Forest, Belgium

Forest (French name, pronounced: [fɔʁɛː]; Dutch: Vorst [vɔrst]) is one of the nineteen municipalities located in the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium.

The town is commonly known for its concert hall (French: Forest National, Dutch: Vorst Nationaal). It also houses an important jail, an Audi factory and a railway depot that is home to the Belgian fleet of Eurostar train sets.

History

Frankish origins and medieval period

The first houses built in this forested area along the Geleysbeek, a tributary of the Zenne, date from the 7th century. The village's first church was dedicated to Dionysius the Areopagite. The legend of Saint Alena, a young convert to Christianity murdered by her father's troops for hearing mass at the church of Dionysius, also allegedly takes place in the 7th century. The chapel and cult of Saint Alena, however, date only from the 12th century. The saint's cenotaph, one of the rare examples of 12th-century sculpture in Belgium, can still be admired in the chapel today. The contiguous church of Saint Denis (Dionysius) was rebuilt in the Romanesque style at around the same time.