The+Burg

=Bruges=

The Burg
The downtown main square in Bruges, Belgium is called the Burg. It still has some of the original fortifications built by Julius Caesar’s army in the 1st century BC to protect the coastal port from pirates. It was conquered by the Franks in the 4th century. When the Vikings attempted to conquer the area in the 9th century, the first count of Flanders, Baldwin Iron Arm, reinforced the still standing fortress from the Romans. This is what the city center is named after. It was re-built to protect the port for trade. Even though the original building that gave this area its name is long gone, the ideals that came from it are what helped it evolve into the place it has become today.

The historic town center of Bruges, The Burg, is as a great example of a medieval historic settlement because of the way that it has been expanded and rebuilt over the centuries. Because this was a port city, there was trade that came in from all over Europe and Asia that added to the architectural and cultural significance of the history that this town center has captured. Having the most influence from the medieval times, the characteristic of Brick Gothic architecture is seen throughout the town center.

The influence that Caesar left in the 1st century BC is the walls that were built around the medieval city. The canals, roads and basic development of the city is essentially the same layout that was planned back in the 1st century. Although the walls are long gone, four of the original gates, some ramparts (the defensive part of a walled city), and one of the water towers used for defense still remain today. This adds to the history and medieval feeling in the town center. Almost half of the buildings in the historic city center are listed in or on the Flemish inventory of built heritage.

Like other older town centers, the Burg has many unique and ancient buildings filled with the history of the area. The Heilig Bloed Basiliek (Basilica of the Holy Blood) is a holy church named for the relic that was brought to the church during the middle ages. The church itself is bathed with history, incredible carved interiors and scenes of the St. Basil being baptized. Many of the things originally in the church have been changed over the years, but a large silver table that holds the crystal vial with a few drops of the blood and water that is supposedly from the body of Christ collected by Joseph of Arimathea. The story of the vial is it was a gift to a Flemish Knight (Diederik d’Alsace) from a religious leader in Jerusalem in 1150.

Some of the things that have changed in the city center due to urbanization over the last several centuries have been the first railway station in 1838, the Theatre quarter in 1867, the Koningin Elisabethlaan in 1897 and the creation of the Guido Gezelle-neighbourhood from 1920 to 1930. Even with some urban changes over all the years, the city has managed to keep a harmony between the old and the new. It has preserved the rich history of the city that made it a city in the heart of the trade world in the past and a tourist attraction for millions today.