Everything about Bruges totally explained
Bruges is the capital and largest city of the
province of
West Flanders in the
Flemish Region of
Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country.
The historic city centre is a prominent
World Heritage Site of
UNESCO. It is egg-shaped and about 430
hectares in size. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 193.7 hectares off the coast, at
Zeebrugge ("Seabruges" in literal translation). The city's total population is more than 117,000, of which around 20,000 live in the historic centre.
Bruges has, because of its
port, a significant economic importance and is also home to the
College of Europe.
History
Origins
Very few traces of human activity date from the
Pre-Roman Gaul era. The first fortifications were built after
Julius Caesar's conquest of the
Menapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The
Franks took over the whole region from the
Gallo Romans around the
4th century and administered it as the
Pagus Flandrensis. The
Viking incursions of the ninth century prompted
Baldwin I, Count of Flanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications; trade soon resumed with
England and
Scandinavia. It is at around this time that coins appeared for the first time bearing the name
Bryggia. This name may stem from the
Old Norse, meaning "landing stage" or "port", and may have the same origin as Norway’s
Bryggen.
Golden Age (12th to 15th century)
Bruges got its
city charter on
July 27,
1128 and built itself new walls and canals. Since about
1050, gradual silting had caused the city to lose its direct access to the sea. A storm in
1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a natural channel at the
Zwin. The new sea arm stretched all the way to
Damme, a city that became the commercial outpost for Bruges.
With the reawakening of town life in the twelfth century, a wool market, a woollens weaving industry, and the market for cloth all profited from the shelter of city walls, where surpluses could be safely accumulated under the patronage of the
counts of Flanders. Bruges was already included in the circuit of the Flemish cloth fairs at the beginning of the thirteenth century. The city's entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotland's wool-producing districts. English contacts brought Normandy grain and Gascon wines.
Hanseatic ships filled the harbor, which had to be expanded beyond
Damme to
Sluys to accommodate the new
cog-ships. In 1277, the first merchant fleet from
Genoa appeared in the port of Bruges, first of the merchant colony that made Bruges the main link to the trade of the Mediterranean. This development opened not only the trade in spices from the
Levant, but also advanced commercial and financial techniques and a flood of capital that soon took over the banking of Bruges. The
Bourse opened in 1309 and developed into the most sophisticated money market of the Low Countries in the fourteenth century. By the time Venetian galleys first appeared, in 1314, they were latecomers.
Such wealth gave rise to social upheavals, which were for the most part harshly contained. In
1302, however, the population joined forces with the
Count of Flanders against the
French, culminating in the victory at the
Battle of the Golden Spurs, fought near
Kortrijk on
July 11. The statue of
Jan Breydel and
Pieter de Coninck, the leaders of the uprising, can still be seen on the Big Market square.
In the
15th century,
Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy set up court in Bruges, as well as
Brussels and
Lille, attracting a number of artists, bankers, and other prominent personalities from all over Europe.
The new Flemish-school, oil-painting techniques gained world renown. The first book in English ever printed was published in Bruges by
William Caxton. This is also the time when
Edward IV and
Richard III of England spent time in exile here. The population swelled to more than 40,000 inhabitants.
16th century until now
Starting around
1500, the Zwin channel, which had given the city its prosperity, also started silting. The city soon fell behind
Antwerp as the economic flagship of the
Low Countries. During the
17th century, the
lace industry took off and various efforts to bring back the glorious past were taken. During the 1650's the city was the base for the court of
Charles II of England and his court in exile . The maritime infrastructure was modernized, and new connections with the sea were built, but without much success. Bruges became impoverished and gradually disappeared from the picture.
George Rodenbach even named the sleepy city
Bruges-la-Morte meaning "Bruges-the-dead". In the last half of the 19th century Bruges became one of the world's first tourist destinations attracting wealthy British and French tourists. Only in the second half of the twentieth century has the city started to reclaim some of its past glory. The
port of Zeebrugge was built in 1907. The Germans used it for their
U-boats in
World War I. It was greatly expanded in the
1970s and early
1980s and has become one of Europe's most important and modern ports. International tourism has boomed and new efforts have resulted in Bruges being designated '
European Capital of Culture' in 2002.
Geography
The
municipality comprises:
Sights
Bruges has most of its
medieval architecture intact. The historic centre of Bruges is a
UNESCO World Heritage Site since
2000.
There are many worth-seeing medieval buildings, including the
Church of Our Lady, whose brick spire — at 122m — makes it one of the world's highest brick towers/buildings. The sculpture
Madonna and Child, which can be seen in the transept, is believed to be
Michelangelo's only sculpture to have left Italy within his lifetime.
Bruges is also famous for its 13th-century
Belfry, housing a municipal
Carillon comprising 47 bells. The city still employs a full-time bell ringer,
Aimé Lombaért
, who puts on regular free concerts.
Other famous buildings in Bruges include:
The Beguinage
The Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilig-Bloedbasiliek). The relic of the Holy Blood, which was brought to the city during the First Crusade, is paraded every year through the streets of the city. More than 1,600 inhabitants take part in this mile-long religious procession, many dressed as medieval knights or crusaders.
The modern Concertgebouw ("Concert Building")
The Old St-John's Hospital
The Saint-Salvator Cathedral
The Groeningemuseum
The City Hall
The Provincial Court (Provinciaal Hof)
The old city gateways: the Kruispoort, Gentpoort, Smedenpoort and Ezelpoort. The Dampoort, Katelijnepoort and Boeveriepoort are gone.
Bruges also has a very fine collection of medieval and early modern art, including the world-famous collection of Flemish Primitives. Various masters, such as Hans Memling and Jan van Eyck, lived and worked in Bruges.
Image:Brugge our lady.JPG|Church of Our Lady
Image:OLVBrugge.jpg|Dijver and Church of Our Lady
Image:Brugge Markt1.jpg|Provinciaal Hof (Provincial Court)
Image:Brugge-Gateway.JPG|Gateway (Kruispoort)
Image:Brugge Dweerstraat.jpg|Dweersstraat
Image:Brugge beguinage.JPG|Beguinage
Image:Brugge-Canal.jpg|Groenerei
Image:Bruges canal corner.jpg |An aerial view over one of Bruges' canals
Image:Bruges view from the belfry.JPG|Northwestern view from the Belfry
Image:Roofs of Bruges 01.jpg|Roofs of old houses in the city centre
Image:Bruges_De_Burg.JPG|The Burg square with the City Hall
Culture and art
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Theatres and concert halls
Aquariustheater
Biekorf
Concertgebouw ("Concert Building")
De Dijk
De Werf
Het Entrepot
Joseph Ryelandtzaal
Magdalenazaal
Sirkeltheater
Stadsschouwburg
Studio Hall
Zwart Huis (before also The English Theatre of Bruges)
Cinemas
Cinema Lumière (alternative movies)
Cinema Liberty
Kinepolis Bruges
Festivals
| Airbag (accordion festival)
BAB-bierfestival (beer festival)
Bad Boys Festival
Brugge Tripel Dagen
Brugges Festival
Brugse Kantdagen ("Bruges' Lace Days")
Burg Rock
Cactusfestival
Choco-Laté (chocolate festival)
Cinema Novo (film festival)
Comma Rocks Festival
Coupurefeesten
Dagen van de Bruggeling
December Dance (dance festival)
Dudstock (Last edition 2007, discontinued)
European Youth Film Festival of Flanders
Feest In't Park
FEST!
Hafabrugge (orchestra festival)
Jazz Brugge (jazz festival)
Jonge Snaken Festival
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Klinkers
Midwinterfeest
miniROCK
Music in Mind
Festival van Vlaanderen - MAfestival
NAFT (theatre festival)
Polé Polé Beach (in Zeebrugge)
Red Rock Rally
Reiefeest
September Jazz (jazz festival)
Sint-Gillis Blues- en Folkfestival
Snow and Ice (snow and ice sculpture festival)
Soundscape Festival
Thoprock
Uitgepakt! (gay culture festival)
Vama Veche festival
Vijverpop
Walvisfestival
XXTASE festival
Zwiebelrock (part of Vama Veche)
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Museums
Municipal museums
Artistic works from the 15th to 21st century:
- Groeningemuseum
- Arents House (contains a Frank Brangwyn museum and a museum for ever-changing exhibitions of expressive art)
- Forum+ (part of the Concertgebouw; has exhibitions of contemporary art)
The Bruggemuseum ("Bruges Museum") (general name for 11 different museums in the city):
- Gruuthusemuseum
- Welcome Church of Our Lady
- Archaeological Museum
- Gentpoort
- Belfry
- City Hall
- Liberty of Bruges
- Museum of Folklore
- Guido Gezelle Museum
- Koelewei (Cool Meadow) Mill
- Sint-Janshuis (St. John’s House) Mill
Hospitalmuseums:
- Old St John’s Hospital (Hans Memling)
- Our Lady of the Potteries
Non-municipal museums
Beguine's House
Hof Bladelin
Basilica of the Holy Blood
Choco-Story (chocolate museum)
Lumina Domestica (lamp museum)
Museum-Gallery Xpo: Salvador Dalí
Diamond Museum
English Convent
Frietmuseum (museum dedicated to Belgian Fries)
Jerusalem Church
Lace centre
St. George’s Archers Guild
Saint-Salvator Cathedral
St. Sebastian’s Archers’ Guild
St. Trudo Abbey
Public Observatory Beisbroek
Ter Doest Abbey (in Lissewege)
Bogardenkapel (exhibition room)
De Bond (creation and exhibition rooms)
Jan Garemijnzaal (exhibition room)
Transport
Road
Bruges has excellent road connections from all directions (E40, A10, E403, N31, E34).
Driving within the 'egg', the historical centre enclosed by the main circle of canals in Bruges, is discouraged by traffic management schemes, including a network of one way streets. The system encourages the use of set routes leading to central car parks and direct exit routes. The car parks are convenient for the central commercial and tourist areas; they're inexpensive.
Railway
Bruges' main railway station provides at least hourly trains to all other major cities of Belgium. Further there are several regional and local trains.
The main station is also a stop for the Thalys train Paris–Brussels–Ostend.
Bus links to the centre are frequent, though the railway station is just a 10 minute walk from the main shopping streets and a 20 minute walk from the Market Square.
Air
The national Brussels Airport, one hour away by train or car, offers the best connectivity. The nearest airport is the Ostend-Bruges International Airport in Ostend (around 30 km from the city centre of Bruges), but it offers limited passenger transport and connections.
Public city transport
Bruges has an extensive web of bus lines, operated by De Lijn, providing access to the city centre and the suburbs (city lines, ) and to many towns and villages in the region around the city (regional lines, ).
In support of the municipal (see "Road" above), free public transport is available for those who park their cars in the main railway station car park.
Plans for a north–south light rail connection through Bruges, that would join up with the Belgian Coast Tram in Zeebrugge, and a light rail connection between Bruges and Ostend are under construction.
Cycling
Although a few streets are restricted, no part of Bruges is car free.
Cars are required to yield to pedestrians and cyclists. Plans have long been under way to ban cars altogether from the historic center of Bruges or to restrict traffic much more than it currently is, but these plans have yet to come to fruition. In 2005, signs were changed for the convenience of cyclists, allowing two-way cycle traffic on more streets, however car traffic hasn't decreased. Recent cycle fatalities have increased pressure to close bridges and further calm inner Bruges, but laws have not yet passed. Due to heavily populated suburbs, bus traffic is high on the narrow streets. This makes cycling even trickier.
Nethertheless, in common with many cities in the region, there are thousands of cyclists in the city of Bruges.
Port
The port of Bruges is Zeebrugge. It's the most modern and second biggest port of Belgium and one of the most important in Europe.
Sports
Bruges is traditionally the starting town for the annual Ronde van Vlaanderen cycle race, held in April and one of the biggest sporting events in Belgium.
Bruges is also a football town represented by two teams at the top level (Jupiler League): Club Brugge and Cercle Brugge K.S.V., both playing in the Jan Breydel Stadium (30,000 seats). Although, Club Brugge has plans for a new stadium with about 40,000 seats.
Miscellaneous
Bruges Matins
Bruges is known for its lace.
Several beers are named after Bruges, such as Brugge Blond, Brugge Tripel, Brugs, Brugs Tarwebier, Brugse Babbelaar, Brugse Straffe Hendrik and Brugse Zot. However, only Brugse Zot is still brewed in the city itself, in the Halve Maan Brewery (a blonde ale was launched in 2005 and a brown ale in 2006).
Bruges is home to the College of Europe, a prestigious institution of postgraduate studies in European Economics, Law and Politics.
Fiction:
In Sint-Michiels is the amusement park Boudewijn Seapark with the dolphinarium.
Famous inhabitants
The following people were born in Bruges:
Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck, freedom fighters
Philip I of Castile, first Habsburg ruler in Spain (1478-1506)
Adrian Willaert, composer of the Renaissance, (birth in Bruges uncertain, c. 1490-1562)
Simon Stevin, mathematician and engineer (1548-1620)
Franciscus Gomarus, Calvinist theologian (1563-1641)
Guido Gezelle, poet and priest (1830-1899)
In the 15th century, the city became the magnet for a number of prominent personalities:
Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy set up court in Bruges, Brussels, and Lille in the 15th century
William Caxton, English merchant, diplomat, writer, and printer
Petrus Christus, Flemish painter
Gerard David, Flemish painter
Hans Memling, Flemish painter
Jan van Eyck, Flemish painter
Juan Luís Vives, Spanish scholar and humanist
Simon Bening and Levina Teerlinc, Limners
Town twinning policy
On principle, Bruges has to date never entered into close collaboration with twin cities. Without denying the usefulness of this schemes for towns with fewer international contacts, the main reason is that Bruges would find it difficult to choose between cities and thinks that it has enough work already with its many international contacts. Also, it was thought in Bruges that twinning was too often an occasion for city authorities and representatives to travel on public expense.
This principle resulted, in the 1950s, in Bruges refusing a jumelage with Nice and other towns, signed by a Belgian ambassador without previous consultation. In the 1970s, a Belgian consul in Oldenburg made the mayor of Bruges sign a declaration of friendship which he tried to present, in vain, as a jumelage.
The twinning between some of the former communes, merged with Bruges in 1971, were discontinued.
This doesn't mean that Bruges wouldn't be interested in cooperation with others, as well in the short term as in the long run, for particular projects. Here follow a few examples.
Bastogne, Luxembourg, Belgium : After World War II and into the 1970s, Bruges, more in particular the Fire Brigade of Bruges, entertained friendly relations with Bastogne. Each year a free holiday was offered at the seaside in Zeebrugge, to children from the Nuts city.
; Arolsen, Hesse, Germany : From the 1950s until the 1980s, Bruges was the patron of the Belgian First Regiment of Horse Guards, quartered in Arolsen
Salamanca, Castilla y León, Spain : Both towns having been made European Capital of Culture in 2002, Bruges had some exchanges organized with Salamanca.
; Mons, Hainaut, Belgium : In 2007, cultural and artistic cooperation between Mons and Bruges was inaugurated.
Burgos, Castilla y León, Spain : On 29 January 2007, the mayors of Burgos and Bruges signed a declaration of intent about future cooperation on cultural, touristic and economic matters.
Panoramas
Further Information
Get more info on 'Bruges'.
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