44 facts about Ghent
Ghent is one of Belgium's most visited cities by tourists. This beautiful old Flanders city combines dignity, beauty, culture, and creativity. It is a ...
Bruges is a small Belgian city that, in the Middle Ages, was a commercial and financial powerhouse of this part of Europe. At the time, it was one of the largest and most magnificent cities in the world, being compared to Venice, Milan, or Florence. Its prosperity ended in the 16th century, only to be revived again in the 19th century thanks to tourism. Today it is one of Europe’s most visited cities, with the medieval atmosphere of the unchanged streets of the historic center to offer.
It is the Flemish Region, also often referred to as Flanders, one of Belgium’s three federal regions. The region is divided into five provinces: Antwerp, Limburg, East Flanders, Flemish Brabant and West Flanders. Bruges is located in West Flanders and is its capital.
According to 2014 data, Burges had a population of more than 117.300, giving a population density of 848 people per square kilometer.
At one time Bruges was a major port, even though it was not on the sea. It had a connection to it via canals. When these became sited up, it lost it. It regained it thanks to a storm in 1134, which created the natural Zwin Canal.
In historical documents, the name Bruges first appeared only in the 9th century. It was then that the first coins with the name Briggia appeared.
They were built after Julius Caesar conquered the area to protect it from pirates.
In the 9th century, the lands were invaded by the Vikings, necessitating the strengthening of fortifications. Authority in Flanders at the time was held by Baldwin I Iron Arm, who was the first Count of Flanders.
New walls were built in the city and the construction of canals began.
A golden period for Bruges began then. The quay was developed so that ships coming to Bruges with Normandy grain, Gascony wine, and cloth could dock at it. Bruges became a major trading city with areas around the Mediterranean. It also began trading spices with the Levant (a term for countries on the eastern, Asian coast of the Mediterranean).
The city had a thriving banking and trading system. The interests of traders were protected by 21 consuls. The famous Roles de Damme basic maritime code was also established there.
In the Middle Ages, Bruges was one of the largest and most magnificent cities in the world. It was a city that rivaled such powers as Milan, Florence, and Venice.
The tyranny of the French triggered a revolt by the townspeople. In 1302, Bruges weavers led by Pieter de Coninck slaughtered French knights (the so-called Bruges Tomorrows). Anyone who could not pronounce the formula Scilt ende vrient - shield and friend-correctly was killed. Soon there was a decisive slash with the French. The insurgent forces consisted of peasants, dyers, weavers, and Flemish butchers, armed with axes, pitchforks, spades and goedendagi (medieval infantry white weapons used for hand-to-hand combat). At Courtrai, near Kortrijk, the insurgent army defeated a good French army comprising the flower of European chivalry.
The extent of the French defeat was evidenced by the 700 golden spurs found after the battle.
It is a monument to the weaver Jan Breydel and the butcher Pieter de Coninck. It is located in the central square of the Grote Markt.
Duke Philip III the Good of Burgundy established his courts in Bruges, as well as in Brussels and Lille, causing various prominent individuals to flock there. There was patronage, so various branches of the arts developed.
The new Flemish school presented the technique of oil painting. Prominent painters and miniaturists were active there. The painter Jan van Eyck settled there, started a family and lived there until his death. Hans Memling, among others, also created there. Thanks to the Bening family, Bruges illumination became famous, which developed thanks to Vrelant and Lidet.
Antwerp was becoming a commercial powerhouse. Lace-making (the famous Brabant lace lace with a pattern of swirling branches on a tulle background) declined in the 17th century.
Attempts were made to modernize the ports, but the city never again regained its former glory or status. The city was called Bruges-la-Morte, which means Dead Burges.
The city fully preserved its medieval character, monuments, and works of art, which attracted tourists. Bruges turned out to be one of the most visited European cities.
Because of its sizable network of canals, Bruges is often referred to as the Venice of Flanders.
In 2002, the city was elected European Capital of Culture.
These include one of the city’s symbols - a monumental tower (beffroi - a castle watchtower or city belfry in the form of a free-standing tower or attached to the city hall building) from the 13th-15th centuries, with a carillon (an ensemble of tower bells on which the melody can be struck with the hearts of bells using a special keyboard) consisting of 47 bells. The tower is located on the Grote Markt market square. Next to the belfry are market halls from the 13th-15th and 16th centuries.
The Basilica of the Holy Blood was built in the 12th century as a chapel for the rulers of Flanders. It is the site of a relic that is said to be the Blood of Christ, which was brought back in the 12th century from the Holy Land (during the Second Crusade) by Count Thierry of Flanders of Alsace. Because of the relic, the basilica has been a pilgrimage center for centuries.
It is usually stored in the tabernacle of the side altar but is regularly brought out for adoration by the faithful. Each year there is a colorful Procession of the Holy Blood on the occasion of the Ascension, led by the Bishop of Bruges. He leads the relic through the streets of the city, accompanied by locals re-enacting biblical scenes.
The church was built between 1290 and 1549, and its distinctive feature is its 122.30-meter high brick tower, the second-highest brick tower in the world, after the tower of St. Martin’s Church in Landshut, Germany (130.6 meters) in Bavaria, In the chancel behind the main altar are the tombs of Duke Charles the Bold of Burgundy and his daughter, Princess Mary. The gilded bronze figures of father and daughter rest on slabs of black stone. Both have crowns on their heads, and the duke is in full armor with the Order of the Golden Fleece.
The sculpture, made of white Carrara marble, dates to 1503-1504 and is one of the few works by Michelangelo that left Italy during the artist’s lifetime. It was originally intended for the altarpiece of Siena Cathedral but was purchased by the Mouscron family of Bruges. The merchant Jan Mouscron made the purchase while in Tuscany. The merchant kept the statue in his chapel for years, where it is said to have been admired by Durer himself. In 1514 it was donated to the church.
In 1794, during the French Revolution, French revolutionaries took control of Bruges and took the statue with them to Paris. Only after the end of the Napoleonic era, in 1816, did the statue return to its original place, but not for long. It was stolen a second time in 1944 by Germans fleeing Bruges after American troops arrived in that part of Europe. Along with the statue, the Nazis also looted other Renaissance works of art. They transported the supposedly mattress-wrapped cargo across the border in a Red Cross truck. Eventually, the statue ended up in the Altaussee salt mine, where it was found in 1945 by a special team tasked by President F.D. Roosevelt with the mission of rescuing artworks stolen by the Nazis throughout Europe. Eventually, the Madonna and Child was returned to Bruges.
Its origin is connected with the merchant Adorno family. In the second half of the 13th century, this family came to Flanders from Genoa. They applied for the privilege of running a cantina, which gave them handsome profits. Members of this family were often involved in the political life of Bruges, as well as all of Flanders. One prominent member of the family was Anselm Adorno, who lived in the 15th century and founded the Jerusalemkerk and turned the chapel into a work of art. He was involved in various political initiatives but lost the support of the authorities. As a result of riots in the city, he was taken into custody and was accused of embezzling money from the city’s coffers. He preserved his life thanks to a massive financial penalty and public penance (barefoot, with his head shaved and stripped of his clothes, he begged the mayor for forgiveness).
He visited many places in Europe and beyond. He also ended up in Jerusalem, where, after seeing the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, he decided to fund a similar one in Bruges.
It has also been opened to the public. The chapel was modeled after the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, so a special tunnel was carved behind the altar, at the end of which a statue of Christ was placed. The altar with a rock-like setting is decorated with bas-reliefs of skulls, snakes and the instruments of Christ’s passion. In the center of the chapel rests the wife of its founder and her husband’s heart. For Anselm was attacked and killed during his last expedition to Scotland, and his heart was brought to Bruges and buried next to his wife.
It was the center of patronage and development of medieval painting.
