Last modified: 2006-10-21 by ivan sache
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![[Flag of Westerlo]](../images/b/be-vanws.gif)
Municipal flag of Westerlo - Image by Arnaud Leroy, 4 February 2006
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The municipality of Westerlo (22,685 inhabitants on 31 December 2004; 5,513 ha) is located 25 km south-east of Antwerp in the valley of Grote Nete, on the border of the regions of Kempen and Hageland. Westerlo is known as the Pearl of Kempen (Parel van de Kempen). Since 1976, it is made of the villages of Heultje (3,938 inh.), Oevel (3,475 inh.), Oosterwijk (2,303 inh.), Tongerlo (4,707 inh.), Voortkapel (2,390 inh.), Westerlo (3,838 inh.) and Zoerle-Parwijs (2,034 inh.). In 1971, Tongerlo (including Oosterwijk), Zoerle-Parwijs and Westerlo (incl. Heultje and Voortkapel) were incorporated into the municipality of Westerlo, which was further increased in 1976 with the incorporation of Oevel. Westerlo is mostly a green city with woods and pastures, whereas Oevel is an industrial area.
Westerlo was already mentioned in 994. The name of the town most
probably comes from the Germanic word westara (western; in Dutch,
westelijk) and lauha (a small wood on a sandy hill). Ansfried,
Count of Toxandria, then appointed Bishop of Utrecht, ceded all his
possessions in Westerlo, Olen and Westmeerbeek (today Meerbeke) to two chapters in Utrecht. In the XIIIth century, the chapter owning Westerlo
transfered the domain to Arnold I van Wezemaal as a pawn. Around 1360,
Margaretha van Wezemaal maaried Rijkaard de Merode, and the Merode
family became owner of Westerlo; this was confirmed in 1482 and 1620,
and the family remained there until the French Revolution. Westerlo
became a Barony in 1473 and a Marquisate in 1626 (Letters patented
signed by Filip IV on 21 May).
Several members of the Merode family played a significant role in the
history of Belgium. Frederik de Merode was killed in Berchem during the
independance war; his brother Felix de Merode was the head of the
Provisory Government and remained until 1839 Minister without portfolio
in the further governments. Count Henri de Merode was Mayor of Westerlo
from 1892 until his death in 1908; he was for years Minister of the
Foreign Affairs. Prince Charles de Merode was Mayor of Westerlo from
1913 to 1946.
The castle of Merode is located in the south of the municipality of
Westerloo. The first castle was built in 1066, on the probable site of
a Roman fortress. Around 1300, the lords of Wezemaal increased the
fortifications of the castle and transformed it into a waterburcht
(castle partially protected by water, here the river Grote Nete); it
was a part of the defense system of the border of the Duchy of Brabant.
The castle is still inhabited by members of the Merode family.
In 1798, the Boerenkrijg (Farmers' War) broke out in Flanders against
the French rulers. E.J. Van Gansen (1766-1842) and A. Meulemans
(arrested and shot in Tournai in 1799), played an important role in the insurrection. In 1898, a monument was erected in Westerlo to
commemorate the Boerenkrijg.
In the past, the inhabitants of Westerlo were nicknamed
flierefleuters (revellers) and leeglopers (lazybones) by their
neighbours; this is commemorated by the Flierefleuters bier created
in Westerlo in 1982 after an old recipe from Kempen.
Heultje was known in the past as Heule, a small, movable bridge used to
cross water. It was in the past a part of the domain of Westerlo.
Voortkapel was originally a chapel (kapel) dedicated to the Blessed
Virgin located near the ford (voort; in Germanic, gurdum) on the
river Wimp. It was also part of the domain of Westerlo.
Tongerlo was known in 1133 as Tungerloo, from Germanic tungri, trunk,
and lo, a wood on a sandy hill. Around 1130, Giselbertus van Castelre
ceded a part of his domain in Tongerlo to the Norbertine St. Michael
abbey in Antwerp. A new abbey, dedicated to Sts. Barbara, Catherine and
the Blessed Virgin, was built, which played an important role in the
religious, social, economic and politic development of Kampen. The
abbey has kept a linden planted in 1676; its perimeter is 4.5 m and its
height 25 m. The masterpiece kept in the abbey is a replica of Leonardo
da Vinci's Last Supper (4.5 x 9 m, original in the Dominican Convent of
Milan), painted in 1506-1507 by Andrea Solario. The abbey was closed
during the French Revolution and resettled in 1840. The monks still
brews a traditional abbey's bear (abdijbier).
Oosterwijk was a hamlet (wijk) located eastwards (oostelijk), from
the center of Olen, most probably. It was part of the domain of Tongerlo.
Zoerle-Parwijs was mentioned as Zuerle in 1286, meaning a small, acid wood. The village was enclaved inside Westerlo and was divided into two parts: Zoerle-Westerlo, that belonged to the lords of Westerlo, and Zoerle-Parwijs, that belonged to the lords of Geel. The second part for long belonged to lord Perwez, therefore its name.
Oevel was known as Ovelo in 1173 and Ovele in 1189, from Middle Dutch oven, on a height, and lo, a small wood on a sandy hill. That year, Bishop Ogier of Cambrai ceded his rights on Oevel to the abbey of Tongerlo, that owned most of the village. From the XIIIth century onwards, Oevel belonged to the domain of Geel, owned by the Berthout family and later by the Merode family.
Source: Municipal website
Ivan Sache, 4 February 2006
The municipal flag of Westerlo is vertically divided
yellow-red-yellow-red-yellow-red-yellow-red-yellow (nine stripes) with
a blue engrailed border.
According to Gemeentewapens in België - Vlaanderen en Brussel, the flag was adopted by the Municipal Council on 24 April 1989, confirmed by the Executive of Flanders on 21
November 1989 and published in the Belgian official gazette on 8 December 1990.
The flag is a banner of the dexter shield shown in the municipal arms,
that is the arms of the family of Merode.
The adjacent municipality of Herselt has a similar flag, differentiated by a blue H.
The municipal arms of Westerlo were adopted at the same dates as the
flag. They were originally granted on 29 April 1842, which means that
the new municipality kept the arms of the former municipality of
Westerlo. These arms were already mentioned in 1644.
The Royal Decree of 1842 describes the arms of Westerloo as follows
(from the municipal website):
Van lazuur met open kasteel van goud, met vijf kleine hangtorentjes
van hetzelfde, beladen rechts in de punt van een gouden wapenschild met
vier palen van keel met uitgeschulpte zoom van lazuur, en links een
gouden wapenschild met Sint Maarten van lazuur. De vermelde
wapenschilden gedekt door een gouden kroon.
The arms represent on a shield azure a castle gate with two towers on
each side, all gold. Two shields are placed in front of the towers, on
dexter the shield of arms of Merode and on sinister a shield or with
St. Martin cutting his cloak for a beggar, all azure. The greater arms
are topped with a golden crown.
The two shields recall the two former owners of Westerloo, the family
of Merode, owner of the domain, and the St. Martin's chapter in
Utrecht, owner of the church.
Arnaud Leroy, Pascal Vagnat & Ivan Sache, 4 February 2006