= Bruges =
[c] Pre- and early history [c]
Already in the 2nd and 3rd century there was a roman-galic settlement in the area of Burges. It's inhabitants were not only farmers but also traders, who kept in contact with England the rest auf Gaul. In the middle of the 9th century Balduin I. constructed a fortress at the place that is even today named 'Burg' to defend the coast against Viking attacks. In 1128 Bruges obtained the town ordinances and privileges.
[c] European trading metropolis (13th - 15th centuries) [c]
Through the sea arm of the North sea, the Zwin, that originated in the storm flood in 1134, and the canalised river Reie the city was directly connected to the sea throughout the middle ages and was able participate in the far trading. Around 1200 the first trade fair happened in Bruges. The main trade goods were wool from England for the cloth production, spices and brocade from Italy, fur and wood from Russia, lambskin from Spain, wine from France and needlepoint from Flanders. The area of Bruges became a center of cloth production and textile finishing. In the wide trade network of Flanders Antwerp was the second most important trading location for far away trading beside Bruges, while Ghent and Ypres were regional market spots. During the six week long Pentecost market all foreigners left Bruges to do trading in Antwerp.
Even merchants from the Rhenish towns and the Hanseatic cities Lübeck and Hambourg came to Bruges. The Hanseatic League with the Steel court in London and the Bryggen in Bergen constructed also a trading office in Bruges and thereby were connected to the markets outside of their core economic area. In 1253 the countess of Flanders Margarete II. granted the Hanseatic merchants various trading privileges. More than 500 passed down letters and ten account books of the then in Bruges living Lübeckian Hanseatic merchant Hildbrand Veckinchusen allow insights into the business practice and life style in the late middle ages. Of the boarding house of the Bruges trading office at the Osterlingenplein, the house of Easterlings, only the right portion remains today which is used as a hotel. The German merchants were called Osterlinge (Easterlings) - the ones coming from the east.
In the battle of the Golden Spurs (11th July 1302) near Kortrijk an army largely composed by citizen militia defended successful the independence of Flanders against the claim to power of France, after the Bruges Matins happened on the 18th May 1302. The battle as well as the revenge battle of Mons-en-Pévèle (18th August 1304) foreshadowed the clashes of the Hundred Years' War (1337-1457) between England and France, whose economic background from a Flamish viewpoint was the struggle for Flanders as a center of the European cloth industry.
In the first phase of the Hundred Years War the English king Eduard III. pressured the Flamish cities - among them Bruges as most important far trade location - by an export stop of English sheep's wool and thereby forced their cooperation. The boycott was evoked by Ludwig I. of Flanders for his support of Philipp VI on his claim to the French throne. The sea battle of Sluis (24th June 1340) was the first direct confrontation of the warfareing parties. By the victory of the English fleet the French dominance over the channel was broken and the French north eastern border became strongly endangered. Because of the strategic important location, Bruges outlaying port district Sluis, was fortified in 1382 and beginning in 1385 on the order of duke of Burgondy Philipp II a castle was constructed.
In 1359 the first trading privileges es for English merchants are documented. The English crown granted the trading company Company of Merchant Adventures, which was founded 1407 in England with its main seat in London adn being one of the most important English cloth trading companies of the ending middle ages, the monopoly for the export of untreated cloth in the Netherlands. In Bruges the Company of Merchant Adventures founded its first branch office. In 1446 they were granted better conditions by duke Philipp II and they moved their Dutch main office to Antwerp.
On the early Oude Beursplein (Old Stockquare) were the branch offices of the Italian sea town Genova, Florence and Venice as well as the 1246 build home of the merchant dynasty Van der Beurze, the first stock exchange of the world. Domestic and foreign merchants met there regularly for trading and doing exchange business. Based on the family name of the merchants the Dutch word beurs was deduced to name trading locations of such a nature and it passed in other European languages. 1369 Bruges became part of the dukedom Burgundy and town of residence for the dukes of Burgundy. Merchants from all over Europe came to the city for trading. Around the Jan van Eyck square a city quarter developed with branch offices. Many trade vessels anchored here while the Spanish merchants had their port at Spaanse Loskaai.
[c] Court and reign of the duke of Burgundy (14th and 15th century) [c]
Under the rule of the dukes of Burgundy Bruges became economical as well as cultural one of the richest cities in Europe. The painting Virgin and Child below Angels attributed to the master of the André-Madonna and the in the motive similar painting Virgin and Child with four Angels by Gerard David depict the town view of that time in the background.
In the densly settled and urban Flanders, that's economy was dominated by the the cloth production and the trade, the policy was dominated by the cities, in other territories of Burgundy by the gentry. At court and in the south of Burgony French was the spoken language, however in the North it was still Dutch. The dukes of Burgundy traveled through their realm and were not bound to any fix location. During their stay in Bruges they resided together with their royal household in the Princecourt. The household encompassed 230 persons in 1426 its numbers grew to 600 in 1474, not counting the various serfs. The royal household, that got pension and pay for their duties, represented the current duke; Feasts, knight tournaments, Entering of cities and death cult demonstrated their rank, power, wealth and reputation.
"The while holding of court was luxurious, the domestic treasury and the libraries were precious, and the court ceremonial was focused on a god-like super elevation of the ruler. In the self-conception of the noble chivalric world view of Burgundy and its court the well established entertainment befitting it's rank were hunting expeditions and tournaments during the day as well as well put on stage dance and masked balls accompanied by splendid musicians during the evening."
– Manfred Hollegger: Maximilian I.
[c] Struggle for the Burgundian legacy (14th and 15th century) [c]
After the death of Charles the Bold in the battle of Nancy (1477) the dukedom Burgundy fell apart in a short period in the struggle for it's legacy between Maximilian of Habsburg and Fance.
In the same year the heiress of Charles the Bold, Mary of Burgundy, married the son of the Roman-Germain emperor Frederik III. Maximilian, with whom she was engaged since 1475. Mary declined the offer of marriage by the French king Ludwig XI. to hi only seven year old son Dauphin Charles.
Through this marriage Maximilian became iure uxoris duke of Burgundy and thereby ruler over Flanders, which became part of the private domain of the dynasty of Habsburg. In the War of Burgundian Succession it was Maximilian's declared goal to gain control over all the territories of the dukedom of Burgundy which was occupied in large parts by France after the death of Charles the Bold and to ensure his reign on the Burgundy Netherlands.
After a riding accident during a falconry near Bruges Mary died on 27th March 1482 as a consequence of her injuries. Supposedly 15'000 people should have payed their last respect to her during the sumptuously staged entombment in the Church of Our Lady in Bruges. Before her death she decreed her only four year old son Philipp, who was born in Bruges, duke and thereby heir of the dukedom of Burgondy. The realms - to which the ruler did not belong to but the economical and thereby political influential cities of Flanders - de facto took guardianship over Philipp and his two year old sister Margarethe. The realms namely acknowledged the children of Mary and Maximilian as heirs, but not testamentary decreed guardianship of their father Maximilian an his regency over Burgundy Netherlands.
After the piece of Arras (1482) Maximilan therefore targeted to gain custodianship of his son Philipp to formally legitimize his custodial regency of his Burgundian heritage especially at first the Burgundian Netherlands.The northern provinces approved of Maximilian's regency. The south of the Netherlands only accepted the council of regency that was put together by the insurgent provinces Geldern, Flanders and Brabant and declined to release the in Ghent hold son. With the support of French especially the rich Flandern cities Ypres, Ghent and Bruges opposed the rule of Habsburg. The powerful city of Ghent dropped away and in Bruges the guilds rebelled as well. Finally Maximilian could settle down the revolts in the Dutch provinces and cities and clear up the struggle of inheritance with the French crown after signing the treaty of Senlis (1493).
[c] Maximilian's incarceration in Bruges (1488) [c]
The city of Bruges did not shay away to arrest Maximilian - since 1486 on also Roman-German king - from January till May 1488 in the house Craenburg on the Grote Market, when he intended to introduce new taxes. His father had to assemble an army first to force the release of his son. The consultant of Maximilian, Pierre Lanchals, also called Lankhals, together with members of the city council suspicious of treason where tortured in front of Maximilians eyes on the Grote Market and finally decapitated. According to legend Maximilian condemned the city of Bruges after his release - to atone for this affront and to remember forever on this dishonour - to keep some swans - "Langhälse" (long necks) - on the Minnewater; even today the swans can be found there in great numbers.
[https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Br%C3%BCgge#Geschichte, 2016-02-20]
