The area of the whole city amounts to more than 14,099 hectares (140.99 km2; 54.44 sq. miles), including 1,075 hectares off the coast, atZeebrugge (fromBrugge aan zee,[2] meaning 'Bruges by the Sea').[3] The historic city center is a prominentWorld Heritage Site ofUNESCO. It is oval and about 430 hectares in size. The city's total population is 117,073 (1 January 2008).[4] Themetropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km2 (238 sq mi) and had a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008.[5]
Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such asAmsterdam andSaint Petersburg, it is sometimes referred to as theVenice of the North. Bruges has significant economic importance, thanks to itsport, and was once one of the world's chief commercial cities.[6][7] Bruges is a major tourism destination within Belgium and is well-known as the seat of theCollege of Europe, a university institute for European studies.[8]
The name probably derives from theOld Dutch for 'bridge':brugga. Also compareMiddle Dutchbrucge,brugge (orbrugghe,brigghe,bregghe,brogghe), and modern Dutchbruggenhoofd ('bridgehead') andbrug ('bridge').[10] The formbrugghe would be a southern Dutch variant.[11] The Dutch word and the Englishbridge both derive fromProto-Germanic*brugjō-.[12]
Bruges was a location of coastal settlement during prehistory. This Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement are unrelated to medieval city development. In the Bruges area, the first fortifications were built afterJulius Caesar's conquest of theMenapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. TheFranks took over the whole region from theGallo-Romans around the fourth century and administered it as thePagus Flandrensis. TheViking incursions of the ninth century prompted CountBaldwin I ofFlanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications; trade soon resumed with England andScandinavia. Early medieval habitation starts in the ninth and tenth centuries on the Burgh terrain, probably with a fortified settlement and church.[13]
In 1089, Bruges became the capital of theCounty of Flanders. Bruges received itscity charter on 27 July 1128, and new walls and canals were built. By the 12th century, the city had gained an autonomous administration.[14] Het Zwin (Golden Inlet), the tidal inlet of Bruges, was crucial to the development of local commerce.[15][16] 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 theZwin. The new sea arm stretched toDamme,[15] a city that became the commercial outpost for Bruges.
Bruges had a strategic location at the crossroads of the northernHanseatic League trade, who had akontor in the city, and the southern trade routes. Bruges was already included in the circuit of the Flemish and French cloth fairs at the beginning of the 13th century, but when the old system of fairs broke down, the entrepreneurs of Bruges innovated. They developed, or borrowed from Italy, new forms of merchant capitalism, whereby several merchants would share the risks and profits and pool their knowledge of markets. They employed new forms of economic exchange, including bills of exchange (i.e. promissory notes) and letters of credit.[17] The city eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably the Portuguese traders selling pepper and other spices.[18]
With the reawakening of town life in the 12th century, a wool market, a woolens weaving industry, and the cloth market all profited from the shelter of city walls, where surpluses could be safely accumulated under the patronage of thecounts of Flanders. The city's entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotland's[19] wool-producing districts. English contacts brought Normandy grain and Gascon wines.Hanseatic ships filled the harbor, which had to be expanded beyondDamme toSluys to accommodate the newcog-ships.
In 1277, the first merchant fleet from theRepublic of Genoa appeared in the port of Bruges, the first of the merchant colony that made Bruges the main link to the trade of the Mediterranean.[20] This development opened not only the trade in spices from theLevant but also advanced commercial and financial techniques and a flood of capital that soon took over the banking of Bruges. The building where the Genoese Republic housed its commercial representation in the city still survives, now housing theFrietmuseum.[21]
Merchants in Bruges, first half of the 16th century
TheBourse opened in 1309 (most likely the firststock exchange in the world) and developed into the most sophisticated money market of the Low Countries in the 14th century. By the time Venetian galleys first appeared, in 1314, they were latecomers.[22] Numerous foreign merchants were welcomed in Bruges, such as the Castilian wool merchants who first arrived in the 13th century. After the Castilian wool monopoly ended,the Basques, many hailing fromBilbao (Biscay), thrived as merchants (wool, iron commodities, etc.) and established their own commercial consulate in Bruges by the mid-15th century.[23] The foreign merchants expanded the city's trading zones. They maintained separate communities governed by their own laws until the economic collapse after 1700.[24]
Such wealth gave rise to social upheavals, which were for the most part harshly contained by the militia. In 1302, however, after theBruges Matins (the night-time massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by the members of the localFlemishmilitia on 18 May 1302), the population joined forces with theCount of Flanders against theFrench, culminating in the victory at theBattle of the Golden Spurs, fought nearKortrijk on 11 July. The statue ofJan Breydel andPieter de Coninck, the leaders of the uprising, can still be seen on the Big Market square. The city maintained a militia as a permanent paramilitary body. It gained flexibility and high prestige through close ties to a guild of the organized militia, comprising professionals and specialized units. Militia men bought and maintained their own weapons and armor, according to their family status and wealth. Later, Bruges would be consumed in theFlemish revolts that occurred around the County of Flanders between 1323 and 1328.
At the end of the 14th century, Bruges became one of theFour Members, along withBrugse Vrije,Ghent, andYpres. Together they formed a parliament; however, they frequently quarreled amongst themselves.[25]
In the 15th century,Philip the Good, Duke ofBurgundy, set up a court in Bruges, as well asBrussels andLille, attracting several artists, bankers, and other prominent personalities from all over Europe.[26] The weavers and spinners of Bruges were thought to be the best in the world, and the population of Bruges grew to at least 46,000 inhabitants at this time around 1350 AD.[27]
Starting around 1500, the Zwin channel, (the Golden Inlet) which had given the city its prosperity, began silting up and the Golden Era ended.[16] The city soon fell behindAntwerp as the economic flagship of theLow Countries. During the 17th century, thelace industry took off, and various efforts to bring back the glorious past were made. During the 1650s, the city was the base forCharles II of England and his court in exile.[28] The maritime infrastructure was modernized, and new connections with the sea were built, but without much success, as Antwerp became increasingly dominant. Bruges became impoverished and gradually faded in importance.[29]
In the second half of the 19th century, Bruges became one of the world's first tourist destinations, attracting wealthy British and French tourists.[32] By 1909, the 'Bruges Forward: Society to Improve Tourist' association had come into operation.[33]
InWorld War I, German forces occupied Bruges. However, despite being a base for theFlanders U-boat flotilla, the city suffered virtually no damage, andwas liberated on 19 October 1918 by the Allies. The city was occupied by the Germans from 1940 duringWorld War II and was again spared destruction. On 12 September 1944, it was liberated by the12th Manitoba Dragoons' Canadian troops. The liberation of the city was facilitated by the bridge, now known as theCanada Bridge [nl], connecting the outer municipalities with the city centre.
After 1965, the original medieval city experienced a "renaissance". Restorations of residential and commercial structures, historic monuments, and churches generated a surge in tourism and economic activity in the downtown area. International tourism has boomed, and new efforts resulted in Bruges being designatedEuropean Capital of Culture in 2002. It attracts some eight million tourists annually.[34]
Theport of Zeebrugge was built in 1907. The Germans used it for theirU-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.
The medieval architecture in Bruges is mostly intact, making it one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe.[36] The "Historic Centre of Bruges" has been aUNESCOWorld Heritage Site since 2000.[37] Its medieval buildings include theChurch of Our Lady, whose brickspire reaches 115.6 m (379.27 ft), making it the world's second-highest brick tower/building. The sculptureMadonna and Child, which can be seen in the transept, is believed to be the only ofMichelangelo's sculptures to have left Italy within his lifetime.
Bruges' best-known landmark is theBelfry of Bruges, a 13th-centurybelfry housing a municipalcarillon comprising 47 bells.[38] The Belfry of Bruges, independent of the previously mentioned UNESCO World Heritage Site in Bruges, is included on the World Heritage Site ofBelfries of Belgium and France.[39] The city still employs a full-timecarillonneur, who gives free concerts regularly.
In addition to the "Historic Centre of Bruges" and the tower included in the "Belfries of Belgium and France", Bruges is also home to a third UNESCO World Heritage Site; theTen Wijngaerde Beguinage, abeguinage built in the 13th century, is included in the World Heritage Site of "Flemish Beguinages".
Bruges is known for itslace, a textile technique. Moreover, the city and its lace would go on to inspire theThread Routes film series, the second episode of which, shot in 2011, was partly set in Bruges.[40]
Several beers are named after the city, such asBrugge Blond,Brugge Tripel,Brugs,Brugse Babbelaar,Brugse Straffe Hendrik, andBrugse Zot. However, only the latter two—Brugse Zot andBrugse Straffe Hendrik—are brewed in the city itself, in theDe Halve Maan Brewery.
Bruges is home to a number of museums. Its art museums include the Arents House, as well as theGroeningemuseum, which has an extensive collection of medieval and early modern art. Members of the 15th centuryEarly Netherlandish school of painters are represented, including works byJan van Eyck. Van Eyck, as well asHans Memling, lived and worked in Bruges.
TheOld St. John's Hospital (Hans Memling museum) and Our Lady of the Potteries areHospital museums. The city is known forMusea Brugge, the general name for a group of 13 different historical museums in the city, including:
Bruges' non-municipal museums include the Brewery Museum,Hof Bladelin,Choco-Story (chocolate museum),Lumina Domestica (lamp museum), Museum-Gallery Xpo:Salvador Dalí, Diamond Museum,[41]Frietmuseum (a museum dedicated toBelgian fries), Historium (museum of the medieval history of Bruges), Lace centre, St. George's Archers Guild, St. Sebastian's Archers’ Guild, St. Trudo Abbey, and the Public Observatory Beisbroek.
TheBasilica of the Holy Blood (Dutch:Heilig-Bloedbasiliek) houses the relic of theHoly Blood, which was brought to the city after theSecond Crusade byThierry of Alsace, and is paraded every year through the streets of the city. More than 1,600 inhabitants take part in this mile-long religiousprocession, many dressed as medieval knights or crusaders.
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 are not expensive.
Bruges' main railway station is the focus of lines to the Belgian coast. It also provides at least hourly trains to all other major cities in Belgium, as well as toLille in France.[45] Further there are several regional and local trains.
A third track is being constructed between Bruges and Dudzele, the junction for Zeebrugge to alleviate congestion. Similarly, two extra tracks are being built between Bruges and Ghent.[46]
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 Market Square.
The nationalBrussels Airport, one hour away by train or car, offers the best connections. The nearest airport is theOstend-Bruges International Airport in Ostend (around 25 kilometres (16 miles) from the city centre of Bruges), but it offers limited passenger transport and connections. Recently there also started a direct bus line fromBrussels South Charleroi Airport to Bruges.
Bruges has an extensive web of bus lines, operated byDe Lijn, providing access to the city centre and the suburbs (city lines, Dutch:stadslijnen) and to many towns and villages in the region around the city (regional lines, Dutch:streeklijnen).
In support of the municipaltraffic management (see "Road" above),free public transport is available for those who park their cars in the main railway station car park.
Although a few streets are restricted, no part of Bruges is car-free.[47]
Cars are required to yield to pedestrians and cyclists. Plans have long been underway 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 has not decreased.[citation needed] Nevertheless, in common with many cities in the region, there are thousands of cyclists in the city of Bruges.[citation needed]
The port of Bruges isZeebrugge (Flemish for Bruges-on-Sea).
On 6 March 1987, the British ferryMSHerald of Free Enterprisecapsized after leaving the port, killing 187 people, in the worst disaster involving a British civilian vessel since 1919; it had set sail with its bow door open.[48] TheHerald of Free Enterprise was a passenger ship bound for thePort of Dover inKent. Most of the occupants had taken advantage of a newspaper promotion offering a £1 return trip from Dover toZeebrugge.[49]
Between 1998 and 2016, Bruges hosted the start of the annualTour of Flanders cycle race, held in April and one of the biggest sporting events in Belgium.
Football is also popular in Bruges; the city hosts two professional football teams, both of which play at the top level (Belgian First Division)Club Brugge K.V. andCercle Brugge K.S.V.. Both teams play their home games at theJan Breydel Stadium (30,000 seats) inSint-Andries. There are plans for a new stadium for Club Brugge with about 45,000 seats in the north of the city, while the city council would renovate and reduce the capacity of the Jan Breydel Stadium for Cercle Brugge.[51]
In 2000, Bruges was one of the eight host cities for theUEFA European Football Championship, co-hosted by Belgium and its neighbour the Netherlands.
Ludwig Bemelmans' children's novelThe Golden Basket (1936) tells the story of a family's visit to Bruges. In the novel, the two sisters stay at the Golden Basket hotel in Bruges with their father. On a visit toBruges cathedral with the innkeeper's son, the sisters meet a dozen little schoolgirls, the first appearance of Bemelmans' best-known character,Madeline.[53]: 86
The detective stories of Belgian writerPieter Aspe are situated in Bruges.
Niccolò Rising (1986), the first volume ofDorothy Dunnett's eight-book seriesHouse of Niccolò, is largely set in Bruges. Other books in the series also have sections set in the Belgian city.
The 2008 filmIn Bruges, starringColin Farrell andBrendan Gleeson, is set almost entirely in Bruges. Throughout the film, which was directed by British-Irish directorMartin McDonagh, the city's major landmarks and history are mentioned repeatedly, as are the contrasted viewpoints of the two lead characters of the story.
Bruges has never formally ratified anytwin towns and sister cities collaboration. In the 1950s, Bruges refused ajumelage withNice,Nuremberg,Locarno andVenice that had been signed by a Belgian ambassador without consultation. The twinning between some of the former municipalities, merged with Bruges in 1971, was discontinued.
Bruges has had the following international contacts:
Bastogne, Belgium: After World War II and into the 1970s, Bruges, more specifically 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, Germany: From the 1950s until the 1980s, Bruges was the patron of the BelgianFirst Regiment ofHorse Guards, quartered in Arolsen.
Mons, Belgium: In 2007, cultural and artistic cooperation between Mons and Bruges was inaugurated.
Burgos, 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.
^Statistics Belgium;De Belgische Stadsgewesten 2001 (pdf-file)Archived 29 October 2008 at theWayback Machine Definitions of metropolitan areas in Belgium. The metropolitan area of Bruges is divided into three levels. First, the central agglomeration (agglomeratie), which in this case is Bruges municipality, with 117,073 inhabitants (1 January 2008). Adding the closest surroundings (banlieue) gives a total of 166,502. And, including the outer commuter zone (forensenwoonzone) the population is 255,844. Retrieved on 19 October 2008.
^Charlier, Roger H. (2005). "Grandeur, Decadence, and Renaissance".Journal of Coastal Research:425–447.JSTOR25737011.Rise, fall, and resurrection make up the life story of Bruges, a city that glittered in Northern Europe with as much panache as Venice did in the Mediterranean World.
^Braudel, Fernand,The Perspective of the World, in Vol. IIICivilization and Capitalism, 1984
^Collins, Roger (1990).The Basques (2nd ed.). Oxford, UK: Basil Blackwell. p. 241.ISBN978-0631175650.
^Phillips, William D. Jr. (1986). "Local Integration and Long-Distance Ties: The Castilian Community in Sixteenth-Century Bruges".Sixteenth Century Journal.17 (1):33–49.doi:10.2307/2541354.JSTOR2541354.S2CID165895860.
^Philip the Good: the apogee of Burgundy by Richard Vaughan, p201
^Dumolyn, Jan (2010). "'Our land is only founded on trade and industry.' Economic discourses in fifteenth-century Bruges".Journal of Medieval History.36 (4):374–389.doi:10.1016/j.jmedhist.2010.09.003.S2CID153711918.
^(Excelsior Series 11, No. 51, Albert Sugg a Gand; ca. 1905):Cranenburg, from the windows of which, in olden times, the Counts of Flanders, with the lords and ladies of their Court, used to watch the tournaments and pageants for which Bruges was celebrated, and in which Maximilian was imprisoned by the burghers in 1488 (Bruges and West Flanders, George W. T. Omond, Illustrated by Amédée Forestier, 1906.Project Gutenberg Edition.)
^Gillespie, John Thomas and Corinne J. Naden. 1996.The Newbery Companion: Booktalk and Related Materials for Newbery Medal and Honor Books (revised ed.). Libraries Unlimited (2001).
1 Listing shared with six other countries, which includes Belgium'sMaison Guiette;2 Listing shared withFrance;3 Listing shared withthe Netherlands, which includes Belgium'sWortel;4 Listing shared with France5 Listing shared with seven other countries, which includes Belgium'sSpa;6 Listing shared with seventeen other countries, which includes Belgium'sSonian Forest.
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