![[Flag of Pepingen]](../images/b/be-vbrpp.gif)
Last modified: 2015-07-28 by ivan sache
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Municipal flag of Pepingen - Image by Arnaud Leroy, 10 March 2006
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The municipality of Pepingen (in French, Pepenghien; 4,357 inhabitants on 1 July 2007; 3,604 ha) is located in the region of Pajottenland, 15 km south-west of Brussels and 5 km north-west of Halle. The municipality of Pepingen is made since 1976 of the former municipalities of Pepingen, Beert, Bellingen, Bogaarden, Elingen and Heikruis.
The origin of the name of Pepingen is obscure. A chart dated 1164
mentions someone named Elyas van Papenghien. In 1235, a document
mentions the municipality of Papinghen or Papenghien. The name of
Pepingen might come from Paap-inghen, from paap, "priest" or "monk".
Pepingen would have been "a pasture belonging to monks". Another possible
etymology relates Pepingen to the Frankish anthroponym Papa; Papa's
estate would have later given its name to the village.
In the Middle Ages, Pepingen was located on the border between the
Counties of Hainaut and Leuven, the latter being incorporating later
into the Duchy of Brabant. The lords of Enghien (in Dutch, Edingen),
owners of several domains in the region, supported in turn the two
competiting states. The status of Beert, Bogaarden, Pepingen and
Bellingen was very complicated because Hainaut and Brabant had several
enclaves in these villages. This explained the ragged municipal limits
which have been kept until now.
The domain of Pepingen proper belonged from the XIVth century to the
beginning of the XIXth century to the Walloon d'Herbais family.
Beert is named after the word brac, "mud", or the Teutonic word braak, "valley". The domain belonged to Gertrude de Nivelles, Abbess of the Nivelles abbey, who transferred it to the abbey. The domain of Nivelles, including Beert, was later transferred to the Count of Leuven. After having been transferred to the lords of Enghien, Beert reamined an enclave of Brabant inside Hainaut. In the XVIIIth century, Beert, along with Bellingen and Bogaarden, was transferred to the family of Croix, who granted a municipal administration.
Bellingen was mentioned in 1244, as Bellinghen. The village was part of the domain of the St. Gertrude's abbey in Nivelles. In the Middle Ages and under the Ancient Regime, Bellingen belonged to the Bailiwick of Enghien. The lords of Enghien built there a fortification called Wanaken, suppressed long time ago. The early boom of Bellingen dates back to 1182 with the foundation of a priory by the St. Augustine's order. The priory depended on the Augustinian abbey of Cantimpré, located near Cambrai in northern France. In 1580, the abbey was completely sacked and all the monks emigrated to Bellingen, and several new buildings were built. Bellingen increased and the priory became an abbey. In 1677, the seat of the abbey was moved to Cambrai and only a priory with four monks remained in Bellingen. After the French Revolution, the priory was sold as bien national (national good) to the Claes family.
Bogaarden was known in 1215, as Boomgaarden. Like Beert, it belonged to the abbey of Nivelles and was later an enclave of Brabant inside Hainaut ruled by the lords of Enghien. The municipal magistrates followed the Law of Uccle in the name of the lords of Enghien. Bogaarden became a Duchy in 1670.
Elingen belonged to the domain of Leeuw and later to the Duchy of Brabant. Until the late XVIIth century, it belonged to the domain of Baasbeek. It was part of the goods of the St. Peter abbey in Ghent until the French Revolution. In contrast with the other villages of Pepingen, whose limits follow brooks or paths, the limits of Elingen are made of arbitrary, angular plot limits.
Heikruis was founded in 1024, as Hadonis crucem, by Hado, who erected
a cross in order to implore God's protection upon an outpost of the
fortified estate of Lettelingen. It belonged until 1815 to Hainaut,
with French as official working language. The first fortified house
of Ter Rijst (probably named after the many twigs, in Dutch, rijs,
found in the local forest) was suppressed in 1169 upon order of the
Count of Hainaut. It was rebuilt in 1234. The castle was ruled by the
Van der Noot family. Knight Walter Van der Noot, Chamberlain of Duke of
Burgundy Philip the Handsome, built in 1480 a new castle with a pond.
During the Spanish rule in the XVIth century, Jaspar Van der Noot
served Count Egmont. He set up a plot in order to set free Egmont from
his jail in Ghent, but he was betrayed by a soldier. Egmont was
beheaded and Van der Noot had to exile. He served later the Orange
family, converted to the Calvinist religion, and was the first Colonel
of the cavalry (ritmeester) of the Geuzen. The domain of Heikruis was
transferred to the Roman Catholic family Völler.
The center of the village of Heikruis, located on the watershed between
the brooks of Zunne and Laubecq, is the highest point of the
municipality of Pepingen (91 m). The woods bos ter Rijst and bois de
Strihou are located on the two sides, respectively, Dutch and French,
of the linguistic border.
Source: Municipal website
There was in the past another Pepingen in Belgium, located near Mechelen and today completely forgotten.
Pepingen emerged in the Merovingian times as Pepo's estate. Pepin of
Landen (aka St. Pepin or Pepin the Ancient, c. 580-640) helped in 813
King of Neustria Clothaire II (584-629) to defeat the Kingdom of
Austrasia and to unify the Kingdom of the Franks under his rule. Pepin
was appointed Mayor of the Palace, that is a kind of Prime Minister and
de facto ruler of the kingdom. Pepin owned a big domain located between
the cities of Batsheers, Rukkelingen, Mechelen and Boekhout, which was
known as Terre de Pepin or Pepingen. Pepin appointed one of his
vassals as the lord of Pepingen to settle and run the domain.
The oldest known lord of Pepingen is Fastrad (aka Fastraets) van
Berloz, a squire who died in 1332. A document states that a chapel with a tower and two bells, dedicated to St. Martin, existed in Pepingen in
1218. The priest of Mechelen came to Pepingen to say the mass on Sundays
and holidays. The chapel was suppressed in 1863.
In 1360, the local lord was Guillaume van Pepingen, whose daughter
married Guillaume de Werfengeys (in French, Warfusée), who incorporated
Pepingen in his domain. By the marriage of one of his grandchildren,
Pepingen was transferred in 1443 to the Schrootz family, from
Sint-Truiden. A few generations later, Pepingen was transferred to the
famous Borchgrave d'Altena family, which built a new castle and lived
there until 1920.
Source: Pepingen, by Jos Schoefs
Ivan Sache, 10 March 2006
The municipal flag of Pepingen is vertically divided black-yellow-black
(1:2:1) with the municipal shield of arms in the middle.
According to Gemeentewapens in België - Vlaanderen en Brussel, the flag was adopted by the Municipal Council of 28 November 1985, confirmed by the Executive on 2 December 1985 and published in the Belgian official gazette on 8 July 1986, as Drie banen van zwart, van geel en van zwart, lengteverhouding 1 : 2 : 1, met op het midden het wapenschild van de gemeente.
The municipal arms of Pepingen are:
Gegeerd van zilver en van sabel van tien stukken, elke geer van sabel
beladen met drie gekruiste kruisen met gescherpte voet van goud. De
voeten gericht naar het hart van het schild.
Gyronny ten pieces argent and sable, each gyron sable charged with
three crosses recrossed or with a sharpened base pointing to the center
of the shield.
The arms are nearly the same as those of
Enghien.
Arnaud Leroy, Pascal Vagnat & Ivan Sache, 10 March 2006
