Belfry (Bruges)

Belfry and City Halls in Bruges

The Bruges Belfry is 83 m high and integrated into the town halls ( Stadshallen ) on the central market square of Bruges ( Grote Markt ). Like this one, it was built in the 13th century. In the late Middle Ages, the tower towering over all the buildings in the city demonstrated the power of the self-confident rich bourgeoisie and served as a fire watch. Even today, no new building is allowed to tower over it.

history

The oldest written message about the halls comes from 1211, when a citizen was characterized by his residence behind the hall, "Riquardus post hallam". At the time the halls were probably still made of wood. The year 1240 is seen as the possible start of construction of the (brick) stone complex of halls and belfry. The older parts in particular show a variety of building structures and materials.

The stone-built rectangular tower originally had a wooden top, which, like the city archives, burned down in 1280.

For the next two hundred years, brick was predominantly used. In 1296 the spire was rebuilt, and in 1345–1346 the upper square tower floors were restored or rebuilt. The surrounding building complex of the town halls between Hallestraat and Wollestraat was given its present form between the late 14th century and 1420.

The tower burned down again in 1493. The town bell was also destroyed in this fire. After that, mostly ashlar was used, both on the window openings of the halls and for repairs and additions to the tower. The point was made of wood, more elaborate than the previous ones 1345–1346. It also fell victim to a fire in 1741. To prevent this, a neo-Gothic stone crown was placed on the medieval tower instead of a wooden spire .

particularities

Bells of the carillons

historical plug roller

The carillon (carillon) contains 47 bronze bells from the 17th century. It still sounds today on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at 11 a.m. A platform at the height of the carillon, which is also accessible to tourists, can only be reached via 366 steps. Internationally, the tower was also seen through the film Bruges ... and die? known. The Bruges Belfry was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List as a cultural monument in 1999 . The carillon sounds automatically before the quarter-hour chimes over the largest, oldest surviving plug-in drum. It can also be played as a carillon over a gaming table by a carillon player (also called Beiaardier here).

See also

• List of brick Gothic buildings in Belgium

Web links

• Belfort-Hal on Onroerend Ervgoed

Sister projects

Commons : Belfry (Bruges)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Kerstin Schweighöfer: Antwerp Bruges Gent. Merian, Munich 2015, p. 100, (travel guide).
2. ↑ Belfry: bell player. Retrieved August 19, 2019 . 

Coordinates: 51 ° 12 '30 "  N , 3 ° 13' 28.7"  E