Country of Aalst. Description: ''The municipal arms of Aalst show on the chief of a white shield two smaller shields separated by a red sword pointing upwards and dividing the whole shield; on dexter, the shield is yellow with a black double-headed eagle with red tongues and claws (Holy Roman Empire); on sinister, the shield is yellow with a black lion with a red tongue and claws (Flanders).'' Heraldic blazon: ''A Modern French shield Argent ensigned by a crown Or and divided in half by a sword palewise pointing upwards Gules between two smaller shields Or; on the dexter shield, a double-headed eagle displayed; on the sinister shield a lion rampant; both Sable armed and langued Gules.''

Sport

Aalst has several professional teams: * The basketball club

Okapi Aalstar Okapi Aalst is a Belgian professional basketball club from Aalst, Belgium. The club competes in the top tier BNXT League and plays its home games in the Okapi Forum, which has a seating capacity of 2,800 people. Okapi is a long-time participant o ...

* The football club Eendracht Aalst who play in the

second division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. * The volleyball club VK Aalst, which was founded in the 1960s, playing in the first division. * The

MotoGP Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start ...

team

Repsol Honda Repsol Honda is the official factory team of the Honda Racing Corporation in the MotoGP class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing (World Championship road racing), backed by principal sponsor Repsol. History 1990s In the team entered a three rider ...

are based in Aalst, Belgium.

Twin city

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

* *

Gabrovo Gabrovo ( bg, Габрово ) is a town in central northern Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Gabrovo Province. It is situated at the foot of the central Balkan Mountains, in the valley of the Yantra River, and is known as an internationa ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

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{{Authority control 9th-century establishments in Belgium Municipalities of East Flanders Populated places established in the 9th century World Heritage Sites in Belgium Antisemitism in Belgium