Schansenroute in Herselt

This bicycle or walking tour takes you along five of the nine entrenchments of Herselt.
This is an initiative of the municipality of Hulshout, Herselt, Scherpenheuvel-Zichem, Tessenderlo, Laakdal and Westerlo, the local community associations and the IOED de Merode n.On the occasion of the Archaeology Days 2022.

What are entrenchments?
The Eighty Years' War (1568-1648) broke out in the Merode region, the inhabitants took refuge in fortified towns or churches. Peasants who lived in a hamlet further away from such places of protection started to build their own entrenchments to protect themselves and their livestock from invading troops. A peasant entrenchment is a piece of land around which the community collectively built a rampart and wide moat. A drawbridge provided access to the entrenchment. Simple shelters were established on the entrenchment, as well as entrenchment houses. Life on the entrenchment was organized by the entrenchment regulations; in times of emergency, one had to react immediately and discipline was a matter of life and death.

More information via https://www.cultuurenerfgoeddemerode.be/projecten/archeologiedagen-20-21-en-22-mei-2022

Sources:
- Author: Karel Eyckmans and Steffie Peetermans
- Aerts, T. "De O.L.Vrouwkapel te Wezel (Herselt) met illustration", in H.K.W.- Mededelingenblad Kanton Wester Westerbork.Mededelingenblad Kanton Westerlo, 1 (1980).
- Eyckmans, K. "Schansen te Herselt en te Ramsel", in H.K.W.-Mededelingenblad Kanton Westerlo, 3 (1983).

📏 27.5 km
📍 Sint Servatiuskerk, Kerkstraat, 2230 Herselt
🏁 Sint Servatiuskerk, Kerkstraat, 2230 Herselt