Bruges
Although Belgium is small, several cities in the country are deep, and Bruges is the most promising. Bruges was developed relatively late and its history can be traced back to the 9th century AD. It was once an important port and commercial center, but it was also constantly harassed by foreigners. Faced with internal and external troubles, the resolute and courageous people of Bruges rose up to resist, making the city invincible time and time again.
Maximian
It was quite pleasant to sit on the balcony of the beer bar on the second floor of the History Museum and look at the scenery in the market square.
There are sightseeing cars and carriages that can leave at any time in the square. We all took them and rode them around the old city, which increased our understanding of the city.
Bruges Market Square
In the center of the square stands the bronze statue of Jan Bredel and Peter de Koninck, the leaders of the Bruges butchers created in 1887. They led everyone to resist French oppression in 1302.
On the left side of the west side of the square is Knenberg. In 1488, the Austrian Emperor Maximian was imprisoned here.
Knenberg
Maximian was engaged to Mary , the only daughter of Charles the Bold, in 1477. After Charles the Bold died in battle, he protected his wife's territory from French intrusion. In 1482, Mary died after falling from her horse. Their son inherited the Netherlands, and Maximian served as regent. In 1488, due to the war with France and the conflict with the Netherlands Parliament, which wanted peace, he was trapped in the pepper merchant's house in Bruges Market Square until his father sent troops to rescue him.
At that time, Maximian looked through the window and watched his followers being executed one by one in the square, and suffered great humiliation. He had to agree to the Dutch Parliament serving as regent for his son and allowing his daughter Margaret to marry the French Dauphin to maintain peace.
He planned to marry Anna of Brittany and held the wedding through an agent. However, his prospective son-in-law, the King of France Charles VIII , was afraid that Brittany would fall into his hands and actually snatched his fiancée away.
Maximian also broke his oath and regained the regency of his son.
In 1493, he became the sole ruler of Germany and the leader of the Habsburg family. He became the founder of the family's glory. The later Charles V was his grandson.
Maximian certainly did not forget the unforgettable scene in Bruges. One of his followers was nicknamed "Long Neck", and the coat of arms he wore was decorated with swan patterns. So, he symbolically punished Bruges and asked the city's urban management department to keep swans on the canal forever to commemorate the long neck.
This emperor was very elegant in doing things, and there are many interesting things about him.
Buildings on the Market Square
When I first saw the Market Square, I thought it was strange - it does not have the cathedral or the city hall in the traditional European central square. Judging from the original water hall, fish market and bell tower, this is an out-and-out "secular" place.
Castle Square, a few dozen steps away from Brad Street on the left side of the bell tower, has the city hall and church, but the latter is strictly not a cathedral, but the small Holy Blood Church (H. Bloedasiliek).
Church of the Holy Blood
Castle Square is the birthplace of Bruges history. Here is the count's castle that we have mentioned to resist the invasion of Normans before it developed into Bruges.
The Church of the Holy Blood, built in the mid-12th century, is a dual Romanesque structure. The lower part continues the original Romanesque architectural style, and the upper part was changed from the original Romanesque to Gothic style. In the 19th century, it was changed to a new Gothic architecture.The upper part of the church enshrines relics of the Holy Blood. It is said that during the Second Crusade, Derek of Alsace, Count of Flanders, brought back from the Holy Land Jerusalem a small bottle containing a strip of cloth stained with the blood of Christ's crucifixion. Although the " Bible " does not contain any plot about preserving the blood of Jesus , the fable says that when Joseph of Arimathea was cleaning and decorating the body of Jesus, he wiped Jesus' wound with a small piece of cloth, staining it with the holy blood of Jesus' crucifixion.
The murals displayed in the church today were all created after the second reconstruction in the 19th century. After the French Revolution , the original stained glass windows were demolished one by one. A considerable part of the monuments in the church were later collected and exhibited in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Most of the exhibits we see in the church now are replicas added during the 19th century renovation, but the entire church feels very ancient.
Church of the Holy Blood
Every Friday, the Holy Blood is placed on a silver altar for the world to admire and worship. People can see the golden reliquary made by the jeweler Jan Klaber in 1614-1617. The shrine is carried through the streets of Bruges every year in the Holy Blood Day procession.
Compared with the cramped Church of the Holy Blood, the City Hall on the left is much more imposing. The foundation of this Gothic building was laid in 1376. The Gothic hall on the first floor of the city hall is available for visitors to visit. The wooden vaults inside were made in the 14th century. The neo-Gothic murals on the walls are works of romanticism at the end of the 19th century. Tourist brochures generally do not introduce them, so almost no one is watching them. We stayed inside for nearly half an hour and met only three or four people, which was incomparable to the crowded Church of the Holy Blood next to it.
We went to Bruges in early August, at the peak of its tourism season, and there were indeed many people. People often complain that a place is good but there are too many tourists. In fact, if you choose what you like, you can still avoid the crowds.
