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Ghent, beautiful attractive woman

History

Ghent walk-Sint Baafs cathedral

Belfry-Town hall-St.Nicolaas church

Koornmarkt and Graslei, a unicum in Europe

Decorative Arts - Gravensteen fortified castle

Patershol up to Vrijdagsmarkt (open air market)

When arriving from Bruges, you discover Ghent, the difference is striking: here; no museum like city where the main objective is to entertain the tourist and the activities they bring with them. Dynamic and young, the city married its century, while conserving remarkable monuments.

Boudewijn, Iron Hand

Ghent’s founding took place beginning of the 7th century, when monks established two abbeys in a region of swamps and islands: Sint-Baafs and Sint Peter. Their wealth attracted the looting Vikings, whose light boats could penetrate deep in the inner countryside. Boudewijn, Ijzeren Hand (Iron arm) built a castle to protect the abbeys and the small community that was born all round.
The history of Ghent is marked by the draper’s industry. During the 100 years war between France and England (1337-1453), the nobility of Flanders was at the French side but the merchants and the people, afraid losing the vital export of drapes to England were on the English side.

Philip II, count of Flanders

In 1338, a merchant, Jacob van Artevelde, allied with Edward II of England. Ghent will suffer now from numerous alliance changments, from one domination to another, including the Bourguignons and the Habsburg. That didn’t stop them to revolt every time, particularly when they were imposed a new tax or diminish the privileges of free city.
Its most renowned son, Carolus Quintus, born in Ghent, better know as Charles the fifth, made the suffer most. After being his ally at the beginning, they refused to pay the taxes he needed to finance his war campaigns. Charles crushed the revolt without mercy, suppressed the privileges of the city and built a huge castle, paid by the citizens, to control all that.
But commerce continued to enrich Ghent. It even made war to Bruges, its main rival.

Ghent in 1534

In the 16th century the drape industry declined. The merchants drastically turned to another commerce: the export of cereals through a canal dug to connect Ghent with the North Sea in 1547.The municipal power passed of course from the drapers to the shipmen.
Beginning 19th century, textile started again when a merchant, Lievin Bauwens, introduced the “mule-jenny”, new technique of spinning cotton in Belgium. In 1822 the canal of Terneuzen in Holland was enlarged and Ghent became an important commercial port, while numerous industries rose like mushrooms around. Ghent felt the effects of industrial revolution which brought prosperity to the city but had some negative effects too: all chemical products ended up in the Lys, which soon was called the “golden river” because of its yellow colour (chemicals).
Today the city is still an important industrial centre, but the conscience of the importance of a tourist economy turned out to the cleaning and restoration of all historical sites. And the successful illumination of the main monuments makes an evening stroll in the centre absolutely unforgettable. 

Bibliography:

Gian Giuseppe Simeone, "Les Nouvelles du Patrimoine « Ghent »" (ed.Casterman), Omer Vandeputte "Gids voor Vlaanderen ", (ed.Lannoo), Noortje de Roy van Zuidewyn, « Reishandboek Belgie-Gent » (ed.Elmar 1992)-Patricia Carson, « The Fair face of Flanders » (1969)