Brugge - City of Belgium

Bruges is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country.

The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is egg-shaped and about 430 hectares in size. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 193.7 hectares off the coast, at Zeebrugge . The city's total population is 117,073 of which around 20,000 live in the historic centre. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km and has a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008.

Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, it is sometimes referred to as "The Venice of the North".

Bruges has a significant economic importance thanks to its port, and is also home to the College of Europe.

Very few traces of human activity date from the Pre-Roman Gaul era. The first fortifications were built after Julius Caesar's conquest of the Menapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the whole region from the Gallo Romans around the 4th century and administered it as the Pagus Flandrensis. It is at around this time that coins appeared for the first time bearing the name Bryggia. This name may stem from the Old Norse Bryggja, meaning "landing stage" or "port", and may have the same origin as Norway’s Bryggen.

Bruges got its city charter on July 27, 1128 and built itself new walls and canals. Since about 1050, gradual silting had caused the city to lose its direct access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a natural channel at the Zwin. The new sea arm stretched all the way to Damme, a city that became the commercial outpost for Bruges.

The new Flemish-school, oil-painting techniques gained world renown. The first book in English ever printed was published in Bruges by William Caxton. This is also the time when Edward IV and Richard III of England spent time in exile here. The population swelled to more than 40,000 inhabitants.

Starting around 1500, the Zwin channel, which had given the city its prosperity, also started silting. The city soon fell behind Antwerp as the economic flagship of the Low Countries. During the 17th century, the lace industry took off and various efforts to bring back the glorious past were made. The maritime infrastructure was modernized, and new connections with the sea were built, but without much success.

Bruges became impoverished and gradually disappeared from the picture. In the last half of the 19th century Bruges became one of the world's first tourist destinations attracting wealthy British and French tourists. Only in the second half of the twentieth century has the city started to reclaim some of its past glory. It was greatly expanded in the 1970s and early 1980s and has become one of Europe's most important and modern ports. International tourism has boomed and new efforts have resulted in Bruges being designated 'European Capital of Culture' in 2002.

The port of Bruges is Zeebrugge. It's the most modern and second biggest port of Belgium and one of the most important in Europe.

Bruges has most of its medieval architecture intact. The historic centre of Bruges is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.

Many of its medieval buildings are notable, including the Church of Our Lady, whose brick spire at 122m makes it one of the world's highest brick towers/buildings. The sculpture Madonna and Child, which can be seen in the transept, is believed to be Michelangelo's only sculpture to have left Italy within his lifetime.

Bruges is also famous for its 13th-century Belfry, housing a municipal Carillon comprising 47 bells. The city still employs a full time bell ringer, who puts on regular free concerts.

On principle, Bruges has to date never entered into close collaboration with twin cities. Without denying the usefulness of this schemes for towns with fewer international contacts, the main reason is that Bruges would find it difficult to choose between cities and thinks that it has enough work already with its many international contacts. Also, it was thought in Bruges that twinning was too often an occasion for city authorities and representatives to travel on public expense.