Moorsel is a village in the

Denderstreek The Denderstreek or Denderland is a region in Belgium. It is named after the river Dender. Though the river stretches over three provinces, Hainaut, East Flanders and Flemish Brabant, the region called after the river is situated in East Flande ...

in the province

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

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, a '' deelgemeente'' of the city of Aalst. The village belongs to a league of neighbouring villages, which call themselves the ''Faluintjesgemeenten''. Moorsel is the largest of the four villages with approximately 5,175 inhabitants as of 2021.

Name

Today's accepted spelling "Moorsel" dates merely from the 18th century. Latin spellings, such as ''Morcella'' or ''Morscella'' (adj. ''Morscellensis''), are dating back to about 1048
''Vita S. Gudilae''
. The name itself appears to be a combination of ''moor'' (marshland) and ''sele'' or ''sall'' (dwelling), hence a dwelling located in marshland.

History

Historical records about the village of Moorsel date back from the early

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 ...

. Approximately one-third of the territory, called ''Moorsel-proper'', was controlled by a local landlord. His housings included a medieval moat, which is still visible in the landscape. The feudal title was elevated to a barony in 1661. The other part of the village (''Moorsel-kapittel'') was owned by the chapter of Dendermonde, probably from 868 on. One of the largest landowners in the region was the

Abbey of Affligem Affligem Abbey ( nl, Abdij Affligem, french: Abbaye d'Affligem) is a Benedictine abbey in the municipality of Affligem, Flemish Brabant, Belgium, to the north-west of Brussels. Dedicated in 1086, it was the most important monastery in the Duch ...

, who possessed the church and the parish of Moorsel. Abbot Karl de Croy,

Bishop of Tournai The Diocese of Tournai is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. The diocese was formed in 1146, upon the dissolution of the Diocese of Noyon & Tournai, which had existed since the 7th Century. It is ...

, built a water castle at Moorsel in 1546. Only after the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

the feudal parts of the village (Moorsel-proper and ''Moorsel-kapittel''), as well as the ecclesiastical influence of Affligem, were abolished.

Landmarks

Moorsel is home to a chapel dedicated to

Saint Gudula Saint Gudula was born in the pagus of Brabant (in present-day Belgium). According to her 11th-century biography ( Vita Gudilae), written by a monk of the abbey of Hautmont between 1048 and 1051, she was the daughter of a duke of Lotharingia call ...

. According to the Life of St. Gudula, she visited daily the church of Moorsel, two miles away from her home. The 14th century structure was built with

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

from Meldert, one of the ''Faluintjesgemeenten''. The parish church is dedicated to St. Martin. The Romanesque substructure dates from the 12th century. According local tradition, it is based on the foundations of the 7th century St. Salvator church, which Saint Gudula daily visited. The church counts three altars in baroque style, constructed by Jacob Ulner. Another curiosity is the renaissance castle, which is still preserved in its original condition. The castle is constructed was intended as a summer residence for the Karl de Croy, Abbot of the

and later on Bishop of Tournai.

Coat of arms

The village's

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

was granted 26 March 1914. The heraldic

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vi ...

can be described as follows: A shield of Argent with a bend of Gules, standing next to the left of the Virgin Mary, who is holding in her right hand a scepter, and bearing in her left arm the Child Jesus, both covered with a flowing mantle, their heads crowned and aureoled, all in Argent.

Gallery

File:Sint Stefanuskerk - Moorsel - Belgium.jpg, St Stefanus Church File:Aalst Moorsel Bergsken - 246723 - onroerenderfgoed.jpg, Street view File:Brouwerij De Valk - Moorsel - Aalst - België.jpg, Brewery De Valk File:Moorsel - Aalst - België.jpg, Former town hall

References

{{Authority control Aalst, Belgium Former municipalities of East Flanders de:Aalst#Moorsel