Once the world's largest commercial canal-based city with a picturesque mediaeval urbanscape - Flemish Béguinages 855; Belfries of Belgium and France 943; Historic Centre of Brugge 996; Safeguarding the carillon culture: preservation, transmission, exchange and awareness-raising 01017; Beer culture in Belgium 01062
What and Why
Bruges (Dutch: Brugge) was at one point the commercial heart of the world, due its port and rivers. As a result of its economic might during the Middle Ages, the city saw the construction of many of the city's impressive old buildings, the magnificient belfry and its second city wall and perhaps most importantly, the world's first stock exchange was formed.
The economic prosperity is strongly associated with its geographic location. On one hand, the city is a port and facilitates trade, especially the textile industry. Secondly it had a strategic location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League (Middle Low German: Hanse) and the southern trade routes and hence the city developed. The city, however, started its decline after the 1500s CE when the canals started to get silted and transportation became more and more difficult. The decline also led to change of the city ownership between Spain, Austria, France and Netherlands until Belgium gained independence in 1830 CE.
During the city golden age, it also occurred that a series of beguinage (begijnhof) was formed, which will be detailed later in this blog.
Toponymy
Bruges and Brugge probably derives its name from the Old Dutch word brugga, meaning bridge, with reference to the canal bridges built around the city, as the city is technically an inland-island surrounded by rivers. Another suggestion is that the name came from Old Norse bryggja, translating to harbour or jetty, similar to Bryggen in our blogged Bergen, Norway.
See
Market Square (Grote Markt)
As in other historic cities, the heart of the city is always the Market Square (Grote Markt), which houses all the impressive historic buildings, including the very imposing belfry. While this square is literally there since the 8th century CE, the present market is recently rebuilt and renovated in the late 19th century and as recent as 1990s CE. The statue belongs to Jan Breydel, a leader in the Bruges Matins (Brugse Metten) uprising during the 14th century CE and stands right in the centre. The south-end of the plaza is the belfry.
There is a fruit market every morning inside the square.
We walk through the significant buildings around the square one by one.
Historium Bruges (Historium Brugge)
While the building looks neo-Gothic, the building was only constructed in the 1920s CE after the government had decided to purchase this corner lot and made it a post-office, which used to be the port's warehouse. The former buildings were destroyed by fire, as usual in other European cities, multiple times. The building was slightly atypical with the other buildings as it was built with bluestone, rather than the traditional red bricks. The building was purchased by private owners and turned to a Disney-like historium in 2009 CE.
Provincial Court (Provinciaal Hof)
A former provincial government noe-Gothic building, now vacated and mainly used for ceremonial purpose. Burnt down together with the building (now Historium) in the 18th century CE and rebuilt in the late 19th century CE.
Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilige-Bloedbasiliek)
A very atypical chapel, which lacks any usual church features, the Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilige-Bloedbasiliek) is renowned for possessing a vial that contains a bloodied cloth of Jesus (Hebrew: יהושע, Yehoshua) after his crucifixion, apparently brought to Bruges during the Second Crusade during the mid-12th century CE. The relic is for public display for veneration everyday at 2 pm. There are, as usual, loads of debate about the vial authenticity but the vial does have a ceremonial status when it is publicly used in a number of religious processions.
The chapel is made up of two chapels: The shorter one on the right of the photograph is called the Chapel of Saint Basil (Benedenbasiliek Sint-Basilius), while the taller one on the left is called the Upper Chapel (Bovenbasiliek).
Our Lady Church (Onze Lieve Vrouwkerk)
The tallest landmark structure in city at almost 115 m, the Gothic church houses a number of important artwork by Michelangelo (né Michelangelo Buonarroti Simoni), for instance, Madonna of Bruges (Madonna met Kind).
Bruges City Hall (Stadhuis Van Brugge)
One of the oldest city halls in the region when it was built in the 13th century CE, again as in other buildings, it was destroyed by fire. The City Hall is the earliest late Gothic monumental-style municipal council building in the country: its flamboyant opulence testifies to the Bruges's heyday. The pioneering stone facade of the oldest part, inspired many other city hall constructions in the country.
Bourse (Huiz Ter Beurze)
The Bourse (Huiz Ter Beurze) opened in 1309 CE and became the world's first proper stock exchange in the world. The building is no longer in use.
By the way in the old days, apparently many doors have a simple plaque to indicate the profession or persona of the house owners. This was useful at a time when not everyone is literate. There are many around in Bruges and it is fun to explore. The one below is for the bourse.
Canals (Grachten)
Bruges, and NOT Amsterdam is referred to the 'Venice of the North' and Bruges makes itself a pleasant tourist city with its canal-and-bridge walks. One can of course, take the usual tourist trap and do a boat-ride around its canals. The most scenic and possibly the most photographed is the on the main picture above called Rozenhoedkaai, meaning 'Rosary Quay', which is just across the bank of the Basilica of the Holy Blood. Bruges after all is an island surrounded by a number of inner canals and rivers.
Belfry of Bruges (Belfort Van Brugge)
The Belfry of Bruges (Belfort van Brugge) is quite simply the city's icon. The mediaeval belfry formerly housed the treasury and the municipal archives, and served as a watchtower for spotting fires and other dangers for its citizens since the 13th century CE.
As in other buildings in Bruges, it suffered countless of fire burndown and was rebuilt a few times in his history. The belfry stands at more than 80 m and its summit can be accessed via a narrow staircase.
This particular belfry employs a set of carillon, first received during the 16th century CE, to sound. Carillon is a set of bells of different size to produce various tunes. This set of carillon, with some of the bells dating back to the 18th century CE consists of 47 bells, ranging from the 1 kg to 5000 kg. The concept of carillon actually came from the Low Countries, and the word derives from the Latin word quarregon meaning 'a set of four bells'.
The art of making music with carillon is performed by carillonneurs, traditionally during market and festive days. In Belgium being a carillonneur is very prestigious and is well respected. The carillon culture is Belgium is also taken seriously as a cultural heritage that fosters cultural identity and social cohesion with safeguarding efforts focused on preserving and restoring historic carillons. As a result many formerly silent carillons now once more active.
Concert Building (Concertgebouw)
A very modernistic looking building, Concert Building (Concertgebouw) invites a lot of debate as it contrasts from the mediaeval look of Brugge.
Princely Beguinage Ten Wijngaerde (Prinselijk Begijnhof Ten Wijngaerde)
A beguinage (French: béguinage) is a complex created to house beguines: lay religious women who lived in semi-monastic community similar to a convent, but without taking vows or retiring from the world. Beguines were free to leave at any time and many beguines went out to the city to work and return at night. Beguinage were part of a larger spiritual revival movement of the 13th century CE, especially in the Low Countries region, that emphasised voluntary poverty, care of the poor and sick, and religious devotion. These houses are usually small and informal communal homes, without the formality of a convent. They were definitely not a charity organisation as they were not set up to provide refuge to the poor. Beguines did come from a wide range of social classes, though poor women were admitted only if they had a wealthy benefactor who pledged to provide for their needs.
The world beguinage derives from one of the earliest supporter of the movement, Lambert le Bègue.
The Princely Beguinage Ten Wijngaerde (Prinselijk Begijnhof Ten Wijngaerde) is one of the most famous of these beguinages and is the only one preserved in Bruges. There are no more beguines living there, and since 1927 CE it has been functioning as a convent for the Order of Saint Benedict (Latin: Ordo Sancti Benedicti). This beguinage has been in place since the early 1200s CE and is under the direct authority of the French king Philip IV (né Philippe Capet), and hence the name princely. The word wijngaerde means vineyard in Dutch.
Gates (Poort)
There are a number of gates surrounding the city as these were the main bridges crossing the canals. The Smedenpoort, meaning the blacksmith gate, is the earliest, dating back to the early 13th century CE.
Buy and Do
There are many flea markets around and in Bruges to explore.
Eat and Drink
Chocolate (Chocolade)
You just cannot leave Belgium without buying a box of Belgian chocolates, which now form a major sector of Belgian economy. Belgium's association with chocolate goes back to the early 17th century CE, when the country was under Spanish occupation, and cocoa was brought into the country from Central and South America. Apparently there are more than 2,000 chocolatiers in Belgium for such a small country!
The word from the street told me that the best chocolates in Bruges is from The Chocolate Line, famous for their creatively flavoured bar chocolate.
Beer (Bier)
Beer (Bier) in Belgium goes back to the 1st century CE in the region. Belgians drink and they are famous for their beer, but surprisingly they do not drink as much as I imagine. I believe they are ranked 25th in the world in terms of beer consumption per capita (The number one being Czechia). However Belgians pride themselves in their own beer culture and history and they produce an exceptionally large varieties of brews, and literally every single pub is a micro-brewery by itself. Clearly there are many large and famous breweries producing bottled beer, the main culture and varieties actually come from the individual pub themselves, and every pub will serve their own brew. The few pubs that I have visited offer more than 100 different varieties plus a dozen of their personal brews and many serve a dégustation menu!
The range of traditional Belgian beer available is due to a variety of brewing processes, methods of fermentation, the use of different type of yeasts and other ingredients, and traditional knowledge passed through families and breweries for centuries. This results in beers of different colours and textures, and it has been claimed that Belgium produces more variety of brews than any other countries. This makes the beer culture an ICH of Belgium.
Belgium has the lowest legal drinking age in the world at 16. As a matter of fact prior to the 1960s CE, children were often served beers at schools! While this is illegal nowadays, it is actually unrare that children are drinking privately at home.
While it is no secret that Belgium brews lots of beer in pubs, the De Halve Maan Brewery (Huisbrouwerij De Halve Maan) stands out as the main brewery to visit. It stands out not exactly for its beer, and this is not to say their beer is not up to standard, but for an interesting story. This family-run brewery has been brewing for more than 500 years in the city of Bruges, and it made waves in 2016 CE by building a 3-km pipe from its brewery inside the city all the way to its bottling plant outside the city, to avoid trucks going through the alleys in Bruges, forming the ultimate pipe dream!
Despite initial doubts from city councillors and financiers, the beer pipeline became an instant urban hit and was made successful through crowdfunding. Moreover it sparks endless jokes about illegal tapping points and secret home drilling as the pipes are not really that deep underground, as the picture above attests. The owners came up with the out-of-the-world idea because they wanted to retain the cultural icon inside Bruges, and hence they chose to pursue the pipe idea, instead of the easier way of simply moving the brewery out of the town. By the way the name Halve Maan means half-moon in Dutch. Definitely moonstruck!
Frikandel
Other than the beer and chocolate, which is a good combination itself, the other local food is the minced-meat sausage called frikandel, which is ubiquitous. Some people argue this is not a sausage as it is not encased in a skin.
Unfortunately the food stalls and markets around the Market Square has not helped Bruges by having developed a notorious reputation for being a tourist trap through charging exorbitantly for a bun, a glass of water or any freebie pretension. We were warned by our guide before the journey. Beware!
Getting There and Around
Bruges deserve a few days of exploration, and the island can easily be completed on foot for a morning stroll. The belfry's entrance fee depends on your age, I paid EUR €12, while the Historium is €14. The beguinage is very close to the train station.
UNESCO Inscriptions
The Béguines were women who dedicated their lives to God without retiring from the world. In the 13th century they founded thebéguinages, enclosed communities designed to meet their spiritual and material needs. The Flemish béguinagesare architectural ensembles composed of houses, churches, ancillary buildings and green spaces, with a layout of either urban or rural origin and built in styles specific to the Flemish cultural region. They are a fascinating reminder of the tradition of theBéguinesthat developed in north-western Europe in the Middle Ages.
Twenty-three belfries in the north of France and the belfry of Gembloux in Belgium were inscribed in 2005, as an extension to the 32 Belgian belfries inscribed in 1999 as Belfries of Flanders and Wallonia. Built between the 11th and 17th centuries, they showcase the Roman, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles of architecture. They are highly significant tokens of the winning of civil liberties. While Italian, German and English towns mainly opted to build town halls, in part of north-western Europe, greater emphasis was placed on building belfries. Compared with the keep (symbol of the seigneurs) and the bell-tower (symbol of the Church), the belfry, the third tower in the urban landscape, symbolizes the power of the aldermen. Over the centuries, they came to represent the influence and wealth of the towns.
Brugge is an outstanding example of a medieval historic settlement, which has maintained its historic fabric as this has evolved over the centuries, and where original Gothic constructions form part of the town's identity. As one of the commercial and cultural capitals of Europe, Brugge developed cultural links to different parts of the world. It is closely associated with the school of Flemish Primitive painting.
The art of making music with bells (carillon) is performed by carillonneurs, traditionally during market and festive days. The programme to safeguard carillon culture exists in seventy-six cities and villages of Belgium and in thirty countries worldwide. The primary objectives are to preserve the components of historic carillon culture (practices, repertoire, instruments, music, oral and written history), and to ensure the continuity and sustainable development of carillon music as a living heritage that fosters cultural identity and social cohesion. Safeguarding efforts have also focused on preserving and restoring historic carillons with many formerly silent carillons now once more active. Transmission is secured by a number of educational initiatives, of which the Mechelen carillon school is the most important. Efforts have also been undertaken to revitalize the carillon, including promotion of new arrangements, compositions and genres of music. The programme combines respect for tradition with a willingness to innovate, constantly seeking new ways to safeguard carillon culture in contemporary society. It also promotes proven best practices, as well as a deep respect for local players in the field, building on cooperation among actors.
Making and appreciating beer is part of the living heritage of a range of communities throughout Belgium. It plays a role in daily life, as well as festive occasions. Almost 1,500 types of beer are produced in the country using different fermentation methods. Since the 80s, craft beer has become especially popular. There are certain regions, which are known for their particular varieties while some Trappist communities have also been involved in beer production giving profits to charity. In addition, beer is used for cooking including in the creation of products like beer-washed cheese and, as in the case of wine, can be paired with foods to compliment flavours. Several organizations of brewers exist who work with communities on a broad level to advocate responsible beer consumption. Sustainable practice has also become part of the culture with recyclable packaging encouraged and new technologies to reduce water usage in production processes. Besides being transmitted in the home and social circles, knowledge and skills are also passed down by master brewers who run classes in breweries, specialized university courses that target those involved in the field and hospitality in general, public training programmes for entrepreneurs and small test breweries for amateur brewers.
References
Comments