Mortsel

Mortsel

Mortsel

Municipality in Flemish Community, Belgium

Mortsel (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈmɔrtsəl]) is a city and municipality close to the city of Antwerp located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality only comprises the city of Mortsel proper. In 2021, Mortsel had a total population of 26,170 people. The total area is 7.78 km².[2]

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Geography

The city consists of the areas Mortsel-Dorp, Oude-God and Luithagen. Mortsel is bordered by Antwerp (districts Wilrijk, Berchem and Deurne), Borsbeek, Boechout, Hove, and Edegem.

History

Mortsel was the scene for one of the major collateral damage tragedies of World War II. On 5 April 1943, the Minerva car factory, then used to repair Luftwaffe planes, was the target of a bombing raid by the USAAF. Most bombs missed the target and hit a residential area instead, resulting in the deaths of 936 civilians, including 209 children, exceeding the civilian death toll of the Guernica raid which modern estimates put at 400.[3]

The last V2 launched against Antwerp also fell in Mortsel, killing 27 people, on 27 March 1945.

Economy

The headquarters of Agfa-Gevaert are situated in Mortsel.

Notable people

See also the Category:People from Mortsel.

See also

References

  1. [1]
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  2. [2]
    "Bevolking per statistische sector - Sector 11029". Statistics Belgium. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
  3. [3]
    "Bombing of Mortsel". pieterserrien.be. 3 September 2015. (in English)

Media related to Mortsel at Wikimedia Commons
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