9/25/21: Bruges' Renaissance & City Halls - WOWZA!

The Bruges Belfry was part of an impressive 13th-century building that was used to store and display much-coveted Flemish cloth in the Middle Ages. The 83-meter-high belfry consisted of three building layers - the bottom two brick sections were brick from the 13th century and the top limestone layer was added between 1482 and 1486. This and 31 other Belgian belfries were added to UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1998 because of their "symbolic significance as testimonials of the prosperous and autonomous late medieval cities."

Steven and I had intentionally arrived in the courtyard of the Bell Tower in Bruges' pretty Markt to hear the Saturday morning carillon concert. I guess the theory of it was better than the reality as Steven and I had trouble identifying any of the tunes as they all sounded the same to our untrained ears. 

It was restful just sitting in the courtyard and watching the crowds of tourists following their flag-toting guides coming into and leaving the courtyard. There must have been something interesting or amusing about the stone bears on the wall as they all talked about them but we never did figure out what!

After getting antsy listening to the repetitive music, we ambled along to idyllic Burg Square to visit City Hall as it had been closed previously. It was again on that Saturday morning but for a very good reason as a stream of brides and grooms had come to marry here privately before a church service.

To fill in the time before City Hall reopened, we stopped again at Renaissance Hall next door. The mansion dated to the 1720s and had been the city's governing palace and a courthouse before becoming the city archives.

Renaissance Hall was just one room in the building and was where the town's burghers or city officials met in the Medieval Ages. It would be a room of great interest to people fond of heraldry or those curious about the power wielded by one man, Charles V, as you'll see in a moment.

The town's officials sat around the green pool-like table with the grand pooh bah on the dais.

Exquisite Flemish tapestries hung on walls around the room.

The lavish wooden ceiling:

The room's highlight was the magnificent oak mantlepiece carved by Bruges' Lancelot Blonteel in 1528. In the center was Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor who was also the most powerful man in Europe. As Bruges had recently been freed from French rule yet again by Charles and was part of the Habsburg empire, Bruges' city fathers wanted to honor Charles with the fireplace. His power was symbolized by his crown, sword, and orb.

Above the fireplace was the Habsburg family symbol, the double-eagle emblem. 

The other coats-of-arms belonged to the nations under Charles' reign.

As Bruges' hometown duke was related to Charles, he figured prominently in the fireplace and was shown, like Charles, with a crown and orb.

Adorable little putti or cherubs seemed to hold up the fireplace.

A painting from 1659 showed a meeting in this same room including the Charles V mantlepiece. It depicted what the chamber looked like in the 17th century with judges hearing the plea of a defendant before deciding his fate.

The aldermen, dressed in black robes are ready to sentence the accused who is flanked by lawyers on each side of him.

Two sweet additions to my growing collection of bathroom signs from all over!

Once the weddings were over for the day, we were finally able to enter City Hall. It was constructed in about 1400 when the town had a population  of 35,000 and was one of Europe's most famous cities. The hall served a model for town halls elsewhere including in the capital of Brussels. The ground floor lobby lead to a gallery with scenes and paintings illustrating Belgium's history including the arrival of Napoleon.

I could just imagine the joy the happy couples must have felt climbing the elegant stairway with the rich red 'B' monogram for Bruges in the carpet.

Some of modern democracy's roots had their origins in the Gothic Room where the city council has for centuries handled the city's affairs. One of the Europe's first parliaments, the Estates General of the Low Countries, convened here in 1464. It was all we could do not to ooh and ahh at one of the most beautiful rooms we've ever seen. Think of the couples who had each just been married in this chamber!

A proclamation from 1305 over the fireplace at the far end of the room stated "All the artisans, laborers ... and citizens of Bruges are free ... all of them."

The elaborately carved Neo-Gothic ceiling with red and gold tracery was created in the 19th century. Five dangling arches called pendives, now adorned with floodlights, hung down from the ceiling.

The late 19th-century wall murals depicted the city's history. They were made in the 'cire fondue' technique which was a Flemish technique based on wax, a style that is no longer used in the region.

In the first mural, people are cheering, flags are waving and dogs are barking as Bruges' knights return in glory having driven out the French and gaining Flemish independence. 

On the fireplace wall, the black-robed Philip the Good of Burgundy is seated with his assembled court in Bruges and the red-robed cardinal in attendance in 1429. Philip founded the Order of the the Golden Fleece that I wrote about in a previous Bruges post.

If you recall the post about the Basilica of the Holy Blood you'll remember this scene of Thiery of Alsace the Crusader knight returning from the Holy Land to present the Holy Relic, Christ's blood.

In a scene from Sint-Janshospitaal or St. John's Hospital that we also visited a couple of days previously, a nun is shown carrying a basket of bread for the patients.

A sealed document is being handed by Bruges' town leader to a German businessman renewing the Habsburg League license as membership in the league of trading cities was critical to Bruges' success. 

The city's right to self-governance is proclaimed in 1190 as citizens cheer.

The studio of native son and famous Flemish Primitive painter, Jan van Eyck, is visited by the mayor in recognition of Bruges being hailed as Europe's cultural capital.

A ceremonial trowel is taken from a pillow by city fathers to lay the cornerstone for this City Hall in 1376. In the background was the lower part of the Bell Tower (that we'd just visited)  before the lantern was added. The scene reminded me of countless photos we've seen of politicians nowadays using ceremonial shovels to dig the first pile of dirt for new buildings.

As ships pass by in 1404, one of Burges' many canals is being blessed by a bishop. 

I enjoyed 'watching' the city's history appear in the murals before my eyes as if it were almost a TV screen or movie.

At the beginning of each of the 16 ceiling vault ribs was a figuratively-worked console or corbel which depicted the twelve months and the four elements with each one being unique. 

Thank goodness, Steven and I hadn't given up the opportunity to finally view both Renaissance and city halls after several attempts as they were each stunning in their own right and led to a greater understanding of Bruges' history and its place on the world stage during the Golden Age.

Next post: Bruges' Lace Center and windmills!

Posted on October 9th, 2021, from lovely Lugano on our last night in scenic Switzerland. We're off in the morning for what we're sure will be a great trip exploring a good chunk of Italy for the next five weeks. The information of the Italian government's websites was frustratingly vague for travelers coming in terms of whether we did or didn't need a Covid test. We decided to play it safe and got tested again yesterday just in case we're asked. The negative results put our minds at ease. I can tell you that Covid testing is big business for pharmacies and pop up testing centers - all part of the cost of traveling in the age of Covid!