Cities of Belgium
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Title: Cities of Belgium
Author: Grant Allen
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CITIES OF BELGIUM ***
CITIES OF BELGIUM
=G r a n t A l l e n ’ s H i s t o r i c a l G u i d e s=
Fcap. 8vo, green cloth, with rounded corners to
slip in the pocket, price 3s. 6d. net each.
I. P A R I S. By GRANT ALLEN
(_Second Edition_).
II. F L O R E N C E. By GRANT ALLEN
(_Second Edition_).
III. T H E C I T I E S O F B E L G I U M.
By GRANT ALLEN (_Second Edition_).
IV. V E N I C E. By GRANT ALLEN.
V. T H E C I T I E S O F N O R T H E R N
I T A L Y. By GEO. C. WILLIAMSON, Litt.D.
VI. T H E U M B R I A N T O W N S. By
Mr. and Mrs. J. W. CRUICKSHANK.
LONDON: GRANT RICHARDS
48 LEICESTER SQUARE
GRANT ALLEN’S HISTORICAL
GUIDES
=CITIES OF BELGIUM=
BY GRANT ALLEN
[Illustration]
LONDON: GRANT RICHARDS
48 LEICESTER SQUARE
BUTLER & TANNER,
THE SELWOOD PRINTING WORKS,
FROME, AND LONDON.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
RECENT alterations, especially in the Brussels Gallery, make a new
edition of this book imperative, and, as I had been with my father
during its inception, I have undertaken such revision as is necessary.
In the main, however, my work has been merely mechanical, and the guide
remains substantially identical in detail with that originally published
in 1897.
Since that date it has been remarked in more than one quarter that many
interesting towns and objects have been omitted. I can only reply that
it would be impossible to deal exhaustively with a country so rich in
historical and artistic interest as Belgium in a single volume of this
size, and that my father only professed to point out such sights in the
chief towns as seemed to him most worthy of interest.
To alter even slightly the work of an author (especially when, as in
this case, that author is powerless to object) is a task to be
approached with the utmost diffidence, and I can only trust that those
who use this book will impute all blame for any errors or omissions
wholly to me, rather than to one who is beyond the reach of criticism.
JERRARD GRANT ALLEN.
July, 1902.
INTRODUCTION
THE object and plan of these Historical Handbooks is somewhat
different from that of any other guides at present before the public.
They do not compete or clash with such existing works; they are rather
intended to supplement than to supplant them. My purpose is not to
direct the stranger through the streets and squares of an unknown town
towards the buildings or sights which he may desire to visit; still less
is it my design to give him practical information about hotels, cab
fares, omnibuses, tramways, and other every-day material conveniences.
For such details, the traveller must still have recourse to the trusty
pages of his Baedeker, his Joanne, or his Murray. I desire rather to
supply the tourist who wishes to use his travel as a means of culture
with such historical and antiquarian information as will enable him to
understand, and therefore to enjoy, the architecture, sculpture,
painting, and minor arts of the towns he visits. In one word, it is my
object to give the reader in a very compendious form the result of all
those inquiries which have naturally suggested themselves to my own mind
during thirty-five years of foreign travel, the solution of which has
cost myself a good deal of research, thought, and labour, beyond the
facts which I could find in the ordinary handbooks.
For several years past I have devoted myself to collecting and arranging
material for a set of books to embody the idea I had thus entertained. I
earnestly hope they may meet a want on the part of tourists, especially
Americans, who, so far as my experience goes, usually come to Europe
with an honest and reverent desire to learn from the Old World whatever
of value it has to teach them, and who are prepared to take an amount of
pains in turning their trip to good account which is both rare and
praiseworthy. For such readers I shall call attention at times to other
sources of information.
These guide-books will deal more particularly with the Great Towns where
objects of art and antiquity are numerous. In every one of them, the
general plan pursued will be somewhat as follows. First will come the
inquiry why a town ever gathered together at all at that particular
spot—what induced the aggregation of human beings rather there than
elsewhere. Next, we shall consider why that town grew to social or
political importance and what were the stages by which it assumed its
present shape. Thirdly, we shall ask why it gave rise to that higher
form of handicraft which we know as Art, and towards what particular
arts it especially gravitated. After that, we shall take in detail the
various strata of its growth or development, examining the buildings and
works of art which they contain in historical order, and, as far as
possible, tracing the causes which led to their evolution. In
particular, we shall lay stress upon the origin and meaning of each
structure as an organic whole, and upon the allusions or symbols which
its fabric embodies.
A single instance will show the method upon which I intend to proceed
better than any amount of general description. A church, as a rule, is
built over the body or relics of a particular saint, in whose special
honour it was originally erected. That saint was usually one of great
local importance at the moment of its erection, or was peculiarly
implored against plague, foreign enemies, or some other pressing and
dreaded misfortune. In dealing with such a church, then, I endeavour to
show what were the circumstances which led to its erection, and what
memorials of these circumstances it still retains. In other cases it may
derive its origin from some special monastic body—Benedictine,
Dominican, Franciscan—and may therefore be full of the peculiar
symbolism and historical allusion of the order who founded it. Wherever
I have to deal with such a church, I try as far as possible to exhibit
the effect which its origin had upon its architecture and decoration; to
trace the image of the patron saint in sculpture or stained glass
throughout the fabric; and to set forth the connection of the whole
design with time and place, with order and purpose. In short, instead of
looking upon monuments of the sort mainly as the product of this or that
architect, I look upon them rather as material embodiments of the spirit
of the age—crystallizations, as it were, in stone and bronze, in form
and colour, of great popular enthusiasms.
By thus concentrating attention on what is essential and important in a
town, I hope to give in a comparatively short space, though with
inevitable conciseness, a fuller account than is usually given of the
chief architectural and monumental works of the principal art-cities. In
dealing with Paris, for example, I shall have little to say about such
modern constructions as the Champs Élysées or the Eiffel Tower; still
less, of course, about the Morgue, the Catacombs, the waxworks of the
Musée Grévin, and the celebrated Excursion in the Paris Sewers. The
space thus saved from vulgar wonders I shall hope to devote to fuller
explanation of Notre-Dame and the Sainte Chapelle, of the mediæval
carvings or tapestries of Cluny, and of the pictures or sculptures in
the galleries of the Louvre. Similarly in Florence, whatever I save from
description of the Cascine and even of the beautiful Viale dei Colli
(where explanation is needless and word-painting superfluous), I shall
give up to the Bargello, the Uffizi, and the Pitti Palace. The passing
life of the moment does not enter into my plan; I regard each town I
endeavour to illustrate mainly as a museum of its own history.
For this reason, too, I shall devote most attention in every case to
what is locally illustrative, and less to what is merely adventitious
and foreign. In Paris, for instance, I shall have more to say about
truly Parisian art and history, as embodied in St. Denis, the Île de la
Cité, and the shrine of Ste. Geneviève, than about the Egyptian and
Assyrian collections of the Louvre. In Florence, again, I shall deal
rather with the Etruscan remains, with Giotto and Fra Angelico, with the
Duomo and the Campanile, than with the admirable Memlincks and Rubenses
of the Uffizi and the Pitti, or with the beautiful Van der Goes of the
Hospital of Santa Maria. In Bruges and Brussels, once more, I shall be
especially Flemish; in the Rhine towns, Rhenish; in Venice, Venetian. I
shall assign a due amount of space, indeed, to the foreign collections,
but I shall call attention chiefly to those monuments or objects which
are of entirely local and typical value.
As regards the character of the information given, it will be mainly
historical, antiquarian, and, above all, explanatory. I am not a
connoisseur—an adept in the difficult modern science of distinguishing
the handicraft of various masters, in painting or sculpture, by minute
signs and delicate inferential processes. In such matters, I shall be
well content to follow the lead of the most authoritative experts. Nor
am I an art-critic—a student versed in the technique of the studios and
the dialect of the modelling-room. In such matters, again, I shall
attempt little more than to accept the general opinion of the most
discriminative judges. What I aim at rather is to expound the history
and meaning of each work—to put the intelligent reader in such a
position that he may judge for himself of the æsthetic beauty and
success of the object before him. To recognise the fact that this is a
Perseus and Andromeda, that a St. Barbara enthroned, the other an
obscure episode in the legend of St. Philip, is not art-criticism, but
it is often an almost indispensable prelude to the formation of a right
and sound judgment. We must know what the artist was trying to represent
before we can feel sure what measure of success he has attained in his
representation.
For the general study of Christian art, alike in architecture,
sculpture, and painting, no treatises are more useful for the tourist to
carry with him for constant reference than Mrs. Jameson’s _Sacred and
Legendary Art_, and _Legends of the Madonna_ (London, Longmans). For
works of Italian art, both in Italy and elsewhere, Kugler’s _Italian
Schools of Painting_ is an invaluable _vade-mecum_. These books should
be carried about by everybody everywhere. Other works of special and
local importance will occasionally be noticed under each particular
city, church, or museum.
I cannot venture to hope that handbooks containing such a mass of facts
as these will be wholly free from errors and misstatements, above all in
early editions. I can only beg those who may detect any such to point
them out, without unnecessary harshness, to the author, care of the
publisher, and if possible to assign reasons for any dissentient
opinion.
GRANT ALLEN
C O N T E N T S
PAGE
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION 5
INTRODUCTION 6
HOW TO USE THESE GUIDE-BOOKS 12
ORIGINS OF THE BELGIAN TOWNS 13
ORDER OF THE TOUR 20
I BRUGES—
_A._ Origins of Bruges 22
_B._ The Heart of the City 25
_C._ The Hospital of St. John 35
_D._ The Town in General 45
_E._ The Churches 49
_F._ The Academy 59
II GHENT—
_A._ Origins of Ghent 66
_B._ The Core of Ghent 69
_C._ The Cathedral 77
_D._ The Outskirts 90
III BRUSSELS—
_A._ Origins of Brussels 98
_B._ The Heart of Brussels 100
_C._ The Picture Gallery 105
_D._ The Cathedral 138
_E._ The Upper Town 145
_F._ Surroundings 156
IV ANTWERP—
_A._ Origins of Antwerp 164
_B._ The Cathedral 168
_C._ The Picture Gallery 176
_D._ The Town in General 205
V HISTORICAL NOTES 217
INDEX 229
HOW TO USE THESE GUIDEBOOKS
_T__HE portions of this book intended to be read at leisure_ =at
home=, _before proceeding to explore each town or monument, are enclosed
in brackets [thus]. The portion relating to each_ =principal object=
_should be quietly read and digested_ =before= _a visit, and referred to
again afterwards. The portion to be read_ =on the spot= _is made as
brief as possible, and is printed in large legible type, so as to be
easily read in the dim light of churches, chapels, and galleries. The_
=key-note words= _are printed in_ =bold type=, _to catch the eye. Where
objects are numbered, the numbers used are always those of the latest
official catalogues._
_Baedeker’s Guides are so printed that each principal portion can be
detached entire from the volume. The traveller who uses Baedeker is
advised to carry in his pocket one such portion, referring to the place
he is then visiting, together with the plan of the town, while carrying
this book in his hand. These Guides do_ =not= _profess to supply
practical information_.
_Individual works of merit are distinguished by an asterisk (*); those
of very exceptional interest and merit have two asterisks._ =Nothing=
_is noticed in this book which does not seem to the writer worthy of
attention_.
_See little at a time, and see it thoroughly._ =Never= _attempt to “do”
any place or any monument. By following strictly the order in which
objects are noticed in this book, you will gain a conception of the_
=historical evolution= _of the town which you cannot obtain if you go
about looking at churches and palaces hap-hazard. The order is arranged,
not quite chronologically, but on a definite_ =plan=, _which greatly
facilitates comprehension of the subject_.
ORIGINS OF THE BELGIAN TOWNS
THE somewhat heterogeneous country which we now call =Belgium= formed
=part of Gaul= under the Roman Empire. But though rich and commercial
even then, it seems to have been relatively little Romanised; and in the
beginning of the 5th century it was overrun by the =Salic Franks=, on
their way towards Laon, Soissons, and Paris. When civilization began to
creep northward again in the 9th century through the districts
barbarised by the Teutonic invasion, it was the Frankish =Charlemagne=
(Karl the Great) who introduced Roman arts afresh into the Upper and
Lower Rhinelands. The Rhine from Basle to Cologne was naturally the
region most influenced by this new Roman revival; but as Charlemagne had
his chief seat at Aix-la-Chapelle (Aachen), near the modern Belgian
frontier, the western Frankish provinces were also included in the
sphere of his improvements. When the kingdom of the Franks began to
divide more or less definitely into the Empire and France, the Flemish
region formed nominally part of the Neustrian and, later, of the French
dominions. From a very early date, however, it was practically almost
independent, and it became so even in name during its later stages. But
Brabant (with Brussels) remained a portion of the Empire.
The =Rhine= constituted the great central waterway of mediæval Europe;
the =Flemish towns= were its =ports= and its manufacturing centres. They
filled in the 13th and 14th centuries much the same place that
Liverpool, Glasgow, Manchester, and Birmingham fill in the 20th. Many
causes contributed to this result. Flanders, half independent under its
own Counts, occupied a middle position, geographically and politically,
between France and the Empire; it was comparatively free from the
disastrous wars which desolated both these countries, and in particular
(_see_ under Ghent) it largely escaped the long smouldering quarrel
between French and English which so long retarded the development of the
former. Its commercial towns, again, were not exposed on the open sea to
the attacks of pirates or hostile fleets, but were safely ensconced in
inland flats, reached by rivers or canals, almost inaccessible to
maritime enemies. Similar conditions elsewhere early ensured peace and
prosperity for Venice. The canal system of Holland and Belgium began to
be developed as early as the 12th century (at first for drainage), and
was one leading cause of the commercial importance of the Flemish cities
in the 14th. In so flat a country, locks are all but unnecessary. The
two towns which earliest rose to greatness in the Belgian area were thus
=Bruges= and =Ghent=; they possessed in the highest degree the combined
advantages of easy access to the sea and comparative inland security.
Bruges, in particular, was one of the chief stations of the Hanseatic
League, which formed an essentially commercial alliance for the mutual
protection of the northern trading centres. By the 14th century Bruges
had thus become in the north what Venice was in the south, the capital
of commerce. Trading companies from all the surrounding countries had
their “factories” in the town, and every European king or prince of
importance kept a resident minister accredited to the merchant Republic.
Some comprehension of the =mercantile condition of Europe= in general
during the Middle Ages is necessary in order to understand the early
importance and wealth of the Flemish cities. Southern Europe, and in
particular Italy, was then still the seat of all higher civilization,
more especially of the trade in manufactured articles and objects of
luxury. Florence, Venice, and Genoa ranked as the polished and learned
cities of the world. Further east, again, Constantinople still remained
in the hands of the Greek emperors, or, during the Crusades, of their
Latin rivals. A brisk trade existed _viâ_ the Mediterranean between
Europe and India or the nearer East. This double stream of traffic ran
along two main routes—one, by the Rhine, from Lombardy and Rome; the
other, by sea, from Venice, Genoa, Florence, Constantinople, the Levant,
and India. On the other hand, France was still but a half civilized
country, with few manufactures and little external trade; while England
was an exporter of raw produce, chiefly wool, like Australia in our own
time. The Hanseatic merchants of Cologne held the trade of London; those
of Wisby and Lübeck governed that of the Baltic; Bruges, as head of the
Hansa, was in close connection with all of these, as well as with Hull,
York, Novgorod, and Bergen. The position of the Flemish towns in the
14th century was thus not wholly unlike that of New York, Philadelphia,
and Boston at the present day; they stood as intermediaries between the
older civilized countries, like Italy or the Greek empire, and the newer
producers of raw material, like England, North Germany, and the Baltic
towns.
The local =manufactures= of Flanders consisted chiefly of woollen goods
and linens; the imports included Italian luxuries, Spanish figs and
raisins, Egyptian dates, Oriental silks, English wool, cattle, and
metals, Rhenish wines, and Baltic furs, skins, and walrus tusks.
In the early 16th century, when navigation had assumed new conditions,
and trade was largely diverted to the Atlantic, Antwerp, the port of the
Schelde, superseded the towns on the inland network. As Venice sank,
Antwerp rose.
The =art= that grew up in the Flemish cities during their epoch of
continuous commercial development bears on its very face the visible
impress of its mercantile origin. France is essentially a monarchical
country, and it is centralized in Paris; everything in old French art is
therefore regal and lordly. The Italian towns were oligarchies of
nobles; so the principal buildings of Florence and Venice are the
castles or palaces of the princely families, while their pictures
represent the type of art that belongs in its nature to a cultivated
aristocracy. But in Flanders, everything is in essence =commercial=. The
architecture consists mainly, not of private palaces, but of guilds,
town halls, exchanges, belfries: the pictures are the portraits of solid
and successful merchants, or the devotional works which a merchant donor
presented to the patron saint of his town or business. They are almost
overloaded with details of fur, brocade, jewellery, lace, gold, silver,
polished brass, glasswork, Oriental carpets, and richly carved
furniture. In order to understand Flemish art, therefore, it is
necessary to bear in mind at every step that it is =the art of a purely
commercial people=.
Another point which differentiates Flemish painting from the painting of
Italy during the same period is the complete absence of any opportunity
for the display of frescoes. In the Italian churches, where the walls
serve largely for support, and the full southern light makes the size of
the windows of less importance, great surfaces were left bare in the
nave and aisles, or in the lower part of the choir, crying aloud for
decoration at the hands of the fresco-painter. But in the northern
Gothic, which aimed above all things at height and the soaring effect,
and which almost annihilated the wall, by making its churches consist of
rows of vast windows with intervening piers or buttresses, the
opportunity for mural decoration occurred but seldom. The climate also
destroyed frescoes. Hence the works of pictorial art in Flemish
buildings are almost confined to =altar-pieces and votive tablets=.
Again, the great school of painting in early Italy (from Giotto to
Perugino) was a school of fresco-painters; but in Flanders no high type
of art arose till the discovery of oil-painting. Pictures were usually
imported from the Rhine towns. Hence, pictorial art in the Low Countries
seems to spring almost full-fledged, instead of being traceable through
gradual stages of evolution as in Italy. Most of the best early
paintings are small and highly finished; it was only at a comparatively
late date, when Antwerp became the leading town, that Italian influence
began to produce the larger and coarser canvases of Rubens and his
followers.
=Very early Flemish art= greatly resembles the art of the School of
Cologne. Only with Hubert and Jan van Eyck (about 1360-1440) does the
distinctively Flemish taste begin to show itself—the taste for delicate
and minute workmanship, linked with a peculiar realistic idealism, more
dainty than German work, more literal than Italian. It is an art that
bases itself upon truth of imitation and perfection of finish: its chief
æsthetic beauty is its jewel-like colour and its wealth of decorative
adjuncts. The subsequent development of Flemish painting—the painting
that pleased a clique of opulent commercial patrons—we shall trace in
detail in the various cities.
Whoever wishes to gain a deeper insight into Flemish painting should
take in his portmanteau Sir Martin =Conway’s “Early Flemish Artists,”= a
brilliant and masterly work of the first importance, to which this Guide
is deeply indebted.
The =political history= of the country during this flourishing period of
the Middle Ages has also stamped itself, though somewhat less deeply, on
the character of the towns and of the art evolved in them. The =Counts
of Flanders=, originally mere lords of Bruges and its district, held
their dominions of the Kings of France. Their territory included, not
only Arras (at first the capital, now included in France) with Bruges,
Ghent, Courtrai, Tournay, and Ypres, but also the towns and districts of
Valenciennes, Lille, and St. Omer, which are now French. From the time
of Baldwin VIII. (1191), however, Arras became a part of France, and
=Ghent= was erected into the capital of Flanders. In the beginning of
the 13th century, two women sovereigns ruled in succession; under them,
and during the absence of the elective Counts on crusades, the towns
rose to be practically burgher republics. Bruges, Ypres, Ghent, and
Lille were said to possess each 40,000 looms; and though this is
certainly a mediæval exaggeration, yet the Flemish cities at this epoch
were at any rate the chief manufacturing and trading centres of northern
Europe, while London was still a mere local emporium.
In the 14th century, the cities acquired still greater freedom. The
citizens had always claimed the right to elect their Count; and the
people of Ghent now made treaties without him on their own account with
Edward III. of England. To this age belongs the heroic period of the Van
Arteveldes at Ghent, when the burghers became the real rulers of
Flanders, as will be more fully described hereafter. In 1384, however,
Count Louis III. died, leaving an only daughter, who was married to
=Philip the Bold of Burgundy=; and the wealthy Flemish towns thus passed
under the sway of the powerful princes of Dijon. Brabant fell later by
inheritance to Philip the Good. It was under the =Burgundian dynasty=,
who often held their court at Ghent, that the arts of the Netherlands
attained their first great development. Philip the Good (1419-1467)
employed Jan van Eyck as his court painter; and during his reign or just
after it the chief works of Flemish art were produced in Bruges, Ghent,
Brussels, and Tournai.
=Charles the Bold=, the last Duke of Burgundy, left one daughter, Mary,
who was married to Maximilian, afterwards Emperor. From that date
forward the history of the Flemish towns is practically merged in that
of the dynasty of Charles V., and finally becomes the story of an
unwilling and ever justly rebellious Spanish province. The subsequent
vicissitudes of Belgium as an Austrian appanage, a part of Holland, and
an independent kingdom, belong to the domain of European history. For
the visitor, it is the period of the Burgundian supremacy that really
counts in the cities of Belgium.
Yet the one great point for the tourist to bear in mind is really
this—that the art of the Flemish towns is essentially =the art of a
group of burgher communities=. It is frankly commercial, neither royal
nor aristocratic. In its beginnings it develops a strictly municipal
architecture, with a school of painters who aimed at portraiture and
sacred panel pictures. After the Reformation had destroyed sacred art in
Holland, painting in that part of the Netherlands confined itself to
portraits and to somewhat vulgar popular scenes: while in Belgium it was
Italianised, or rather Titianised and Veronesed, by Rubens and his
followers. But in its best days it was national, local, and sacred or
personal.
Take =Conway’s “Early Flemish Artists”= with you in your portmanteau,
and read over in the evening his account of the works you have seen
during the day.
ORDER OF THE TOUR
IF possible, visit the cities of Belgium in =the order in which they
are treated in this Guide=:—Bruges first; then Ghent, Brussels, and
Antwerp. For this order you will find very good reasons. Bruges is the
most antique in tone and the least spoiled of all the Flemish towns; it
best exhibits the local peculiarities we have here specially to
consider; and it leads up naturally to the other cities. It is true,
Memling, the great painter whom we have chiefly to study at Bruges, is
later in date than Jan van Eyck, whose principal work (with that of his
brother Hubert) is to be seen at Ghent. But historical sequence in this
minor matter is somewhat less important than a due apprehension of the
general air of an old Flemish town such as those in which the art of the
Van Eycks arose; and besides, there is at least one characteristic Van
Eyck at Bruges, while there are many Memlings for comparison in other
cities.
As a rule, too little time is given by tourists to Bruges and Ghent, and
too much to Brussels. I should advise three or four days each to the
first-named towns, and a week to the capital.
Those who intend to combine a visit to =Holland= in the same tour should
certainly see Belgium in the order here given first, and then proceed to
Rotterdam, the Hague, Haarlem, and Amsterdam. For such a sequence, which
is geographically the easiest, is also chronologically natural. Bruges
is the most mediæval of all the towns, and has for its principal great
artist Memling. Ghent comes next, with the Van Eycks and a few later
painters. Brussels represents the end of the Middle Ages, and contains a
general metropolitan collection of early and middle Flemish art. Antwerp
gives us in particular Quentin Matsys and his contemporaries, as well as
Rubens and Van Dyck. And the Dutch towns lead us on through Van Dyck and
the later transitionals to Rembrandt, Van der Helst, Frans Hals, and the
other mighty masters of Holland. I may add that as the arrangement of
this Guide is roughly chronological, the tourist will use it best if he
follows its order.
The =Ostend route= takes the towns naturally in the sequence I suggest.
Visitors arriving by =Harwich= or =Calais= should not stop first at
Antwerp or Brussels, but go straight to Bruges, and then double back
again.
I
BRUGES
_A._ ORIGINS OF BRUGES
IN a lost corner of the great lowland flat of Flanders, defended from
the sea by an artificial dyke, and at the point of intersection of an
intricate network of canals and waterways, there arose in the early
Middle Ages a trading town, known in Flemish as =Brugge=, in French as
=Bruges= (that is to say, =The Bridge=), from a primitive structure that
here crossed the river. (A number of bridges now span the sluggish
streams. All of them open in the middle to admit the passage of
shipping.) Bruges stood originally on a little river, the =Reye=, once
navigable, now swallowed by canals: and the Reye flowed into the =Zwin=,
long silted up, but then the safest harbour in the Low Countries. At
first the capital of a petty Count, this land-locked internal harbour
grew in time to be the Venice of the North, and to gather round its
quays, or at its haven of Damme, the ships and merchandise of all
neighbouring peoples. Already in 1200 it ranked as the central mart of
the Hanseatic League. It was the port of entry for English wool and
Russian furs: the port of departure for Flemish broadcloths, laces,
tapestries, and linens. Canals soon connected it with Ghent, Dunkirk,
Sluys, Furnes, and Ypres. Its nucleus lay in a little knot of buildings
about the Grand’ Place and the Hôtel de Ville, stretching out to the
Cathedral and the Dyver; thence it spread on all sides till in 1362 it
filled the whole space within the existing ramparts, now largely
abandoned or given over to fields and gardens. It was the wealthiest
town of Europe, outside Italy. In the 14th century, Bruges was
frequently the residence of the Counts of Flanders; and in the 15th it
became the seat of the brilliant court of the Dukes of Burgundy. Under
their rule, the opulent burghers and foreign merchants began to employ a
group of famous artists who have made the city a place of pilgrimage for
Europe and America, and to adorn the town with most of those buildings
which now beautify its decay.
The foreign traders in Bruges lived in “factories” or guilds, resembling
monasteries or colleges, and were governed by their own commercial laws.
The Bardi of Florence were among its famous merchants: the Medici had
agents here: so had the millionaire Fuggers of Augsburg.
Bruges is the best place in which to make =a first acquaintance= with
the towns and art of Flanders, because here almost all the principal
buildings are mediæval, and comparatively little that is modern comes in
to mar the completeness of the picture. We see in it the architecture
and the painting of Flanders, in the midst of the houses, the land, and
the folk that gave them origin. Brussels is largely modernised, and even
Ghent has great living manufactures; but Bruges is =a fossil of the 15th
century=. It was the first to flourish and the first to decay of the
towns of Belgium.
The =decline= of the town was due partly to the break-up of the
Hanseatic system; partly to the rise of English ports and manufacturing
towns; but still more (and especially as compared with other Flemish
cities) to the silting of the Zwin, and the want of adaptation in its
waterways to the needs of great ships and modern navigation. The old sea
entrance to Bruges was through the Zwin, by way of Sluys and Kadzand; up
that channel came the Venetian merchant fleet and the Flemish galleys,
to the port of Damme. By 1470, it ceased to be navigable for large
vessels. The later canal is still open, but as it passes through what is
now Dutch territory, it is little used; nor is it adapted to any save
ships of comparatively small burden. Another canal, suitable for craft
of 500 tons, leads through Belgian territory to Ostend; but few vessels
now navigate it, and those for the most part only for local trade. The
town has shrunk to half its former size, and has only a quarter of its
mediæval population. The commercial decay of Bruges, however, has
preserved its charm for the artist, the archæologist, and the tourist;
its sleepy streets and unfrequented quays are among the most picturesque
sights of bustling and industrial modern Belgium. The great private
palaces, indeed, are almost all destroyed: but many public buildings
remain, and the domestic architecture is quaint and pretty.
Bruges was the mother of the arts in Flanders. Jan van Eyck lived here
from 1428 to 1440: Memling, probably, from 1477 till 1494. Caxton, the
first English printer, lived as a merchant at Bruges (in the Domus
Anglorum or English factory) from 1446 to 1476, and probably put in the
press here the earliest English printed book (though strong grounds have
been adduced in favour of Cologne). Colard Mansion, the great printer of
Bruges at that date, was one of the leaders in the art of typography.
Those who desire further information on this most interesting town will
find it in James Weale’s _Bruges et ses Environs_, an admirable work, to
which I desire to acknowledge my obligations.
* * * * *
At least two whole days should be devoted to Bruges: more if possible.
But the hasty traveller, who has but time for a glimpse, should neglect
the churches, and walk round the Grand’ Place and the Place du Bourg to
the Dyver: spending most of his time at the =**Hôpital de St. Jean=,
which contains the glorious works of =Memling=. These are by far the
most important objects to be seen in the city. The description in this
Guide is written from the point of view of the more leisurely traveller.
Expect the frequent recurrence of the following =symbols= on houses or
pictures: (1) the Lion of Flanders, heraldic or otherwise, crowned, and
bearing a collar with a pendant cross; (2) the Bear of Bruges; (3) the
Golden Fleece (_Toison d’or_), the device of the Order founded by
Philippe le Bon in 1430, and appropriate to a country which owed its
wealth to wool; it consists of a sheep’s skin suspended from a collar.
The Flemish emblem of the Swan is also common as a relief or decoration.
St. Donatian, Archbishop of Rheims, is the patron saint. His mark is a
wheel with five lighted candles.
_B._ THE HEART OF THE CITY
[The original =nucleus of Bruges= is formed by the =Bourg=,
which stands near the centre of the modern city. In 865, Baldwin
Bras-de-Fer, Count of Flanders, built a _château_ or _burg_ by
the Reye, in a corner of land still marked by the modern canal
of the Dyver, and near it a chapel, into which he transported
the relics of St. Donatian. This _burg_ grew in time into the
chief palace of the Counts of Flanders, now replaced by the
Palais de Justice; while the chapel by its side developed into
the first cathedral of Bruges, St. Donatian, now wholly
demolished. A bridge hard by crossed the little river Reye; and
from this bridge the town ultimately derives its name. The
_burg_ was built as a _tête-du-pont_ to protect the passage. A
town of traders gradually sprang up under the protection of the
castle, and developed at last into the great trading port of
Bruges. To this centre, then, we will first direct ourselves.]
Go from your hotel, down the Rue St. Amand, or the Rue St. Jacques, to
the =Grand’ Place= or market-place of Bruges, noticing on your way the
numerous handsome old houses, with high-pitched roofs and gable-ends
arranged like steps, mostly of the 16th and 17th centuries. (Bruges is a
Flemish-speaking town: note the true names of the streets in Flemish.)
The very tall square tower which faces you as you enter the Grand’ Place
is the =*Belfry=, the centre and visible embodiment of the town of
Bruges. The Grand' Place itself was the forum and meeting-place of the
soldier-citizens, who were called to arms by the chimes in the Belfry.
The centre of the Place is therefore appropriately occupied by a
colossal =statue group= (modern) of Pieter de Coninck and Jan Breidel,
the leaders of the citizens of Bruges at the Battle of the Spurs before
the walls of Courtrai in 1302, a conflict which secured the freedom of
Flanders from the interference of the Kings of France. The group is by
Devigne. The _reliefs_ on the pedestal represent scenes from the battle
and its antecedents.
The majestic =Belfry= itself represents the first beginnings of freedom
in Bruges. Leave to erect such a bell-tower, both as a mark of
independence and to summon the citizens to arms, was one of the first
privileges which every Teutonic trading town desired to wring from its
feudal lord. This (brick) tower, the pledge of municipal rights, was
begun in 1291 (to replace an earlier one of wood), and finished about a
hundred years later, the octagon (in stone) at the summit (which holds
the bells) having been erected in 1393-96. It consists of three stories,
the two lower of which are square and flanked by balconies with turrets;
the windows below are of the simple Early Gothic style, but show a later
type of architecture in the octagon. The _niche_ in the centre contains
the Virgin and Child (restored, after being destroyed by the French
revolutionists). Below it on either side are smaller figures holding
escutcheons. From the balcony between these last, the laws and the
rescripts of the Counts were read aloud to the people assembled in the
square.
The Belfry can be =ascended= by steps. Apply to the _concierge_; 25 c.
per person. Owing to the force of the wind, it leans slightly to the
S.E. The =*view= from the top is very extensive and striking; it
embraces the greater part of the Plain of Flanders, with its towns and
villages: the country, though quite flat, looks beautiful when thus
seen. In early times, however, the look-out from the summit was of
practical use for purposes of observation, military or maritime. It
commanded the river, the Zwin, and the sea approach by Sluys and Damme;
the course of the various canals; and the roads to Ghent, Antwerp,
Tournai, and Courtrai. The Belfry contains a famous set of =chimes=, the
mechanism of which may be inspected by the visitor. He will have
frequent opportunities of hearing the beautiful and mellow carillon,
perhaps to excess. The existing bells date only from 1680: the mechanism
from 1784.
The square building on either side of the Belfry, known as =Les Halles=,
was erected in or about 1248, and is a fine but sombre specimen of Early
Gothic civic architecture. The wing to the left was originally the
=Cloth Hall=, for the display and sale of the woollen manufactures of
Ghent and Bruges. It is now used as municipal offices. A door to the L.
gives access to a small Museum of Antiquities on the ground floor, which
may be safely neglected by all save specialist archæologists. (Admission
50 c.) The wing to the right is the meat market.
Now, stand with your back to the Belfry to survey the =Square=. The
brick building on your right is the Post Office (modern); the stone one
beyond it (also modern) is the Palace of the Provincial Government of
Flanders. Both have been erected in a style suitable to the town. In the
Middle Ages, ships could come up to this part of the Grand’ Place to
discharge their cargo. The quaint houses that face you, with
high-pitched gable-ends, are partly modern, but mostly old, though
restored. On the left (W.) side of the Place, at the corner of the Rue
St. Amand, stands the square castle-like building known as _Au Lion de
Flandre_ and marked by its gold lion. It is one of the best brick
mediæval buildings in Bruges. According to a doubtful tradition, it was
occupied by Charles II. of England during his exile, when he was created
by the Brugeois King of the Crossbowmen of St. Sebastian (see later). In
the house beside it, known as the Craenenburg, the citizens of Bruges
imprisoned Maximilian, King of the Romans, from the 5th to the 17th of
February, 1488, because he would not grant the care of his son Philip,
heir to the crown of the Netherlands, to the King of France. They only
released him after he had sworn before an altar erected at the spot, on
the Host, the true Cross, and the Relics of St. Donatian, to renounce
his claim to the guardianship of his son, and to grant a general
amnesty. However, he was treacherously released from his oath by a
congress of Princes convened a little later by his father, the Emperor
Frederic IV.
* * * * *
From the corner of the Post Office, take the short Rue Breydel to the
=Place du Bourg=, the still more intimate centre and focus of the early
life of Bruges. This Place contained the old Palace of the Counts of
Flanders, and the original Cathedral, both now destroyed, as well as the
Town Hall and other important buildings still preserved for us.
The tallest of the three handsome edifices on the S. side of the Square
(profusely adorned with sculpture) is the =**Hôtel de Ville=, a
beautiful gem of Middle Gothic architecture, begun about 1376, and
finished about 1387. This is one of the finest pieces of civic
architecture in Belgium. The _façade_, though over-restored, and the six
beautiful turrets and chimneys, are in the main of the original design.
The sculpture in the niches, destroyed during the French Revolution, has
been only tolerably replaced by modern Belgian sculptors in our own day.
The lower tier contains the Annunciation, R. and L. of the doorway, with
figures of various saints and prophets. In the tiers above this are
statues of the Counts of Flanders of various ages. The _reliefs_ just
below the windows of the first floor represent episodes from Biblical
history:—David before Saul, David dancing before the Ark, the Judgment
of Solomon, the Building of Solomon’s Temple, and other scenes which the
visitor can easily identify. The Great Hall in the interior is
interesting only for its fine pendant Gothic wooden roof.
The somewhat lower building, to the right of the Hôtel de Ville, is the
=**Chapelle du Saint Sang=. The decorated portal round the corner also
forms part of the same building.
[In the 12th and 13th centuries (age of the Crusades) the
chivalrous and credulous knights of the North and West who
repaired to the Holy Land, whether as pilgrims or as soldiers of
the Faith, were anxious to bring back with them relics of the
saints or of still more holy personages. The astute Greeks and
Syrians with whom they had to deal rose to the occasion, and
sold the simple Westerns various sacred objects of more or less
doubtful authenticity at fabulous prices. Over these treasured
deposits stately churches were often raised; for example, St.
Louis of France constructed the Sainte Chapelle in Paris, to
contain the Crown of Thorns and part of the True Cross, which he
had purchased at an immense cost from Baldwin, Emperor of
Constantinople. Among the earlier visitors to the Holy Land who
thus signalised their journey was Theodoric of Alsace, elected
Count of Flanders in 1128; he brought back with him in 1149 some
drops of the =Holy Blood= of the Saviour, said to have been
preserved by Joseph of Arimathea, which he presented to his
faithful city of Bruges. Fitly to enshrine them, Theodoric
erected a chapel in the succeeding year, 1150; and this early
church forms the lower floor of the existing building. Above it,
in the 15th century, when Bruges grew richer, was raised a
second and more gorgeous chapel (as at the Sainte Chapelle), in
which the holy relic is now preserved. Almost all the works of
art in the dainty little oratory accordingly bear special
reference to the Holy Blood, its preservation, and its transport
to Bruges. The dedication is to =St. Basil=, the founder of
eastern monasticism—a Greek Father little known in the West,
whose fame Theodoric must have learned in Syria. The nobles of
Flanders, it must be remembered, were particularly active in
organising the Crusades.]
The =exterior= has a fine figure of St. Leonard (holding the fetters
which are his symbol) under a Gothic niche. He was the patron of
Christian slaves held in duress by the Saracens. The beautiful
flamboyant =portal= and =staircase=, round the corner, erected in
1529-1533, in the ornate decorative style of the period, have (restored)
figures of Crusaders and their Queens in niches, with incongruous
Renaissance busts below.
To visit the =interior=, ring the bell in the corner: admission, 50 c.
per person.
The =Museum= of the Brotherhood of the Holy Blood, on the first floor,
which we first visit, contains by the =left wall= the handsome
silver-gilt Reliquary (of 1617), studded with jewels, which encloses the
drops of the Holy Blood. The figures on it represent Christ (the source
of the Blood), the Blessed Virgin, St. Basil (patron of the church), and
St. Donatian (patron of the town). The Blood is exhibited in a simpler
_châsse_ in the chapel every Friday; that is to say, on the day of the
Crucifixion. The great Reliquary itself is carried in procession only,
on the Monday after the 3rd of May. Right and left of the _châsse_ are
portraits of the members of the Confraternity of the Holy Blood by P.
Pourbus, 1556: unusually good works of this painter. A triptych to the
right, by an unknown master of the early 16th century, figures the
Crucifixion, with special reference to the Holy Blood, representing St.
Longinus in the act of piercing the side of Christ (thus drawing the
Blood), with the Holy Women and St. John in attendance; on the wings,
the Way to Calvary, and the Resurrection.
=Between the windows= is a curious chronological picture of the late
15th century, representing the History of Our Lady in the usual stages,
with other episodes. To the R. of it, a painting of the 15th century
shows Count Theodoric receiving the Holy Blood from his brother-in-law,
Baldwin, King of Jerusalem, and the bringing of the Holy Blood to
Bruges.
On the =right wall= there is a famous =*triptych= by Gerard David (the
finest work here), representing the Deposition in the Tomb, with the
Maries, St. John, Nicodemus, and an attendant holding a dish to contain
the Holy Blood, which is also seen conspicuously flowing from the
wounds; the left wing shows the Magdalen with Cleophas; the right wing,
the preservation of the Crown of Thorns by Joseph of Arimathea. The
portrait character of the faces is admirable: stand long and study this
fine work.
The original designs for the windows of the Chapel are preserved in a
=glass case= by the window; behind which are fragments of early coloured
glass; conspicuous among them, St. Barbara with her tower.
On the =exit wall= is a fine piece of late Flemish tapestry,
representing the bringing of the body of St. Augustine to Pavia, with
side figures of San Frediano of Lucca and Sant’ Ercolano of
Perugia—executed, no doubt, for an Italian patron.
The =Chapel= itself, which we next enter, is gorgeously decorated in
polychrome, recently restored. The stained glass windows, containing
portraits of the Burgundian Princes from the beginning of the dynasty
down to Maria Theresa and Francis I., were executed in 1845 from earlier
designs. The large window facing the High Altar is modern. It represents
appropriately the history of the Passion, the origin of the Sacred
Blood, its Transference to Bruges, and the figures of the Flemish
Crusaders engaged in its transport. At the summit of the window, notice
the frequent and fitting symbol of the pelican feeding its young with
its own blood.
In the little =side chapel= to the R., separated from the main building
by an arcade of three arches, is the _tabernacle_ or canopy from which
the Sacred Blood is exhibited weekly. To the right is hung a Crown of
Thorns. Notice, also, the Crown of Thorns held by the angel at the top
of the steps. The window to the L. (modern) represents St. Longinus, the
centurion who pierced the side of Christ, and St. Veronica, displaying
her napkin which she gave to the Saviour to wipe his face on the way to
Calvary, and which retained ever after the impress of the Divine
Countenance. Almost all the other objects in the chapel bear reference,
more or less direct, to the Holy Blood. Observe particularly in the main
chapel the handsome modern High Altar with its coloured reliefs of
scenes of the Passion. Such scenes as the Paschal Lamb on its base, with
the Hebrew smearing the lintel of the door, are of course symbolical.
The =Lower Chapel=, to which we are next conducted, is a fine specimen
of late Romanesque architecture. It was built by Theodoric in 1150. Its
solid short pillars and round arches contrast with the lighter and later
Gothic of the upper building. The space above the door of the eastern of
the two chapels which face the entrance, is occupied by an interesting
mediæval relief representing a baptism with a dove descending. Notice as
you pass out, from the Place outside, the two beautiful _turrets_ at the
west end of the main chapel.
* * * * *
To the left of the Hôtel de Ville stands the ornate and much gilded
Renaissance building known as the =*Maison de l’Ancien Greffe=,
originally the municipal record office, but now employed as a
police-court. It bears the date 1537, and has been recently restored and
profusely covered with gold decoration. Over the main doorway is the
Lion of Flanders; on the architrave of the first floor are heads of
Counts and Countesses; and the building is surmounted by a figure of
Justice, with Moses and Aaron and emblematical statues. Note the Golden
Fleece and other symbols. The interior is uninteresting.
The E. side of the square is formed by the =Palais de Justice=, which
stands on the site of an old =palace of the Counts of Flanders=,
presented by Philippe le Beau to the Liberty of Bruges, and employed by
them as their town hall of the _Buitenpoorters_, or inhabitants of the
district outside the gate, known as the _Franc de Bruges_. The
Renaissance building, erected between 1520 and 1608, was burnt down and
replaced in the 18th century by the very uninteresting existing
building. Parts of the old palace, however, were preserved, one room in
which should be visited for the sake of its magnificent
=**chimney-piece=. In order to see it, enter the quadrangle: the
porter’s room faces you as you enter; inquire there for the key;
admission, 50 c. per person. The _concierge_ conducts you to the
Court-Room, belonging to the original building. Almost the entire side
of the room is occupied by a splendid Renaissance chimney-piece,
executed in 1529, after designs by Lancelot Blondeel of Bruges (a
painter whose works are frequent in the town), and Guyot de Beaugrant of
Malines, for the Council of the Liberty of Bruges, in honour of Charles
V., as a memorial of the Treaty of Cambrai, in 1526. (This was the
treaty concluded after the battle of Pavia, by which François I^{er} of
France was compelled to acknowledge the independence of Flanders. Some
of the figures in the background are allusive to the victory.) The lower
part, or chimney-piece proper, is of black marble. The upper portion is
of carved oak. The marble part has four bas-reliefs in white alabaster
by Guyot de Beaugrant, representing the History of Susannah, a mere
excuse for the nude: (1) Susannah and the Elders at the Bath; (2)
Susannah dragged by the Elders before the Judge; (3) Daniel before the
Judge exculpating Susannah; (4) The Stoning of the Elders. The genii at
the corners are also by Beaugrant. The whole is in the pagan taste of
the Renaissance. The upper portion in oak contains in the centre a
statue of Charles V., represented in his capacity as Count of Flanders
(as shown by the arms on his cuirass): the other figures represent his
descent and the cumulation of sovereignties in his person. On the throne
behind Charles (ill seen) are busts of Philippe le Beau, his father,
through whom he inherited the Burgundian dominions, and Johanna (the
Mad) of Spain, his mother, through whom he inherited the united
Peninsula. The statues L. and R. are those of his actual royal
predecessors. The figures to the L. are his paternal grandfather, the
Emperor Maximilian, from whom he derived his German territories, and his
paternal grandmother, *Mary of Burgundy, who brought into the family
Flanders, Burgundy, etc. Mary is represented with a hawk on her wrist,
as she was killed at twenty-five by a fall from her horse while out
hawking. (We shall see her tomb later at Notre-Dame.) The figures on the
R. are those of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, the
maternal grandfather and grandmother of Charles, from whom he inherited
the two portions of his Spanish dominions. The medallions at the back
represent the personages most concerned in the Treaty of Cambrai, and
the Victory of Pavia which rendered it possible. (De Lannoy, the
conqueror, to whom François gave up his sword, and Margaret of Austria.)
The tapestry which surrounds the hall is modern; it was manufactured at
Ingelmünster after the pattern of a few old fragments found in the
cellars of the ancient building. The mediocre painting on the wall
depicts a sitting of the court of the Liberty of Bruges in this room
(1659).
* * * * *
The N. side of the square is now occupied by a small Place planted with
trees. Originally, however, the =old cathedral= of Bruges occupied this
site. It was dedicated to St. Donatian, the patron of the city, whose
relics were preserved in it; but it was barbarously destroyed by the
French Revolutionary army in 1799, and the works of art which it
contained were dispersed or ruined. Figures of St. Donatian occur
accordingly in many paintings at Bruges. Jan van Eyck was buried in this
cathedral, and a =statue= has been erected to him under the trees in the
little Place. In order, therefore, mentally to complete the picture of
the Place du Bourg in the 16th century, we must imagine not only the
Hôtel de Ville, the Chapelle du Saint Sang, and the Ancien Greffe in
something approaching their existing condition, but also the stately
cathedral and the original Renaissance building of the _Franc de Bruges_
filling in the remainder.
An archway spans the space between the Ancien Greffe and the Hôtel de
Ville. Take the narrow street which dives beneath it, looking back as
you pass at the archway with its inscription of S.P.Q.B. (for Senatus
Populusque Brugensis). The street then leads across a bridge over the
river Reye or principal canal, and affords a good view of the back of
the earlier portion of the Palais de Justice, with its picturesque brick
turrets, and a few early arches belonging to the primitive palace. I
recommend the visitor to turn to the R. after crossing the bridge,
traverse the little square, and make his way home by the bank of the
Dyver and the church of Notre-Dame. The view towards the Hôtel de Ville
and the Belfry, from the part of the Dyver a little to the east behind
the Belfry, is one of the most picturesque and striking in Bruges.
_C._ THE HOSPITAL OF ST. JOHN
[The =Hospital of St. John=, one of the most ancient
institutions in Bruges, or of its kind in Europe, was founded
not later than 1188, and still retains, within and without, its
mediæval arrangement. =Its Augustinian brothers and nuns= tend
the sick in the primitive building, now largely added to. It
derives its chief interest for the tourist, however, from its
small =Picture Gallery=, the one object in Bruges which must
above everything else be visited. This is the only place for
studying in full the exquisite art of =Memling=, whose charming
and poetical work is here more fully represented than elsewhere.
In this respect the Hospital of St. John may be fitly compared
with the two other famous “one-man shows” of Europe—the Fra
Angelicos at San Marco in Florence, and the Giottos in the
Madonna dell’ Arena at Padua. Many of the pictures were painted
for the institution which they still adorn; so that we have here
the opportunity of seeing works of mediæval art in the precise
surroundings which first produced them.
=Hans Memling=, whose name is also written _Memlinc_ and
_Memlin_, etc. (long erroneously cited as _Hemling_; through a
mistaken reading of the initial in his signature) is a painter
of whom little is known, save his work; but the work is the man,
and therefore amply sufficient. He was born about 1430, perhaps
in Germany, and is believed to have been a pupil of Roger van
der Weyden, the Brussels painter, whose work we shall see later
at Antwerp and elsewhere. Mr. Weale has shown that he was a
person of some wealth, settled at Bruges in his own house (about
1478), and in a position to lend money to the town. He died in
1495. His period of activity as a painter is thus coincident
with the earlier work of Carpaccio and Perugino in Italy; and he
died while Raphael was still a boy. In relation to the artists
of his own country, whose works we have still to see, Memling
was junior by more than a generation to Jan van Eyck, having
been born about ten years before Van Eyck died; he was also
younger by thirty years than Roger van der Weyden; and by twenty
or thirty years than Dierick Bouts; but older by at least twenty
than Gerard David. Memling has been called the Fra Angelico of
Flanders; but this is only true so far as regards Fra Angelico’s
panel works; the saintly Frate, when he worked in fresco,
adopted a style wholly different from that which he displays in
his miniature-like altar-pieces. It would be truer to say that
Memling is the Benozzo Gozzoli of the North: he has the same
love of decorative adjuncts, and the same naïve delight in the
beauty of external nature.
Before visiting the Hospital, it is also well to be acquainted
in outline with =the history of St. Ursula=, whose _châsse_ or
=shrine= forms one of its greatest treasures. The Hospital
possessed an important relic of the saint—her holy arm—and
about 1480-1489 commissioned Memling to paint scenes from her
life on the shrine destined to contain this precious deposit.
The chest or reliquary which he adorned for the purpose forms
the very best work of Memling’s lifetime.
=St. Ursula= was a British (or Bretonne) princess, brought up as
a Christian by her pious parents. She was sought in marriage by
a pagan prince, Conon, said to be the son of a king of England.
The English king, called Agrippinus in the legend, sent
ambassadors to the king of Britain (or Brittany) asking for the
hand of Ursula for his heir. But Ursula made three conditions:
first, that she should be given as companions ten noble virgins,
and that she herself and each of the virgins should be
accompanied by a thousand maiden attendants; second, that they
should all together visit the shrines of the saints; and third,
that the prince Conon and all his court should receive baptism.
These conditions were complied with; the king of England
collected 11,000 virgins; and Ursula, with her companions,
sailed for Cologne, where she arrived miraculously without the
assistance of sailors (but Memling adds them). Here, she had a
vision of an angel bidding her to repair to Rome, the threshold
of the apostles. From Cologne, the pilgrims went up the Rhine by
boat, till they arrived at Basle, where they disembarked and
continued their journey on foot over the Alps to Italy. At
length they reached the Tiber, which they descended till they
approached the walls of Rome. There, the Pope, St. Cyriacus,
went forth with all his clergy in procession to meet them. He
gave them his blessing, and lest the maidens should come to harm
in so wicked a city, he had tents pitched for them outside the
walls on the side towards Tivoli. Meanwhile, prince Conon had
come on pilgrimage by a different route, and arrived at Rome on
the same day as his betrothed. He knelt with Ursula at the feet
of the Pope, and, being baptized, received in exchange the name
of Ethereus.
After a certain time spent in Rome, the holy maidens bethought
them to return home again. Thereupon, Pope Cyriacus decided to
accompany them, together with his cardinals, archbishops,
bishops, patriarchs, and many others of his prelates. They
crossed the Alps, embarked again at Basle, and made their way
northward as far as Cologne. Now it happened that the army of
the Huns was at that time besieging the Roman colony; and the
pagans fell upon the 11,000 virgins, with the Pope and their
other saintly companions. Prince Ethereus was one of the first
to die; then Cyriacus, the bishops, and the cardinals perished.
Last of all, the pagans turned upon the virgins, all of whom
they slew, save only St. Ursula. Her they carried before their
king, who, beholding her beauty, would fain have wedded her. But
Ursula sternly refused the offer of this son of Satan; whereupon
the king, seizing his bow, transfixed her breast with three
arrows. Hence her symbol is an arrow; also, she is the patroness
of young girls and of virgins, so that her shrine is
particularly appropriate in a nunnery.
Most of the bones of St. Ursula and her 11,000 virgins are
preserved at Cologne, the city of her martyrdom, where they are
ranged in cases round the walls of a church dedicated in her
honour; but her arm is here, and a few other relics are
distributed elsewhere.
The Hospital is open daily from 9 to 6; Sundays, 3 to 6. 1 franc
per person. If you have Conway, take it with you.]
From the Grand’ Place, turn down the Rue des Pierres, the principal
shopping street of Bruges, with several fine old _façades_, many of them
dated. At the Place Simon Stévin turn to the L., and go straight on as
far as the church of Notre-Dame. The long brick building with Gothic
arches, on your right, is the =**Hospital of St. John= the Evangelist.
First, examine the brick Gothic =exterior=. Over the outer doorway is
the figure of a bishop with a flaming heart, the emblem of St.
Augustine, this being an Augustinian hospital. Continue on to the
original main portal (now bricked up) with a broken pillar, and two 13th
century reliefs in the tympanum. That to the _right_ represents the
Death of the Virgin, with the Apostles grouped around, and the figure of
the Christ receiving her naked new-born soul as usual. Above is the
Coronation of Our Lady. That to the _left_ seems like a reversed and
altered _replica_ of the same subject, with perhaps the Last Judgment
above it. It is, however, so much dilapidated that identification is
difficult. (Perhaps the top is a Glory of St. Ursula.) Go on as far as
the little bridge over the canal, to inspect the picturesque river front
of the Hospital.
Return to the main portal and ring the inner bell. Admission, see above.
The =pictures= are collected in the former Chapter-house of the
Hospital, above the door of which is another figure of St. Augustine.
The centre of the room is occupied by the famous _châsse_ or =**shrine=
containing the arm of =St. Ursula=, a dainty little Gothic chapel in
miniature. It is painted with exquisite scenes from the legend, by
Memling, with all the charm of a fairy tale. He treats it as a poetical
romance. Begin the story on the side towards the window. (For a
penetrating criticism of these works, see Conway.)
_1st panel_, on the left: St. Ursula and her maidens, in the rich dress
of the Burgundian court of the 15th century, arrive at Cologne, the
buildings of which are seen in the background, correctly represented,
but not in their true relations. In a window in the background to the
R., the angel appears to St. Ursula in a vision.
_2nd panel_: the Virgins arrive at Basle and disembark from the ships.
In the background, they are seen preparing to make their way, one by
one, across the Alps, which rise from low hills at the base to snowy
mountains. From another ship Conon and his knights are disembarking.
**_3rd panel_: (the most beautiful:) the Maidens arrive at Rome. In the
distance they are seen entering the city through a triumphal arch; in
the foreground, St. Ursula kneels before St. Cyriacus and his bishops,
with their attendant deacons, all the faces having the character of
portraits. (Note especially the fat and jolly ecclesiastic just under
the arch.) At the same time, her betrothed, Conon, with his knights,
arrives at Rome by a different road, and is seen kneeling in a red robe
trimmed with rich fur beside St. Ursula. (Fine portrait faces of Conon
and an old courtier behind him.) The Pope and his priests are gathered
under the portals of a beautiful round-arched building, whose exquisite
architecture should be closely examined. To the extreme R., the new
converts and Conon receive baptism naked in fonts after the early
fashion. In the background of this scene, St. Ursula receives the
Sacrament. (She may be recognised throughout by her peculiar
blue-and-white dress, with its open sleeves.) To the left of her, Conon
makes confession. In this, as in the other scenes, several successive
moments of the same episode are contemporaneously represented. Look long
at it.
Now, =turn round= the shrine, which swings freely on a pivot, to see the
scenes of the return journey.
_1st panel_: (beginning again at the left:) the Pope and his bishops and
cardinals embark with St. Ursula in the boat at Basle on their way to
Cologne. Three episodes are here conjoined: the Pope cautiously stepping
into a ship; the Pope seated; the ship sailing down the Rhine. All the
faces here, and especially the timid old Pope stepping into the boat,
deserve careful examination. In the background, the return over the
Alps.
_*2nd panel_: the Maidens and the Pope arrive at Cologne, where they are
instantly set upon by the armed Huns. Conon is slain by the thrust of a
sword, and falls back dying in the arms of St. Ursula. Many of the
maidens are also slaughtered.
_*3rd panel_: continuous with the last, but representing a subsequent
moment: the Martyrdom of St. Ursula. The King of the Huns, in full
armour, at the door of his tent, bends his bow to shoot the blessed
martyr, who has refused his advances. Around are grouped his knights in
admirably painted armour. (Note the reflections.) All the scenes have
the character of a mediæval romance. For their open-air tone and
make-believe martyrdom, see Conway.
At the =ends= of the shrine are two other pictures, (1) *St. Ursula with
her arrow, as the protectress of young girls, sheltering a number of
them under her cloak (not, as is commonly said, the 11,000 Virgins).
Similar protecting figures of the saint are common elsewhere (Cluny,
Bologna, etc.). At the opposite end, (2) the Madonna and Child with an
apple, and at her feet two Augustinian nuns of this Hospital, kneeling,
to represent the devotion of the order.
The =roof= of the shrine is also decorated with pictures. (1) St. Ursula
receiving the crown of martyrdom from God the Father, with the Son and
the Holy Ghost; at the sides, two angels playing the mandoline and the
regal or portable organ; (2) St. Ursula in Paradise, bearing her arrow,
and surrounded by her maidens, who shared her martyrdom, together with
the Pope and other ecclesiastics in the background. (This picture is
largely borrowed from the famous one by Stephan Lochner on the High
Altar of Cologne Cathedral, known as the _Dombild_. If you are going on
to Cologne, buy a photograph of this now, to compare with Meister
Stephan later. His altar-piece is engraved in Conway. If you have it
with you, compare them.) At the sides are two angels playing the zither
and the violin. (The angels are possibly by a pupil.)
I have given a brief description only of these pictures, but every one
of them ought to be carefully examined, and the character of the figures
and of the landscape or architectural background noted. You will see
nothing lovelier in all Flanders.
Near the window by the entrance is a =**Triptych=, also by Memling,
commissioned by Brother Jan Floreins of this Hospital. The _central
panel_ represents the =Adoration of the Magi=, which takes place, as
usual, under a ruined temple fitted up as a manger. The Eldest of the
Three Kings (according to precedent) is kneeling and has presented his
gift; Joseph, recognisable (in all three panels) by his red-and-black
robe, stands erect behind him, with the presented gift in his hands. The
Middle-aged King, arrayed in cloth of gold, with a white tippet, kneels
with his gift to the L. of the picture. The Young King, a black man, as
always, is entering with his gift to the right. The three thus typify
the Three Ages of Man, and also the three known continents, Europe,
Asia, Africa. On the L. side of this central panel are figured the
donor, Jan Floreins, and his brother Jacob. (Members of the same family
are grouped in the well-known “Duchâtel Madonna,” also by Memling, in
the Louvre.) To the right is a figure looking in at a window and wearing
the yellow cap still used by convalescents of the Hospital, (arbitrarily
said to be a portrait of Memling.) The _left panel_ represents the
Nativity, with our Lady, St. Joseph, and two adoring angels. The _right
panel_ shows the Presentation in the Temple, with Simeon and Anna, and
St. Joseph (in red and black) in the background. (The whole thus
typifies the Epiphany of Christ; left, to the Blessed Virgin; centre, to
the Gentiles; right, to the Jews.) The _outer panels_, in pursuance of
the same idea, have figures, right, of St. John Baptist with the lamb
(he pointed out Christ to the Jews), with the Baptism of Christ in the
background; and left, St. Veronica, who preserved for us the features of
our Lord, displaying his divine face on her napkin. The architectural
frame shows the First Sin and the Expulsion from Paradise. Note
everywhere the strong character in the men’s faces, and the exquisite
landscape or architectural backgrounds. Dated 1479. This is Memling’s
finest altar-piece: its glow of colour is glorious.
By the centre window, a =*triptych=, doubtfully attributed to Memling,
represents, in the centre, =the Deposition from the Cross=, with the
Holy Blood conspicuous, as might be expected in a Bruges work. In the
foreground are St. John, the Madonna, and St. Mary Magdalene; in the
background, the preparations for the Deposition in the Tomb. On the
=wings=: _left_, Brother Adrian Reins, the donor, with his patron saint,
Adrian, bearing his symbol, the anvil, on which his limbs were struck
off, and with his lion at his feet; _right_, St. Barbara with her tower,
perhaps as patroness of armourers. On the =exterior wings=, _left_, St.
Wilgefortis with her tau-shaped cross; _right_, St. Mary of Egypt, with
the three loaves which sustained her in the desert.
On the same stand is the beautiful =*diptych= by Memling, representing
=Martin van Nieuwenhoven= adoring the Madonna. The _left_ panel
represents Our Lady and the Child, with an apple, poised on a
beautifully painted cushion. A convex mirror in the background reflects
the backs of the figures (as in the Van Eyck of the National Gallery).
Through the open window is seen a charming distant prospect. The _right_
panel has the fine portrait of the donor, in a velvet dress painted with
extreme realism. Note the admirable prayer-book and joined hands. At his
back, a stained glass window shows his patron, St. Martin, dividing his
cloak for the beggar. Below, a lovely glimpse of landscape. This is
probably Memling’s most successful portrait. Dated 1487: brought here
from the _Hospice_ of St. Julian, of which Martin was Master.
In all Flemish art, observe now the =wooden face of the
Madonna=—ultimately derived, I believe, from imitation of painted
wooden figures, and then hardened into a type. As a rule, the Madonna is
the least interesting part of all Flemish painting; and after her, the
women, especially the young ones. The men’s faces are best, and better
when old: character, not beauty, is what the painter cares for. This is
most noticeable in Van Eyck, but is true in part even of Memling.
At the end of the room is the magnificent =*triptych= painted by Memling
for the =High Altar= of the Church of this Hospital. This is the largest
of his works, and it is dedicated to the honour of the two saints (John
the Evangelist and John the Baptist) who are patrons of the Hospital.
The =central panel= represents Our Lady, seated in an exquisite
cloister, on a throne backed with cloth of gold. To the right and left
are two exquisite angels, one of whom plays a regal, while the other, in
a delicious pale blue robe, holds a book for Our Lady. Two smaller
angels, poised in air, support her crown. To the left, St. Catherine of
Alexandria kneels as princess, with the broken wheel and the sword of
her martyrdom at her feet. The Child Christ places a ring on her finger;
whence the whole composition is often absurdly called “The Marriage of
St. Catherine.” It should be styled “The Altar-piece of the St. Johns.”
To the right is St. Barbara, calmly reading, with her tower behind her.
When these two saints are thus combined, they represent the meditative
and the active life (as St. Barbara was the patroness of arms:) or, more
definitely, the clergy and the knighthood. Hence their appropriateness
to an institution, half monastic, half secular. In the background stand
the two patron saints; St. John Baptist with the lamb (Memling’s
personal patron), to the left, and St. John the Evangelist with the cup
and serpent, to the right. (For these symbols, see Mrs. Jameson.) Behind
the Baptist are scenes from his life and preaching. He is led to prison,
and his body is burned by order of Julian the Apostate. Behind the
Evangelist, he is seen in the cauldron of boiling oil. The small figure
in black to the right is the chief donor, Brother Jan Floreins, who is
seen further back in his secular capacity as public gauger of wine, near
a great crane, which affords a fine picture of mercantile life in old
Bruges. The _left wing_ represents the life of St. John the Baptist. In
the distance is seen the Baptism of Christ. In a room to the left, the
daughter of Herodias dances before Herod. The foreground is occupied by
the episode of the Decollation, treated in a courtly manner, very
redolent of the Burgundian splendour. Figures and attitudes are
charming: only, the martyrdom sinks into insignificance beside the
princess’s collar. Other minor episodes may be discovered by inspection.
(The episodes on either wing overflow into the main pictures.) The
_right wing_ shows St. John the Evangelist in Patmos, writing the
Apocalypse, various scenes from which are realistically and too solidly
represented above him, without poetical insight. Memling here attempts
to transcend his powers. He has no sublimity. On the _exterior of the
wings_ are seen the four other members of the society who were donors of
the altar-piece; Anthony Zeghers, master of the Hospital, with his
patron, St. Anthony, known by his pig and tau-shaped crutch and bell:
Jacob de Cueninc, treasurer, accompanied by his patron, St. James the
Greater, with his pilgrim’s staff and scallop-shell: Agnes Casembrood,
mistress of the Hospital, with her patron, St. Agnes, known by her lamb:
and Claire van Hulsen, a sister, with her patron, St. Clara. Dated,
1479.
By the entrance door is a =Portrait of Marie Moreel=, represented as a
Sibyl. She was a daughter of Willem Moreel or Morelli, a patron of
Memling, whom we shall meet again at the Museum. This is a fine portrait
of a solid, plain body, a good deal spoiled by attempted cleaning. It
comes from the _Hospice_ of St. Julian.
As you go out, cast a glance at the fine old brick buildings, and note
the cleanliness of all the arrangements.
Return more than once: do not be satisfied with a single visit.
The other pictures and objects formerly exhibited in this Hospital have
been transferred to the Potterie and another building. They need only be
visited by those whose time is ample.
After leaving the Hospital, I do not advise an immediate visit to the
Academy. Let the Memlings first sink into your mind. But the walk may be
prolonged by crossing the canal, and taking the second turning to the
R., which leads (over a pretty bridge of three arches) to the
=Béguinage=, a lay-nunnery for ladies who take no vows, but who live in
monastic fashion under the charge of a Superior. Above the gateway is a
figure of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, (to whom the church within is
dedicated) giving alms to a beggar. She wears her crown, and carries in
her hand the crown and book which are her symbol. Remember these,—they
will recur later. Pass under the gateway and into the grass-grown
precincts for an external glimpse of the quiet old-world close, with its
calm white-washed houses. The church, dedicated to St. Elizabeth, is
uninteresting. This walk may be further prolonged by the pretty bank of
the _Lac d’amour_ or _Minnewater_ as far as the external canal,
returning by the ramparts and the picturesque =Porte de Gand=.
_D._ THE TOWN IN GENERAL.
[The =town of Bruges itself= is more interesting, after all,
than almost any one thing in it. Vary your day by giving up the
morning to definite sight-seeing, and devoting the afternoon to
=strolls= through the town and neighbourhood, in search of
picturesqueness. I subjoin a few stray hints for such casual
rambles.]
(1) Set out from the Grand’ Place, and turn down the Rue Breydel to the
Place du Bourg. Cross the Place by the statue of Jan van Eyck; traverse
the Rue Philippe Stock; turn up the Rue des Armuriers a little to the
R., and continue on to the Place St. Jean, with a few interesting
houses. Note here and elsewhere, at every turn, the little statues of
the Virgin and Child in niches, and the old signs on the fronts or
gables. The interesting =Gothic turret= which faces you as you go
belongs to the old 14th Century building called =De Poorters Loodge=, or
the Assembly Hall of the Noble Citizens Within the Gate, as opposed to
those of the =Franc de Bruges=. Continue on in the same direction to the
Place Jan van Eyck, where you open up one of the most charming views in
Bruges over the canal and quays. The Place is “adorned” by a modern
statue of Jan van Eyck. The dilapidated building to your L. is that of
the =Académie des Beaux-Arts= which occupies the site of the Citizens’
Assembly Hall: the ancient edifice was wholly rebuilt and spoilt in
1755, with the exception of the picturesque tower, best viewed from the
base of the statue. Opposite you, as you emerge into the Place, is the
charming =Tonlieu= or Custom House, whose decorated _façade_ and portal
(restored) bear the date 1477, with the arms of Pieter van Luxemburg,
and the collar of the Golden Fleece. The dainty little neighbouring
house to the L., now practically united with it, has a coquettish
_façade_: the saints in the niches are St. George, St. John Baptist, St.
Thomas à Becket, (or Augustine?) and St. John the Evangelist.
The Tonlieu is now fitted up as the Municipal Library. (Open daily,
free, 10 to 1, and 3 to 5, Saturday and Sunday excepted.) It contains
illuminated manuscripts and examples of editions printed by Colard
Mansion. All round the Place are other picturesque mediæval or
Renaissance houses.
The little street to the R. (diagonally) of the Tonlieu leads on to the
Marché du Mercedi, now called Place de Memling, embellished by a statue
of the great painter. Cross the Place diagonally to the Quai des
Espagnoles (Madonna and Child in front of you) and continue along the
quay, to the L., to the first bridge; there cross and go along the
picturesque Quai des Augustins to the Rue Flamande. (Quaint little
window to the left, as you cross the bridge.) Follow the Rue Flamande as
far as the Theatre, just before reaching which you pass, right, a
handsome mediæval stone mansion, (formerly the Guild of the Genoese
Merchants,) with a relief over the door, representing St. George killing
the Dragon, and the Princess Cleodolind looking on. At the Theatre, turn
to the R., following the tram-line, and making your way back to the
Grand’ Place by the Rue des Tonneliers.
(2) As early as 1362, Bruges acquired its existing size, and was
surrounded by =ramparts=, which still in part remain. A continuous canal
runs round these ramparts, and beyond it again lies an outer moat. Most
of the =old gates= have unhappily been destroyed, but four still exist.
These may be made the objects of interesting rambles.
Go from your hotel, or from the Grand’ Place, by the Rue Flamande, as
far as the Rue de l’Académie. Turn along this to the R., into the Place
Jan van Eyck, noting as you pass the Bear of Bruges at the corner of the
building of the old Academy. Follow the quay straight on till you reach
a second canal, near the corner of which, by the Rue des Carmes, is an
interesting shop with good beaten brasswork. Take the long squalid Rue
des Carmes to the right, past the ugly convent of the English Ladies,
with its domed church in the most painful taste of the later Renaissance
(1736). The mediæval brick building on your right, at the end of the
street, is the late Gothic =Guild-house of the Archers of St.
Sebastian=. Its slender octagonal tower has a certain picturesqueness.
(St. Sebastian was of course the patron of archery.) Charles II. of
England (see under the Grand’ Place) was a member of this society during
his exile: his bust is preserved here. So also was the Emperor
Maximilian. Continue to the =ramparts=, and mount the first hill,
crowned by a windmill,—a scene of a type familiar to us in many later
Dutch and Flemish pictures. A picturesque view of Bruges is obtained
from this point: the octagonal Belfry, the square tower of St. Sauveur,
(the Cathedral), the tapering brick spire of Notre-Dame, with its
projecting gallery and the steeple of the new church of the Madeleine
are all conspicuous in views from this side. Follow the ramparts to the
R., to the picturesque =Porte de Ste. Croix=, and on past the barracks
and the little garden to the Quai des Dominicains, returning by the Park
and the Place du Bourg or the Dyver.
(3) Set out by the Grand’ Place and the Place du Bourg; then follow the
Rue Haute, with its interesting old houses, as far as the canal. Do not
cross it, but skirt the quay on the further side, with the towers of St.
Walburge and St. Gilles in front of you. At the bridge, diverge to the
right, round the church of St. Anne, and the quaint little =Church of
Jerusalem=, which contains an unimportant imitation of the Holy
Sepulchre at Jerusalem, founded by a burgomaster of Bruges in the 15th
century. It is just worth looking at. Return to the bridge, and follow
the quay straight on to the modern Episcopal Seminary and the
picturesque old =Hospice de la Potterie=, which now harbours the Museum
of Antiquities belonging to the Hospital of St. John. I do not advise a
visit. (It contains third-rate early Flemish pictures, inferior
tapestry, and a few pieces of carved oak furniture. Admission, 50 c.:
entrance by the door just beyond the church, No. F, 79. The church
itself is worth a minute’s visit.) This walk passes many interesting old
houses, which it is not necessary now to specify. Return by the =Porte
de Damme=, and the opposite side of the same canal, to the Pont des
Carmes, whence follow the pretty canal on the right to the Rue Flamande.
(4) Take the Rue St. Jacques, and go straight out to the =Porte d’
Ostende=, which forms an interesting picture. Cross the canal and outer
moat, and traverse the long avenue, past the gasometers, as far as the
navigable canal from Bruges to Ostend. Then retrace your steps to the
gateway, and return by the ramparts and the Railway Station to the Rue
Nord du Sablon.
These four walks will show you almost all that is externally interesting
in the streets and canals of the city.
* * * * *
The original Palace of the Counts of Flanders, we saw, occupied the site
of the Palais de Justice. Their later residence, the =Cour des Princes=,
in a street behind the Hôtel du Commerce, has now entirely disappeared.
Its site is filled by a large ornate modern building, belonging to the
Sisters of the Sacred Heart, who use it as a school for girls.
The water-system of Bruges is also interesting. The original river Reye
enters the town at the Minnewater, flows past the Hospital and the
Dyver, and turns northward at the Bourg, running under arches till it
emerges on the Place Jan van Eyck. This accounts for the apparently
meaningless way this branch seems to stop short close to the statue of
Van Eyck: also, for the mediæval ships unloading at the Grand’ Place.
The water is now mostly diverted along the canals and the moat by the
ramparts.
_E._ THE CHURCHES
[The =original Cathedral= of Bruges (St. Donatian) was
destroyed, as we saw, by the French, in 1799; but the town still
possesses two fine =mediæval churches= of considerable
pretensions, as well as several others of lesser importance.
Though of very ancient foundation, the two principal churches in
their existing form date only from the most flourishing period
of Bruges, the 13th, 14th, and 15th centuries.
=St. Salvator= or =St. Sauveur=, the larger, was erected into
the =Cathedral= after the destruction of St. Donatian, whose
relics were transferred to it. To this, therefore, we will first
direct ourselves.]
Go down the Rue des Pierres as far as
THE CATHEDRAL,
which replaces a very ancient church built by St. Eligius (St. Éloy) in
646.
Externally, the edifice, which is built of brick, has rather a heavy and
cumbrous effect, its chief good features being the handsome square tower
and the large decorated windows of the N. and S. Transepts. The Choir
and its chapels have the characteristic French form of a _chevêt_. The
main portal of the N. Transept has been robbed of its sculpture. The
Choir is of the late 13th century: the Nave and Transept are mainly in
the decorated style of the 14th.
The best =entrance= is near the tower on the N. side. Walk straight on
into the body of the Nave, by the archway in the heavy tower, so as to
view the internal architecture as a whole. The =Nave= and _single_
=Aisles= are handsome and imposing, though the windows on the S. side
have been despoiled of their tracery. Notice the curious high-pointed
=Triforium= (1362), between the arches of the Nave and the windows of
the Clerestory. The =Choir= is closed by a strikingly ugly debased
Renaissance or rococo Rood-Screen, (1682), in black-and-white marble,
supporting the organ. It has a statue of God the Father by the younger
Quellin. The whole of the interior has been decorated afresh in somewhat
gaudy polychrome by Jean Béthune. The effect is on the whole not
unpleasing.
The Cathedral contains few works of art of high merit, but a preliminary
walk round the Aisles, Transept, and Ambulatory behind the Choir will
give a good idea of its general arrangement. Then return to view the
paintings. The sacristan takes you round and unlocks the pictures. Do
not let him hurry you.
Begin with the =Left Aisle=.
The =Baptistery=, on your L., contains a handsome font. R. and L. of the
entry to it are admirable brasses. In the Baptistery itself, _L. wall_,
are two wings of a rather quaint triptych, representing St. Martin
dividing his cloak with the beggar; St. Nicholas raising to life the
three boys who had been salted for meat; St. Mary Magdalen with the pot
of ointment (in the distance, as Penitent in the Desert); and St.
Barbara with her tower; dated 1613. Also a rude Flemish picture (16th
century) of the lives of St. Joachim and St. Anna, and their daughter
the Blessed Virgin:—the main episodes are the Marriage of the Virgin,
Birth of the Virgin, and Rejection of St. Joachim from the Temple, with
other scenes in the background.
The _end wall_ of the Baptistery has Peter Pourbus’s masterpiece, a
*triptych painted for the =Guild of the Holy Sacrament=, attached to the
church of St. Sauveur, and allusive to their functions. The _outer
wings_, when closed, represent the Miracle of the Mass of St. Gregory,
when the Host, as he consecrated it, was changed into the bodily
Presence of the Saviour, to silence a doubter. It thus shows in a
visible form the tremendous mystery of Transubstantiation, in honour of
which the Guild was founded. Behind, the Brothers of the Confraternity
are represented (on the right wing) in attendance on the Pope, as
spectators of the miracle. One of them holds his triple crown. These may
rank among the finest portraits by the elder Pourbus. They show the last
stage in the evolution of native Flemish art before it was
revolutionized by Rubens. The _inner picture_ represents, in the centre,
the Last Supper, or rather, the Institution of the Eucharist, to
commemorate which fact the Guild was founded. The arrangement of the
figures is in the old conventional order, round three sides of a table,
with Judas in the foreground to the left. The _wings_ contain Old
Testament subjects of typical import, as foreshadowing the Eucharist.
_Left_, Melchisedec giving bread and wine to Abraham; _right_, Elijah
fed by the angel in the Wilderness. All the faces have still much of the
old Flemish portrait character.
On the _R. wall_ are the wings of a picture, by F. Pourbus (the son),
painted for the Guild of Shoemakers, whose chapel is adjacent. The
_inside_ contains portraits of the members. On the _outside_ are their
patrons, St. Crispinus and St. Crispianus, with their shoemakers’
knives. Also, an early Crucifixion, of the school of Cologne (about
1400), with St. Catherine holding her wheel and trampling on the tyrant
Maximin, by whose orders she was executed, and St. Barbara with her
tower. (These two also occur together in Memling’s great triptych.) The
picture is interesting as the only specimen in Bruges of the precursors
of Van Eyck on the lower Rhine. The Baptistery contains, besides, a fine
old candlestick, and a quaint ciborium (for the Holy Oil) with coloured
reliefs of the Seven Joys of Mary (1536).
The vistas from the =North Transept= are impressive. It terminates in
the =Chapel of the Shoemakers’ Guild=, with a fine carved wooden door of
about 1470, and good brasses, as well as an early crucifix. It is
dedicated to the patron saints of the craft, and bears their arms, a
boot.
The first two chapels in the =Ambulatory= (behind the Choir) have good
screens.
The =third Chapel= encloses the tomb of Archbishop Carondelet, in
alabaster, (1544,) a fine work of the Italian Renaissance. The Descent
from the Cross by Claeissens, with the Crown of Thorns and the Holy
Blood in the foreground: on the wings, St. Philip, and the donor, under
the protection of (the canonized) Charlemagne. Near this is a
=*triptych= by Dierick Bouts, (falsely ascribed to Memling)
representing, in the _centre_, St. Hippolytus torn to pieces by four
horses. (He was the jailor of St. Lawrence, who converted him: _see_
Mrs. Jameson). The faces show well the remarkable power of this
bourgeois painter of Louvain. On the _left wing_ are the donors; on the
_right wing_ Hippolytus confesses himself a Christian, and is condemned
to martyrdom. Over the =altar=, _retable_, a Tree of Jesse, in carved
woodwork, with the family of Our Lady: on the wings, (painted,) the
legend of St. Hubert and the stag, and the legend of St. Lucy.
In the =Apse= is the Chapel of the Host.
The next =chapel=, of the Seven Sorrows, has a Mater Dolorosa of 1460
(copy of one at Rome); a fine _*brass_; and the *portrait of Philippe le
Beau, known as Philippus Stok (father of Charles V), and bearing the
collar of the Golden Fleece.
The =Choir=, (admirable architecturally,) contains the *stalls and arms
of the Knights of the Golden Fleece, with good carved Misereres.
The Cathedral contains many other pictures of interest, which, however,
do not fall within the scope of these Guides.
The =Chambre des Marguilliers=, or Churchwardens’ Vestry, contains
manuscripts and church furniture, sufficiently described by the
sacristan.
In the =Sacristy= are still preserved the relics of St. Donatian.
Give the sacristan a franc, and then go round alone again, to inspect
the unlocked pictures at your leisure.
* * * * *
On leaving the Cathedral, go round the south side, which affords an
excellent view of the chapels built out from the apse. Then take the
little Rue du St. Esprit as far as the Church of
NOTRE-DAME,
which replaces a chapel, built by St. Boniface, the Apostle of Germany,
in 744, and enclosed in the town in 909.
Stand opposite it, in the small Place on the N. side, to observe the
somewhat shapeless architecture, the handsome brick tower crowned by a
tall brick steeple, and the beautiful little =*porch= or “Paradise,”
built out from the main structure in flamboyant Gothic of the 15th
century. The portal of this porch has been walled up, and the area is
now used as a chapel, approached from the interior. Notice the delicate
tracery of the windows, the fine finials and niches, and the charming
gable-end.
The picturesque building with turrets to the L. of the church was
originally the =mansion= of the family =Van der Gruuthuus=, one of the
principal mediæval stocks of Bruges. It had a passage communicating with
the family gallery in the church of Notre-Dame. The building, recently
restored, is now in course of being fitted up for the Town Museum of
Antiquities. A Museum of Lace is already installed in it; the entrance
is by a doorway over the bridge to the left (50 c. per person).
=Enter the church=, and walk straight into the Nave, below the great
West Window, a spot which affords a good view of the centre of the
church, the vaulted _double_ Aisles, and the angular Apse. The Choir is
shut off from the body of the church by a very ugly marble Rood-Screen
(1722), still bearing its crucifix, and with a figure of Our Lady,
patroness of the church, enshrined above its central arch. Rococo
statues of the Twelve Apostles, with their well-known symbols (1618),
are attached to the pillars. (Note these symbols: they recur in similar
situations everywhere.) In spite of hideous disfigurements, the main
portion of the interior is still a fine specimen of good middle Gothic
architecture, mainly of the 14th century.
Walk up the =outer left Aisle=. The last bay is formed by the
=Baptistery=, originally the =porch=, whose beautiful exterior we have
already viewed. Its interior architecture is also very charming. It
contains the Font, and the usual figure of the patron, St. John the
Baptist. This Aisle terminates in an apsidal chapel (of the Holy Cross)
containing inferior pictures of the 17th century, representing the
history of a relic of the True Cross preserved here.
The =inner left Aisle= leads to the =Ambulatory= or passage at the back
of the Choir. The Confessionals to the R. have fairly good rococo carved
woodwork, 1689. On the L. is the handsome mediæval woodwork =gallery=
(1474), belonging to the Van der Gruuthuus family, originally approached
by a passage from their mansion behind. Beneath it, is a screen of
delicate early Gothic architecture, with family escutcheons above the
door.
The windows of the =Apse= have good modern stained glass.
On the L., at the entrance to the Apse, Pourbus’s Adoration of the
Shepherds, a winged picture, closed. The sacristan will open it. On the
wings are, _left_, the donor, Sire Josse de Damhoudere, with his patron,
St. Josse, and his four sons; _right_, his wife, Louise, with her five
daughters, and her patron St. Louis of France, wearing his crown and
robe of fleurs-de-lis, and holding the _main de justice_. He is
represented older than is usual, or indeed historical, and in features
somewhat resembles Henri IV. This is a fine picture for its master. On
the outer wings are the cognate subjects, the Circumcision and the
Adoration of the Magi, in grisaille.
The chapel in the Apse, formerly the Lady Chapel, now contains the Host.
It has a gaudy modern altar for the monstrance.
In the =South Ambulatory=, over a doorway, Foundation of the Church of
Santa Maria Maggiore at Rome, by Claeissens.
A =chapel= to the =L=., just beyond, locked, but opened by the sacristan
(1 franc; or, for a party, according to notice displayed at entrance),
contains the celebrated =**tombs of Mary of Burgundy and Charles the
Bold=, her father. Mary was the wife of Maximilian, and died by a fall
from her horse in 1482, when only twenty-five. Her =**monument= was
designed and executed by Peter Beckere of Brussels, by order of her son
Philippe le Beau, in 1502. The sarcophagus is of black marble: the
statue of the Princess, in gilt bronze, lies recumbent upon it. The
style is intermediate between that of the later Middle Ages and of the
full Renaissance. Beside it is the *tomb of Charles the Bold, of far
less artistic value. Charles was buried at Nancy, after the fatal
battle, but his body was transported to St. Donatian in this town by his
descendant Charles V, and finally laid here beside his daughter by
Philip II, who had this tomb constructed for his ancestor in imitation
of that of Mary.
(I advise the visitor after seeing these tombs and the great
chimney-piece of the _Franc de Bruges_ to read up the history of Charles
the Bold and his descendants, down to Charles V.)
The _east wall_ of this chapel, beyond the tomb of Charles the Bold, has
a fine picture of Our Lady of Sorrows, enthroned, surrounded by smaller
subjects of the Seven Sorrows. Beginning at the left, the Circumcision,
the Flight into Egypt, Christ lost by his parents in the Temple, the Way
to Calvary, (with St. Veronica holding out her napkin,) the Crucifixion,
(with Our Lady, St. John, and Mary Magdalen,) the Descent from the
Cross, and the Deposition in the Tomb. A fine work of its sort,
attributed to Mostart (or to Maubeuge). On the _west wall_ are two wings
from a triptych by Pourbus, with tolerable portraits, (centre-piece
destroyed,) and an early Flemish painting of the Deposition from the
Cross (interesting for comparison with Roger van der Weyden and Gerard
David). In the foreground lies the vessel containing the Holy Blood. On
the wings are the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. The whole is very
rudely painted. Outside are portraits of the donor and his wife and
children, with their patrons St. James (staff and scallop) and St.
Margaret (whose dragon just appears in the background).
On an =arcade=, a little further on, is a very early fresco (1350?) of a
saint (St. Louis of France?), and also a dainty small relief (about
1500) of a donor, introduced by his patron, St. Peter, adoring Our Lady.
The =end chapel= of the right aisle, that of the Holy Sacrament,
contains a celebrated and noble white marble =**Madonna and Child, by
Michael Angelo=, enshrined in a black marble niche. The pensive, grave,
and graceful face, the exquisite modelling of the dainty naked Child,
and the beautiful infantile pose of its left hand, all betray a design
of Michael Angelo, though the execution may possibly have been left to
pupils. But the modelling is softer and more feminine than is usual with
this great sculptor, except in his early period. In this respect, it
resembles most the unfinished Madonna in the Bargello at Florence.
Condivi mentions that Peter Mouscron of Bruges ordered of Michael Angelo
a Madonna and Child in bronze: he was probably mistaken as to the
material: and we have here doubtless the work in question. Apart from
its great artistic value, this exquisite group is interesting as
affording another link between Flanders and Italy.
The same chapel also contains some good 17th century pictures.
Near the confessional, as we return towards the West End of the church,
we find a good diptych of Herri met de Bles, of 1520, containing, _left
panel_, an Annunciation, with all the conventional elements; to the
left, as usual, is the angel Gabriel; to the right, Our Lady. These
relative positions are never altered. The lilies in the pot, the desk
and book, the bed with its furniture, the arcade in the background, and
the rich brocade, are all constant features in pictures of this subject.
Look out for them elsewhere. The _right panel_ has the Adoration of the
Magi, with the Old, Middle-aged, and Young Kings, the last-named a Moor.
This quaint and interesting work of a Flemish painter, with its archaic
background, and its early Italian reminiscences, also betrays the
influence of Dürer. Among the other pictures may be mentioned a triptych
in an adjacent small chapel: the _central panel_ shows the
Transfiguration, with the three apostles below, Moses, Elias, and the
Eternal Father above (perhaps by Jan Mostart). On the _wings_ (much
later, by P. Pourbus), are the portraits of the donor, his wife, and
their patron saints.
The =West Wall= of the church has several large pictures of the later
Renaissance, which can be sufficiently inspected on their merits by
those who care for them. The best of them are the Adoration of the Magi
by Seghers, and De Crayer’s Adoration of the Infant Jesus. I do not
propose to deal at length with later Flemish art till we reach Brussels
and Antwerp: at Bruges, it is best to confine oneself to the
introductory period of Flemish painting—that of the Burgundian princes.
I will therefore only call attention here to the meaningless way in
which huge pictures like B. van Orley’s Crucifixion, with subsidiary
scenes from the Passion, reproduce the form of earlier winged pictures,
which becomes absurd on this gigantic scale.
* * * * *
The =Church of St. Jacques= stands in the street of the same name,
conveniently near the Hôtel du Commerce. It is a good old mediæval
building (12th century, rebuilt 1457-1518), but hopelessly ruined by
alterations in the 17th century, and now, as a fabric, externally and
internally uninteresting. Its architecture is in the churchwarden style:
its decoration in the upholsterer’s. The carved wooden pulpit is a
miracle of bad taste (17th century), surpassed only by the
parti-coloured marble rood-screen. A few good pictures and decorative
objects, however, occur among the mass of paintings ranged round its
walls as in a gallery. The best is a =panel= of the old Flemish School
(by Dierick Bouts, or more probably a pupil), in the _left aisle_, just
beyond the second doorway. It tells very naïvely the History of St. Lucy
(see Mrs. Jameson). _Left_, she informs her mother that she is about to
distribute her goods to the poor, who are visibly represented in a
compact body asking alms behind her. _Centre_, she is hailed before the
consul Paschasius by her betrothed, whom she refuses to marry. She
confesses herself a Christian, and is condemned to a life of shame.
_Right_, she is dragged away to a house of ill-fame, the consul
Paschasius accompanying; but two very stumpy oxen fail to move her. The
Holy Ghost flits above her head. The details are good, but the figures
very wooden. Dated, 1480.
Beside it is an extravagant Lancelot Blondeel of St. Cosmo and St.
Damian, the doctor saints, with surgical instruments and pots of
ointment. The central picture shows their martyrdom.
Further on hangs a good Flemish triptych (according to Waagen, by Jan
Mostart), representing, the prophecies of Christ’s coming: _centre_, the
Madonna and Child; with King Solomon below, from whom a genealogical
tree rises to bear St. Joachim and St. Anna, parents of Our Lady. R. and
L. of him, Balaam and Isaiah, who prophesied of the Virgin and Christ:
with two Sibyls, universally believed in the Middle Ages to have also
foretold the advent of the Saviour. The stem ends in the Virgin and
Child. _Left_, the Tiburtine Sibyl showing the Emperor Augustus the
vision of the glorious Virgin in the sky: _right_, St. John the
Evangelist in Patmos beholding the Apocalyptic vision of the Woman
clothed with the Sun. This is a fine work of its kind, and full of the
prophetic ideas of the Middle Ages.
Pass round the =Ambulatory= and =Choir= to the _first chapel_ at the
_east end_ of the _right Aisle_. It contains an altar with the Madonna
and Child in Della Robbia ware, probably by Luca. Also, a fine tomb of
Ferry de Gros and his two wives, the first of whom reposes by his side
and the second beneath him. This is a good piece of early Renaissance
workmanship (about 1530). The church also contains a few excellent later
works by Pourbus and others, which need not be specified. This was the
church of the Florentine merchants at Bruges (whence perhaps the Della
Robbia) and particularly of the Portinari, who commissioned the great
altar-piece by Van der Goes now in the Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova at
Florence.
The other churches of Bruges need not detain the tourist, though all
contain a few objects of interest for the visitor who has a week or two
at his disposition.
_F._ THE ACADEMY
[The =Académie des Beaux-Arts=, which formerly occupied the
_Poorters Loodge_ (or Guild Hall of the citizens within the
gates) has a small but valuable =collection of pictures=,
removed from the destroyed cathedral of St. Donatian and other
churches of Bruges, which well repays a visit. You will here
have an excellent opportunity for studying _Jan van Eyck_, whose
work I shall more particularly notice when we arrive at Ghent.
It is interesting, however, here to compare him with his great
successor, _Memling_, who is represented at the Academy by a
fine triptych. The little gallery also contains some admirable
works by _Gerard David_, one of the latest of the old School of
Flemish painters, whose work may thus be observed here side by
side with those of his two chief predecessors. Owing to the
ruinous state of the original building the collection has been
transferred to a temporary apartment, beyond the Hospital
bridge, near the Church of Notre-Dame. No tourist should leave
Bruges without visiting this interesting collection.]
The =Museum= is situated (at present) in a house on the right-hand side
of the Rue Ste. Catherine, nearly opposite a new church. Go to it past
the Hospital of St. John. Admission daily, 50 c. per person.
Begin in the centre of the =wall opposite the entrance=.
(1.) Jan van Eyck. =**Altar-piece=, ordered by George van der Palen, for
the High Altar of the original Cathedral of =St. Donatian=, of which he
was a canon. The centre of the picture is occupied by the Madonna and
Child, the face of Our Lady somewhat recalling German models. She sits
in the apse of a church, probably St. Donatian. The Child, whom it is
the fashion to describe as “aged-looking,” fondles a parrot and grasps a
bunch of flowers. To the left stands St. Donatian the Archbishop, patron
saint of the church for which this altar-piece was painted. He bears his
usual symbol, the wheel with five lighted candles (as in the beautiful
panel by Gerard David in the National Gallery at London). This is a fine
and finely-painted figure. To the right, St. George, in full armour,
admirably represented, but in an affected attitude, lifts his casque
somewhat jauntily as he presents his namesake the Canon George to Our
Lady. In all this we get a touch of Burgundian courtliness: the event is
represented as a state ceremonial. With his left hand the Saint supports
his Red Cross banner. The portrait of the kneeling Canon
himself,—asthmatic, pudding-faced—is very admirable and life-like, but
by no means flattered. He grips his prayer-book with an old man’s
tremulous hand. (For a profound criticism of this fine picture, see
Conway.) The insipid Madonna, the rather foolish St. George, the fine
portrait of the Canon, are all typical of Van Eyck’s manner. The
accessories of architecture, decoration, and background, should also be
carefully noted. The capitals of the columns and the knobs of glass in
the window, as well as St. George’s costume, are elaborated in Van
Eyck’s finest fashion.
(2.) Jan van Eyck. *Portrait of his wife, painted for presentation to
the Bruges Guild of Painters, together with one of the artist himself,
now undiscoverable. This is a fine though evidently unflattered portrait
of a capable housewife, very stiffly arrayed in her best church-going
costume. It deserves close inspection.
Above it, (3.) Head of Christ, ascribed to Jan van Eyck, but in reality
a poor and reduced copy of the picture at Berlin.
(4.) Memling. **Triptych painted for =Willem Moreel= or =Morelli=, a
member of a wealthy Savoyard family settled at Bruges. Like Jan van
Eyck’s portrait of the two Arnolfini in London, and Hugo van der Goes’s
triptych of the Portinari at Florence, this picture marks well the
cosmopolitan character of old Bruges. In the _central panel_, St.
Christopher (whose altar in the church of St. Jacques it adorned) wades
with his staff through the water, feeling as he goes the increasing
burden of the Christ-Child on his shoulder. (For the legend, see Mrs.
Jameson.) To the left, above, is the diminutive figure of the hermit
with his lantern, which always accompanies St. Christopher. The left
foreground of the picture is occupied by St. Maurus, in his Benedictine
costume; to the right is St. Giles (St. Egidius) the hermit, with the
wounded doe, the arrow piercing the arm of the saint. The _left wing_
represents the donor, Willem Moreel, under the care of his patron, St.
William, who wears a hermit’s dress above his coat of armour. (When a
saint places his hand on a votary’s shoulder it usually implies that the
votary is a namesake.) Behind are Moreel’s five sons. All these
portraits, but particularly that of the donor and his eldest son, who
closely resembles him, are admirable. The _right wing_ represents the
donor’s wife, Barbara, under the protection of her patron, St. Barbara,
with her tower, showing as usual three windows (emblematic of the Holy
Trinity). Behind the lady are her two daughters, one of whom is habited
as a Benedictine nun, whence, doubtless, the introduction of St. Maurus
into the main altar-piece. This fine triptych originally decorated an
altar of St. Christopher in Moreel’s private chapel in the church of St.
Jacques. One of his daughters is the “Sibylla Sambetha” represented at
the Hospital. The =wings= at the =back= represent in grisaille St. John
the Baptist with the lamb, and St. George with the dragon. It was usual
to paint the outer wings in grisaille or in low tones of colour, so that
the splendour of the interior hues might burst upon the spectator as the
triptych was opened.
(12) Attributed to Schoreel: really, by a master of the Brabant School.
Death of the Virgin. Our Lady is represented on her deathbed,
surrounded, as always, by the surviving apostles, who were miraculously
collected together to her chamber. The faces are those of Flemish
peasants or artisans. Above, Christ appears in glory, surrounded by a
halo of cherubs, to receive her new-born soul. Two angels support his
outer garment. This picture well shows the beginning of the later
Flemish tendency.
Now return to No. 5, by Gerard David, on the other side of the great Van
Eyck. This is a *triptych, painted for Jean des Trompes, for the High
Altar of the lower chapel of the Holy Blood. The _central panel_
represents the =Baptism of Christ=. In the middle, the Saviour wades in
the water of a diminutive Jordan, where the concentric circles show the
increased careful study of nature. On the right-hand side of the
picture, St. John-Baptist, patron saint of the donor, pours water on his
head. The relative positions of these two figures, and of the angel to
the left holding a robe, are conventional: they have descended from a
very early period of art. (In the Ravenna mosaics, the place of the
angel is filled by the river-god of the Jordan with his urn, afterwards
transformed and Christianized into an angel with a towel. Look out in
future for similar arrangements.) The central figures are weak; but the
robe of the angel is painted with Flemish minuteness. So are the flowers
and leaves of the foreground. Above, the dove descends upon the head of
the Saviour, while the Eternal Father pronounces from the skies the
words, “Behold my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”
In the background are two other episodes: L., the preaching of St.
John-Baptist (where Oriental costumes indicate the heathen); R., St.
John-Baptist pointing out Christ to his disciples with the words,
“Behold the Lamb of God.” The distance shows two towns and a fine
landscape. Observe the admirable painting of the trees, with their good
shadows; also the ivy climbing up the trunk of one to the right. This
picture is among the earliest in which the gloom of a wood is accurately
represented: in many other respects it well illustrates =the rise of
landscape-painting=. (For an exhaustive criticism, see Conway.) The
_left wing_ has a portrait of the donor, with his other patron, St. John
the Evangelist, holding the cup. Beside the donor kneels his little son
Philip. This portrait, the face and foot of the Evangelist, the fur of
the donor’s robe, the crane in the background, and many other
accessories deserve close attention. Two figures in the background dimly
foreshadow Teniers. The _right wing_ has a portrait of the donor’s wife,
Elizabeth, with her four daughters. Behind her stands her patroness, St.
Elizabeth of Hungary, in Franciscan robes, with the crown on her head
and the double crown and book in her hands, as on the statuette at the
door of the Béguinage. The painting of a rosary here is excellent. The
_outer wings_ (turn them back) show, on the _left_, the Madonna and
Child with a bunch of grapes; on the _right_, the donor’s second wife
Madeleine, introduced by her patroness, St. Mary Madeleine, who holds
the alabaster pot of ointment. By the lady’s side kneels her daughter.
The background consists of a view, probably in the Bruges of that
period. Painted about 1507.
6 and 7. Gerard David. =*The Punishment of the Unjust Judge.= These two
panels are of a type commonly set up in courts of justice as a warning
to evil-doers. They were ordered by the Bruges magistracy. You will see
a similar pair by Dierick Bouts in Brussels. The story, a horrid one, is
taken from Herodotus. Sisamnes was a judge in Persia whom King Cambyses
detected receiving a bribe and ordered to be flayed alive. The king then
stretched his skin on the seat of judgment, and appointed the son of
Sisamnes to sit in his father’s place, that he might remember to avoid a
like fate. The _first picture_ represents, in the background, the
bribery. In the foreground, King Cambyses, in a rich embroidered robe,
demonstrates on his fingers the guilt of the unjust judge. Sisamnes is
seized on his tribunal by a man of the people; courtiers, lawyers, and
burgesses looking on. The expression on his face and the painting of all
the accessories is admirable. In the _second picture_ we have the
flaying of the unjust judge, a horrible scene, powerfully rendered.
Cambyses stands by, holding his sceptre, surrounded by courtiers who
recall the last age of the Burgundian dominion. In the background (as a
subsequent episode) the son of Sisamnes is seen sitting in his father’s
place: behind him hangs the skin of the father. Architecture, landscape,
ropes, and all other accessories of this painful picture should be
carefully noted.
15. J. Prévost. Last Judgment. Below, the dead are rising, half naked,
from the tomb, girt only with their shrouds; the good receiving garments
from angels, and the bad hurried away to a very Flemish and unimpressive
Hell. Above, Christ as Judge holds the sword. Two angels blow out the
words of blessing or malediction. On the spectator’s left, Our Lady
shows the breast that suckled the Redeemer. Behind her are St. Peter
with the key, St. Paul with the sword, St. Bartholomew with the knife,
and other saints. On the right are St. John-Baptist with the lamb, King
David with the harp, Moses, horned (as always), with the tables of the
law, and a confused group of saints. This picture is rather curious than
beautiful. Above it is a later treatment of the same subject by Van
Coornhuuse, interesting for comparison as showing the usual persistence
of types and the conventional grouping of the individual figures.
Compare especially the corresponding personages in the lower left-hand
corners.
A few other pictures skied on this wall deserve passing notice. 29 is a
Death and the Miser, of the School of Quentin Matsys. 17, by Lancelot
Blondeel, the architect of the great chimney-piece of the _Franc de
Bruges_, represents St. Luke painting Our Lady, in one of the fantastic
frames in which this painter delighted. 18, by the same, has a St.
George and the Dragon, with the Princess Cleodolind looking on. Around
it are four smaller scenes of his martyrdom: (he was boiled, burnt with
torches, dragged by a horse, and finally decapitated). 11, is a good
diptych of the Flemish school, by an unknown contemporary of Gerard
David. It represents, left, a donor, with his patron St. John the
Almoner, holding his symbol, a sheaf of corn. On the right, his wife
with her patroness, St. Godeliva. 28, is an Adoration of the Magi, where
the Three Kings again illustrate the three ages of man and the three
continents. Beside it is a Nativity which exhibits all the traditional
features already noted.
The =end wall= has in its centre a tolerably good Adoration of the Magi,
of the German School, 15th century. Note once more the Three Kings, of
whom the youngest is a Moor. Left of this, a *drawing, by Jan van Eyck,
of St. Barbara, which should be closely inspected. She holds a palm of
martyrdom. In the background, workmen build her tower. It is interesting
as a scene of real life at this period. This is a replica of the
well-known picture at Antwerp. To the right, two coloured drawings by
Gerard David from the life of St. John-Baptist. Above these hangs a
tolerable P. Pourbus of the Last Judgment, valuable for comparison with
the two previous treatments of the same subject on the principal wall.
Go from one to the other once or twice. Later painters of the
Renaissance use this solemn theme as a mere excuse for obtruding the
nude—and often the vulgar nude—into churches. On the same wall are a
good triptych in grisaille by P. Pourbus (Way to Calvary, Descent from
the Cross, Resurrection: from Notre-Dame at Damme), and other pictures.
The remaining walls have portraits and other works, from the 17th
century downwards, most of which need no explanation. A few of them,
indeed, are not without merit. But, as I have before observed, it is
best in mediæval Bruges to confine oneself to the 13th, 14th, 15th, and
early 16th centuries, leaving the rise of the Renaissance, and the later
Flemish School of painting, to occupy us at Antwerp, where they can be
studied to far greater advantage.
II
GHENT
_A._ ORIGINS OF GHENT
FLANDERS owes everything to its water communications. At the junction
of the =Schelde= with the =Lys= or Lei, there grew up in the very early
Middle Ages a trading town, named =Gent= in Flemish, and =Gand= in
French, but commonly Anglicised as =Ghent=. It lay on a close network of
rivers and canals, formed partly by these two main streams, and partly
by the minor channels of the Lieve and the Moere, which together
intersect it into several islands. Such a tangle of inland waterways,
giving access both to the sea and to Bruges, Courtrai, and Tournai, as
well as less directly to Antwerp and Brussels, ensured the rising town
in early times considerable importance. It formed the centre of a
radiating commerce. Westward, its main relations were with London and
the English wool ports; eastward with Cologne, Maastricht, the Rhine
towns, and Italy. Ghent was always =the capital of East Flanders=, as
Bruges or Ypres were of the Western province; and after the Counts lost
possession of Arras and Artois, it became in the 13th century their
principal residence and the metropolis of the country. The trade in
=weaving= grew rapidly in importance, and the Ghenters received from
their Count a charter of liberties of the usual mediæval burgher type.
As time went on, and the city advanced in wealth, its subjection to its
sovereigns became purely nominal. Ghent equipped large bodies of citizen
soldiers, and repulsed a considerable English army under Edward I. The
Ghenters were also determined opponents of the claims of the French
kings to interfere in the internal affairs of Flanders; thus they were
mainly instrumental in winning the famous =Battle of the Spurs= in 1302,
when the citizens of Bruges and Ghent put to flight the army of France
under the Count of Artois before the walls of Tournai, and dedicated as
trophies 700 golden spurs, worn by the French knights whom they had
routed. This battle, memorable as one of the chief triumphs of nascent
industrial freedom over the chivalry and royalty of mediævalism, secured
the liberties of the Flemish towns against French aggression.
Early in the 14th century, the burghers of Ghent, under their democratic
chief, Jacob or =Jacques Van Artevelde=, attained =practical
independence=. Till 1322, the Counts and people of Flanders had been
united in their resistance to the claims of France; but with the
accession of Count Louis of Nevers, the aspect of affairs changed. Louis
was French by education, sympathies, and interests, and aristocratic by
nature; he sought to curtail the liberties of the Flemish towns, and to
make himself despotic. The wealthy and populous burgher republics
resisted, and in 1337 Van Artevelde was appointed =Captain of Ghent=.
Louis fled to France, and asked the aid of Philip of Valois. Thereupon,
Van Artevelde made himself the =ally of Edward III. of England=, then
beginning his war with France; but as the Flemings did not like entirely
to cast off their allegiance—a thing repugnant to mediæval
sentiment—Van Artevelde persuaded Edward to put forward his trumped-up
claim to the crown of France, and thus induced the towns to transfer
their fealty from Philip to his English rival. It was therefore in his
character as King of France that Edward came to Flanders. The alliance
thus formed between the great producer of raw wool, England, and the
great manufacturer of woollen goods, Ghent, proved of immense commercial
importance to both parties. But as Count Louis sided with Philip of
Valois, the breach between the democracy of Ghent and its nominal
sovereign now became impassable. Van Artevelde held supreme power in
Ghent and Flanders for nine years—the golden age of Flemish
commerce—and was treated on equal terms by Edward, who stopped at Ghent
as his guest for considerable periods. But he was opposed by a portion
of the citizens, and his suggestion that the Black Prince, son of Edward
III., should be elected Count of Flanders, proved so unpopular with his
enemies that he was assassinated by one of them, Gerard Denys. The town
and states immediately repudiated the murder; and the alliance which Van
Artevelde had brought about still continued. It had far-reaching
results; the woollen industry was introduced by Edward into the Eastern
Counties of England, and Ghent had risen meanwhile to be the =chief
manufacturing city of Europe=.
The quarrel between the democratic weavers and their exiled Counts was
still carried on by =Philip van Artevelde=, the son of Jacques, and
godson of Queen Philippa of England, herself a Hainaulter. Under his
rule, the town continued to increase in wealth and population. But the
general tendency of later mediæval Europe towards centralised despotisms
as against urban republics was too strong in the end for free Ghent. In
1381, Philip was appointed dictator by the democratic party, in the war
against the Count, son of his father’s old opponent, whom he repelled
with great slaughter in a battle near Bruges. He then made himself
Regent of Flanders. But Count Louis obtained the aid of Charles VI. of
France, and defeated and killed Philip Van Artevelde at the disastrous
battle of Roosebeke in 1382. That was practically the end of local
freedom in Flanders. Though the cities continued to revolt against their
sovereigns from time to time, they were obliged to submit for the most
part to their Count and to the Burgundian princes who inherited from him
by marriage.
The subsequent history of Ghent is that of the =capital of the
Burgundian Dukes=, and of the House of Austria. Here the German king,
Maximilian, afterwards Emperor, married Mary of Burgundy, the heiress of
the Netherlands; and here Charles V. was born in the palace of the
Counts. It was his principal residence, and he was essentially a
Fleming. Other historical reminiscences will be pointed out in the
course of our peregrinations.
The =old waterways=, partially artificial, between Ghent and the sea,
other than the circuitous route by the shallow Schelde, had silted up by
1827, when a ship canal was constructed to Terneuzen. This canal has
since been widened and deepened so as to admit vessels of 1,700 tons; it
has thus helped to some small degree to save the town from the fate of
Bruges. But as its mouth lies in what is now Dutch territory, and as
heavy tolls are levied, it is comparatively little used. Another and
somewhat frequented canal leads to Bruges; but Ghent owes most of its
existing prosperity to its =manufactures= (cotton, linen, engines,
leather) and to its central position on the =railway system=.
The important points for the tourist to bear in mind are these, however.
Ghent during the Middle Ages was =a merchant republic=, practically
independent, with its guilds and its belfry, the last of which was used
to summon the citizens to arms in case of danger. It was also =the chief
manufacturing town in Europe=, as Bruges was the chief commercial
centre. By treaty with Edward III., Bruges was made the “staple” or sole
port of entry for English wool: and this wool was woven into cloth for
the most part at Ghent.
Further details of the vicissitudes of Ghent can be found in Van Duyse,
_Gand, Monumental et Pittoresque_.
* * * * *
The chief objects of interest at Ghent are the Cathedral, with its great
=Van Eyck=; and the =Town Hall= and =Belfry=. These can be tolerably
seen in one day: but a stay of three or four days will not be too much
to explore the curious nooks of the early city.
_B._ THE CORE OF GHENT
[The =old town= of Ghent lies on the island formed by the
junction of the Lys and the Schelde, with their various
backwaters (all now largely artificial). Near this point, but
beyond the Lys, the Counts of Flanders early erected a strong
=castle=, the _Gravensteen_ or _Oudeburg_, beneath whose
protection, aided by the two navigable rivers, merchants and
weavers gradually settled. As at Bruges, the heart of the town,
however, is purely =municipal and mercantile= in its
architecture. The _Town Hall_, which was the meeting-place of
the citizens, and the _Belfry_, which summoned them to arms or
council, are the chief points of interest in the city. The
Schelde is still tidal to its very centre.
As most visitors will probably stop in one of the hotels on the
=Place d’Armes=, near the S. end of older Ghent, I shall frankly
take that square as our starting-point. It may facilitate
recognition at first sight to add that the large square tower,
visible to the R. from the Place d’Armes, is that of the
Cathedral, while the tapering spire, crowned by a gilt dragon,
belongs to the Belfry.]
Go first on a =tour of orientation= through early Ghent. If you follow
these directions implicitly, you can see everything important in one
short walk. Cross the Place d’Armes diagonally to the N.E. corner, and
follow the small and narrow streets which run due N. to the front of the
=Cathedral=. Walk round the S. side of this, to form a first general
impression, but do not enter it at present.
Then, from the West Front of the Cathedral, take the Rue St. Jean
straight before you. The tower with the gilded dragon which faces you as
you walk is that of the =Belfry=. It was designed in 1183, about a
century earlier than that of Bruges, but only erected between 1321 and
1339; it is a fine work in the Early Gothic style. Its windows have been
walled up. The tapering turret which crowns the tower is unfortunately
modern, and of iron. On the very summit stands a huge gilded =dragon=,
which universal tradition represents as having been brought from St.
Sophia at Constantinople to Bruges by the Crusader Baldwin of Flanders,
(1204), and removed as a trophy by the people of Ghent (under Philip van
Artevelde) in 1382. It certainly appears to be of Oriental origin, but
is stated on documentary evidence (discovered by M. Vuylsteke) to have
been made in Ghent itself in 1380. If so, it would seem at least to be
based on an Oriental model.
The small building at the foot of the Belfry, now in course of (over)
restoration, is the =Cloth Hall=, erected in 1424, a graceful but not
very important Gothic edifice (of the Decorated period), with niches
vacant of their statues. The _concierge_ of the Belfry now has a room in
it. Application must be made here to mount to the summit. (1 franc, or 2
for a party.) Dark and steep.
The =view= is extensive and beautiful, but not quite so striking as that
at Bruges. The principal buildings of the city lie just below you:
beyond, all Flanders. The =chimes= are celebrated. The chief bell is
known as Roelandt.
Now turn round into the _Botermarkt_ or _Marché au Beurre_ to the right,
and inspect the =Belfry= again from the little bay in the corner
opposite. This is the best near view of the tower. The portal to the R.
was formerly the entry to the =town prison=, beneath the Belfry, now in
course of complete restoration. In its gable is a too-famous 18th
century relief (the _Mammelokker_) representing the Roman daughter
feeding her father from her breast at the window of a prison, and
doubtless intended to excite the charity of passers-by. It certainly
serves no other function, for it is neither beautiful nor decorative.
Cross over to the R. side of the Butter-market. The building on the L.,
in two totally distinct portions, is the =Hôtel-de-Ville=. The part at
which you first arrive, (latest in point of time,) was rebuilt in the
early Renaissance style in 1595-1628. It is one of the earliest and in
many ways the best example of Renaissance architecture in Belgium, in
part because it retains certain good features of local domestic
building, such as the pointed gable-ends (round the corner to the L.)
and the projecting windows with dormers on the main _façade_. (Look out
for their origin elsewhere.) It has three storeys, with projecting half
colonnades, the columns being Doric on the ground floor, Ionic on the
first floor, and Corinthian on the second. Recollect the gable-ends and
dormers for comparison with others in old houses in Ghent hereafter.
Now, continue on to the corner, where we arrive at the earlier =Gothic
portion= of the Hôtel-de-Ville, erected in 1518-1535 by Dominic de
Waghemakere, who also built in part the cathedral at Antwerp. The
projecting polygonal corner, with its handsome balcony, is very
noticeable. The work is of the latest and most florid Gothic, somewhat
lacking in grace and dignity, but ornate in its splendour. Observe the
depressed arches, the noble cornice, the rich decoration of garlands. A
few of the niches have now been filled with modern statues of saints.
From the corner opposite, a good view is obtained of both parts of the
Hôtel-de-Ville and also of the Belfry.
Turn to the left into the Rue Haut-Port, to observe the =main front= of
this earlier Gothic building, with its fine projecting windows above,
its empty niches, its handsome entrance staircase and main portal, its
beautiful little balcony for addressing the people below, and the large
projecting window of its ancient chapel near the centre. Note how well
the _façade_ is thus broken up and diversified. This is the finest
specimen of florid Gothic in Belgium. Beyond it comes another
Renaissance portion, and then a handsome Renaissance dwelling-house. The
street also contains several fine early houses, the best of which (a
Gothic guildhall, known as the Cour St. Georges) stands at the corner to
the left, facing the Hôtel-de-Ville.
The =interior= of the Hôtel-de-Ville need not be visited, though it has
a handsome Gothic staircase (demolished, sold, built into a private
house, re-erected) and some fine halls and internal courts, interesting
to those who have plenty of time at their disposal.
Now, return to the Belfry and continue straight down the left-hand side
of the Rue de la Catalogne. The church on the right, round the base of
which houses have been allowed to cluster, is =St. Nicolas=—the oldest
in the town. This is one of the most solid pieces of architecture at
Ghent. It has a fine decorated tower, which has happily escaped
restoration, besides small turrets to the Transepts, and two, rather
larger, to the gable of the Nave. Go on into the _Koornmarkt_ or _Marché
aux Blés_, to the R.; stand there for a moment, at the end of the Rue de
la Catalogne, to observe the fine _coup d’œil_, which takes in St.
Nicolas, the Belfry, and the tower of the Cathedral. The main _façade_
of St. Nicolas faces the Koornmarkt. Over the door is a modern figure of
the Saint himself, raising the three boys who were salted down for meat.
Nicolas was the popular saint, the patron of the merchants and
burgesses; and the prominent position of his church on the Corn Market
is very characteristic of the burgher spirit of Ghent.
A hasty glance will suffice for the =interior=, which is a
characteristic specimen of the unrestored Belgian church, with figures
of the Twelve Apostles (as always) against the pillars of the Nave; an
ugly carved pulpit; short Transepts; an Apse with bad glass; and the
vaulting of Nave, Aisles, and Choir concealed by plaster. The tawdry
decorations render what might be a fine interior wholly unimpressive.
The High Altar has an altar-piece by Liemakere, representing, in the
confused style of the School of Rubens, the election of St. Nicholas as
Bishop of Myra. Above is an 18th century figure of the Saint, raising
the three boys from the tub. The early pillars of the Choir are really
handsome.
On emerging from the front of the church, continue straight on to the
bridge which crosses the Lys, affording a good view to the L. of the
Apse of =St. Michel=. Then, go along the side of this handsome church,
with late Gothic windows resembling English Perpendicular. It has a
solid but unfinished tower, and a good West Portal, robbed of its
sculpture and cruelly mutilated. A glimpse at the =interior=, which has
been scraped and renovated, will show at once the fine architecture. The
Nave has impressive round pillars, windows in the clerestory, and
excellent brick vaulting. The vaulted Aisles are surrounded by chapels.
The Choir is very handsome. In the N. Transept is a famous but overrated
*Crucifixion by Van Dyck, not without beauty of conception and
composition, but spoiled by restorations. Walk round the Transepts and
Ambulatory. There are some good works of the School of Rubens.
Now, continue along the =quay=, on the same side as St. Michel,
(observing as you go that the early town extended to _both_ banks of the
river), in order to view the _façade_ of the handsome =Maison des
Bateliers=, or Guild House of the Skippers, erected in 1531 for the
masters of the shipping of Ghent, in somewhat the same florid
late-Gothic style as the Hôtel-de-Ville. This is the finest existing
specimen of old Flemish houses. Over the doorway is an appropriate
relief of a ship, somewhat antiquated and heraldic in character. By the
side of this Guild-house are two others, less interesting: the first,
the Guild House of the Grain Measurers; the next, very old and
dilapidated, the Staple House of Corn, Romanesque, said to be the
earliest civil building in Belgium. Several fine gable-ends are seen to
the L., including one with Renaissance architecture, on this side of the
Lys. At the moment of writing, the houses next to the Skippers’ Guild
are in course of demolition, exposing a bare side of the old Hall most
unpicturesquely.
Now, retrace your steps over the Bridge, and through the Corn Market,
almost wholly modernized, with the exception of a few gabled houses.
The next little square at which we arrive is the =Marché aux Herbes=.
Its W. side is occupied by the ancient but uninteresting Grande
Boucherie. Turn to the L. by the corner of the Boucherie, with Our Lady
and Child in a niche, and cross the bridge to the other side of the Lys.
On the left are two handsome old houses. In front rise the gateway and
bastions of the OUDEBURG, or Castle of the Princes. This was the
primitive palace of the Counts of Flanders in Ghent. The irregular
little square in front of it is known as the =Place Ste. Pharailde=. The
=castle= has recently been cleared from the numerous modern houses which
encumbered and hid it. The first stronghold on this site was erected in
868. The existing ruins of the =gateway=, with round Romanesque arches,
date back to 1180; the square =keep= behind is of the 10th century. In
this palace Jacob van Artevelde entertained Edward III. When Edward
returned to England, he left Queen Philippa here, and during his absence
she bore (in the Monastery of St. Bavon) her third son, John of Gaunt,
who took his well-known surname from the place of his birth. It was on
Edward’s return to Flanders, accompanied by the ladies of Philippa’s
suite, that he found the French fleet drawn up near Sluys to prevent his
entry into the port of Bruges, on which occasion he gained the first
great English naval victory. The Castle, which is now in course of
partial restoration, is closely bound up with the greatness of Van
Artevelde and the heroic period in the history of Ghent.
Walk round it to note its extent and its commanding position at the
point where the bridge crosses the Lys to the main part of the town.
The opposite corner of the Place Ste. Pharailde has a _Renaissance
gateway_, re-erected in imitation of the original by Arthus Quellin, and
adorned with sculptures of Neptune, the Schelde, and the Lys, the
sources of Ghent’s greatness. It leads to the Fish-market. Around are
several good old houses.
Continue along the quay on the same side of the river as the Oudeburg,
as far as the Pont du Laitage, just before reaching which you pass on
your left two 17th century houses with reliefs, (the Works of Charity, a
Flying Hart, etc.). Cross the bridge and turn to the R. as far as the
=big cannon=, known as _Dulle Griete_ or Mad Margaret, dating back to
the 14th century. By the touch-hole are the Cross of St. Andrew and the
Arms of Phillipe le Bon of Burgundy.
Turn into the large square in front of you. The building which faces you
at the end of the street as you advance (with a tower at the corner and
high gables) is one of the best old mediæval houses in Ghent, the
Collacie-Zolder, or Municipal Council-Room, of the 13th or 14th century.
It has an interesting little pulpit or balcony at its corner, with a
bell, from which addresses could be made to the people. The towers that
face you a little to the L. are those of St. Jacques, to be visited
presently.
Continue into the square, at the corner of which is the Municipal
Council-Room. This is the _Vrydagmarkt_ or =Marché du Vendredi=, in
which a strikingly picturesque market is still held every Friday
morning. If possible, visit it. The square was the forum of old Ghent
and the meeting-place of the citizens. A few fine old buildings in the
native local style still surround it. The centre is appropriately
occupied by a modern colossal statue of Jacob van Artevelde, addressing
the citizens in his famous speech when he excited them to opposition to
the Count of Flanders with his Gallicising policy. At the base are
allegorical figures of Flanders, and of the Belgian towns, wearing mural
crowns. The reliefs represent Van Artevelde’s three chief diplomatic
triumphs,—the League of Ghent with Bruges and Ypres; the League of
Flanders and England; the League of Flanders, Brabant, and Hainault. In
this square the most important events in the history of early Flanders
took place. Here the citizens of Ghent took the oath of allegiance to
each new Count on his accession, after they had compelled him to swear
in good old Teutonic style “to uphold and see upheld all the standing
wits (laws), fore-rights (regulations), freehoods, and wonts of the
Countship and town of Ghent.” The guilds which had their halls around
met here to oppose arbitrary action on the part of their sovereign.
Here, too, the parties within the town itself frequently joined issue in
civil contest. In later times, the Duke of Alva perpetrated most of his
shameful executions on this spot. The site of the statue of Van
Artevelde was originally occupied by one of Charles V., who was born in
Ghent, in a palace now destroyed, and whose history (see later) is
intimately connected with this town, always one of his principal
residences. The statue was destroyed in 1794 by the French invaders:
(picture in the Museum).
Turn up at the corner by the Municipal Council-Room and take the first
street to the L., which leads you into the Place St. Jacques, occupied
by the Church of =St. Jacques=. The _façade_, with the two towers, was
Romanesque, but has been restored in such a wholesale way as to destroy
its interest. The remainder of the church is Gothic. Walk round it so as
to observe its features, noticing in particular the quaint stone spire
of the right-hand tower. The =interior= might be good, were it not
spoiled by tawdry decorations. The pulpit has a marble figure of the
patron, St. James, with the pilgrim’s staff and gourd, emblematic of his
connection with the great place of pilgrimage of Santiago de
Compostella. The vaulting has been freed from excrescences, and is
excellent of its kind. The High Altar has a figure of St. James above,
and a painting of his martyrdom beneath.
This walk will have led you through the principal part of early Ghent.
Hence you may return either by the Cathedral, or by the chief line of
business streets which runs direct from the Pont du Laitage to the
modern Palais de Justice and the Place d’Armes.
_C._ THE CATHEDRAL
[The local =patron saint= of Ghent is =St. Bavon=, a somewhat
dubious personage, belonging to the first age of Christianity in
Flanders, of whom little is known. Legend describes him as a
“Duke of Brabant” in the 7th century (of course an anachronism).
He seems to have been a nobleman of Hesbaie who spent his life
as a soldier “and in worldly pleasures”; but when he was 50, his
wife died, and, overwhelmed with grief, he gave up all his
possessions to be distributed among the poor, and entered a cell
or monastery in Ghent, of which St. Amand (see later) was the
founder. Of this he became abbot. At last, finding the monastic
life not sufficiently austere, the new saint took refuge in a
hollow tree in a forest, and there spent the remainder of his
days. His emblem is a falcon. The =monastery of St. Bavon= long
existed at Ghent; some of its ruins still remain, and will be
described hereafter. To this local saint, accordingly, it might
seem fitting that the Cathedral of Ghent should be dedicated.
But in reality the building was at first a parish church under
the invocation of =St. John the Baptist=, and only received the
relics and name of St. Bavon after 1540, when Charles V.
destroyed the monastery, as will be described hereafter.
The real interest of the Cathedral centres, however, not in St.
Bavon, nor in his picture by Rubens, but in the great polyptych
of =the Adoration of the Lamb=, the masterpiece of =Jan van
Eyck= and his brother =Hubert=, which forms in a certain sense
the point of departure for the native art of the Netherlands.
This is therefore a convenient place in which to consider the
position of these two great painters. They were born at Maaseyck
or Eyck-sur-Meuse near Maastricht; Hubert, the elder, about 1360
or 1370; Jan, the younger, about 1390. The only undoubted work
of Hubert is the altar-piece in St. Bavon, and even this is only
his in part, having been completed after his death by his
brother Jan. =Hubert= probably derived his teaching from the
School of the Lower Rhine, which first in the North attained any
importance, and which had its chief exponents at Maastricht and
Cologne. Of this School, he was the final flower. Though not, as
commonly said, the inventor of =oil-painting=, he was the first
artist who employed the process in its developed form, and he
also made immense advances in naturalness of drawing and truth
of spirit. =Jan= was probably a pupil of Hubert; he lived at
Ghent while the great picture of the Adoration of the Lamb was
still being completed; later, he was painter by appointment to
the court of the Dukes of Burgundy, and had a house at Bruges,
where he died in 1440. He was also employed on various missions
abroad, accompanying embassies as far as to Portugal. His
painting, though less ideal and beautiful than that of his great
successor Memling, is marvellous in its truth: it has an
extraordinary charm of purity of colour, vividness of
delineation, and fine portrayal of character. Indeed, all the
early Flemish artists were essentially =portrait painters=; they
copied with fidelity whatever was set before them, whether it
were fabrics, furniture, jewellery, flowers, or the literal
faces and figures of men and women.
Hubert and Jan van Eyck, however, were not so much in strictness
the _founders_ of a school as the culminating point of early
German art, to which they gave a new Flemish direction. Their
work was almost perfect in its own kind. Their successors did
not surpass them: in some respects they even fell short of them.
The Adoration of the Lamb is =by far the most important thing=
to be seen at Ghent. But it is viewed at some disadvantage in
the church, and is so full of figures and meaning that it cannot
be taken in without long study. I strongly advise you,
therefore, to buy a =photograph= of the _entire composition_
=beforehand=, and try to understand as much as possible of the
picture by comparing it with the account here given, the
=evening before= you visit the picture. You will then be able
more readily to grasp the actual work, in form and colour, when
you see it.
The Cathedral is open daily (for viewing the pictures, etc.)
from 5 to 12, and from 3.30 to 6. Between 12 and 3.30 you can
also get in by knocking loudly on the door in the West Front.]
Go straight from your hotel to the Cathedral,—built as the parish
church of St. John about 1250-1300; re-dedicated to St. Bavon, 1540;
erected into a Bishop’s see, 1599. Stand before the =West Front= at a
little distance, to examine the simple but massive architecture of the
tower and _façade_.
The =great portal= has been robbed of the statues which once adorned its
niches. Three have been “restored”: they represent, centre, the Saviour;
L., the patron, St. Bavon, recognisable by his falcon, his sword as
duke, and his book as monk; he wears armour, with a ducal robe and cap
above it; R., St. John the Baptist, the earlier patron.
Then, walk, to the right, round the south side, to observe the external
architecture of the Nave, Aisles, and Choir. The latter has the
characteristic rounded or apsidal termination of Continental Gothic,
whereas English Gothic has usually a square end. Enter by the S. portal.
The =interior=, with single Aisles and short Transepts, (Early Gothic)
is striking for its simple dignity, its massive pillars, and its high
arches, though the undeniably noble effect of the whole is somewhat
marred to English eyes by the unusual appearance of the unadorned brick
walls and vaulting. The _pulpit_, by Delvaux (1745), partly in oak,
partly in marble, represents Truth revealing the Christian Faith to
astonished Paganism (figured as an old and outworn man:) it is a model
of all that should be avoided in plastic or religious art. The _screen_
which separates the Choir from the Transepts is equally unfortunate. The
apsidal end of the Choir, however, with its fine modern stained glass,
forms a very pleasing feature in the general _coup d’œil_.
Begin the examination in detail with the left or =N. Aisle=. The _1st
chapel_, that of the Holy Cross, contains a Pietà by Janssens and a
Descent from the Cross by Rombouts, good works of the school of Rubens.
The _3rd chapel_, that of St. Macarius or St. Macaire (an object of
local worship whom we shall meet again elsewhere at Ghent), has a modern
statue of the saint, and a pleasing decoration in polychrome. The right
or =S. Aisle= has nothing of importance.
A short flight of steps leads to the =Ambulatory=, whose black-and-white
marble screen, on the side toward the Choir, is not without dignity.
The =sacristan= opens the locked =Chapels in the Ambulatory=
(flamboyant), beginning at the steps on the R. or S. side of the Choir.
You will find him in the Sacristy, in the N. Transept. Do not let him
hurry you.
The _1st chapel_ contains a tolerable triptych by F. Pourbus (son of
Peter), with the Finding of Christ in the Temple for its central
subject, and the Circumcision and Baptism on the inner wings. Notice in
the last the conventional attitudes of the Baptist, the Saviour, and the
angel with the towel, as in the Gerard David and all old examples of
this subject: but the semi-nude figure undressing in the foreground is
an unhappy innovation of the Renaissance. Many of the heads in the
central picture are portraits: Alva, Charles V., Philip II., and Pourbus
himself. On the outer wings is a good *portrait of the donor (Viglius)
adoring the Saviour (1571).
_3rd chapel._ Crucifixion, by Gerard van der Meire, of Ghent. On the
left wing, Moses striking the Rock, symbolical of the fountain of living
water, Christ. On the right wing, the Elevation of the Brazen Serpent,
symbolical of the Crucifixion. This is a mystic “typical” picture,
interesting only for its symbolism. Note the Flemish love of such
subjects.
The _4th chapel_ contains a good tomb of Cornelius Jansen and Willem
Lindau, the two first bishops of Ghent (bishopric founded only in 1599)
with fair recumbent figures of the early 17th century.
_5th chapel._ Coxcie. Lazarus and Dives: a mediocre picture.
Mount the steps to the =Upper Ambulatory=.
The _6th chapel_ (of the Vydts family) contains the famous altar-piece
of the =**Adoration of the Lamb=, by HUBERT and JAN VAN EYCK, to study
which is the chief object of a visit to Ghent. See it more than once,
and examine it carefully. Ask the Sacristan to let you sit before it for
some time in quiet, or he will hurry you on. You must observe it in
close detail.
As a whole, the work before you is _not_ entirely by the two Van Eycks.
The Adam and Eve on the outer upper shutters of the interior (originally
by Hubert) have been altogether removed, and are now in the Museum at
Brussels, where we shall see them in due course. Their place has been
filled, not by copies (for the originals were nude), but by skin-clad
representations of the same figures, whose nudity seemed to the Emperor
Joseph II. unsuitable for a church. The lower wings, which were
principally (it is believed) by Jan van Eyck, have also been removed,
and sold to Berlin. They are replaced by very tolerable copies, made in
the early 16th century by Michael Coxcie. Thus, to form an idea of the
_detail_ of the original in its full totality it is necessary to visit,
not only Ghent, but also Brussels and Berlin. Nevertheless, I describe
the whole picture here _as it stands_, as this is the best place to
observe its general composition. I shall say a few words later as to
variations of this work from the original. There is a good copy of the
whole picture in the Museum at Antwerp, where you will be able to
inspect it at greater length and under easier conditions. The remaining
portions of the original still left here are believed to be for the most
part the work of Hubert van Eyck. Jan must rather be studied in many
scattered places,—Bruges, Brussels, Berlin, Paris, Madrid, and London.
The altar-piece was commissioned from Hubert van Eyck by Josse Vydts
(Latinised as Jodocus), a gentleman of Ghent, and his wife, Isabella,
about the year 1420. Hubert died while the polyptych was still
unfinished, and Jan completed it in 1432. Too much importance has been
attached by critics, I fancy, to the rhyming hexameter inscribed upon
it, (with the words “De Eyck” unmetrically introduced:) “Pictor Hubertus
major quo nemo repertus,” etc. They have been twisted into a deliberate
expression of belief on the part of Jan that Hubert was a greater
painter than himself. If so, it seems to me, Jan was a worse critic than
painter. They are probably due, however, to a somewhat affected modesty,
or more probably still, to a priestly poet who was in straits to find a
rhyme for Hubertus.
I proceed to a =detailed explanation= of the picture.
The =subject=, in its entirety, is the Adoration of the Lamb that was
Slain, and it is mainly based on the passage in the Apocalypse: “I
looked, and lo, a Lamb stood on the Mount Zion, and with Him an hundred
and forty and four thousand, having His Father’s name written in their
foreheads. . . . And I heard the voice of harpers harping with their
harps.” Elsewhere we read: “I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which
no man could number, clothed with white robes, and palms in their
hands. . . . These are they which came out of great tribulation, and
have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Therefore are they before the throne of God; and He shall feed them, and
shall lead them to living fountains of waters, and shall wipe away all
tears from their eyes.” Much of the imagery, however, I believe, is also
taken from the Te Deum.
=Lower Tier.=
The _central panel_ (original: attributed to Hubert) represents in its
middle the altar, hung with red damask, and covered with a white cloth,
on which the Lamb of God is standing. His blood flows into a crystal
chalice. (This part is clearly symbolical of the Eucharist.) Upon Him,
from above, descends the Holy Ghost, in the form of a dove, sent out by
the Eternal Father, who occupies the central panel on top. Around the
altar are grouped adoring angels, with many-coloured wings, holding the
instruments of the Passion—the Cross, the Spear, the Sponge, and the
Column to which Christ was fastened for flagellation. In front of it,
two angels swing censers. The flowery foreground is occupied by the
Fountain of Life, from which pure water flows limpid, to irrigate the
smiling fields of Paradise. Four bands of worshippers converge towards
this centre. On the left-hand side, stand, kneel, or ride, a group of
worshippers representing, as a whole, the _secular aspect_ of the
Christian Church—the laity. The foreground of this group is occupied by
the precursors of Christ. Conspicuous among them are the Jewish prophets
in front, and then the Greek poets and philosophers,—Homer, Plato,
Aristotle—whom mediæval charity regarded as inspired in a secondary
degree by the Spirit of Wisdom. Homer, in white, is crowned with laurel.
The group also includes kings and other important secular personages.
The right-hand side, opposite, is occupied by representatives of the
Church, showing the religious as opposed to the secular half of the
Christian world. In the front rank kneel 14 persons, the Twelve Apostles
(with Paul and Matthias) in simple robes, barefooted; behind them are
ranged all the orders of the hierarchy—canonized popes, with their
attendant deacons; archbishops, bishops, and other dignitaries.
The background shows two other groups, one of which (to the L.) consists
of the Martyrs, bearing their palms of martyrdom, and including in their
number popes, cardinals, bishops, and other ecclesiastics. The inner
meaning of this group is further emphasized by the symbolical presence
of a palm tree behind them. To balance them on the R. advance the
Virgins conspicuous among whom are St. Agnes with her lamb, St. Barbara
with her tower, St. Catherine, and St. Dorothy with her roses: many of
them carry palms of martyrdom. These various groups thus illustrate the
words of the Te Deum, representing “the glorious company of the
apostles,” “the goodly fellowship of the prophets,” “the noble army of
martyrs,” “the Holy Church throughout all the world,” etc., in adoration
of the Lamb that was Slain. (A chorus of Apostles, of Prophets, of
Martyrs, of Virgins is common in art.)
The more distant background is occupied by towered cities, typifying
perhaps the New Jerusalem, but adorned with Flemish or Rhenish turrets
and domes, and painted with Flemish minuteness and exactitude.
On the front of the altar are written in Latin the words, “Behold the
Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world.”
The _Left Wings_ (inferior copy by Coxcie: originals, probably by Jan,
now at Berlin) form a continuation of the scene of the Prophets and the
secular side of Christendom in the central panel, and represent, in the
First or Inner Half, the Orders of Chivalry and the mediæval knighthood
riding, as on a crusade or pilgrimage, towards the Lamb that was Slain.
At their head go the soldier saints, St. George, St. Adrian, St.
Maurice, and St. Charlemagne (for the great emperor Karl is also a
canonized person). The action of the horses throughout is admirable. The
Second or Outer Half (ill described as “the Just Judges”) represents the
Merchants and Burgesses, among whom two portraits in the foreground are
pointed out by tradition as those of Hubert and Jan van Eyck: (Hubert in
front, on a white horse: Jan behind, in a dark brown dress, trimmed with
fur). But this detail is unimportant: what matters is the colour and
composition on one hand, the idea on the other. These two panels,
therefore, with the group in front of them, are to be taken as
representing the Secular World—learned, noble, knightly, or
mercantile—in adoration of the central truth of Christianity as
manifested in the Holy Eucharist.
The corresponding _Right Wings_ (copy by Coxcie: originals, probably by
Jan, at Berlin) show respectively the Hermits and Pilgrims—the
contemplative and ascetic complement of the ecclesiastical group in
front of them: the monastic as opposed to the beneficed clerics. The
First or Inner Half shows the Eremites, amongst whom are notable St.
Anthony with his crutch, and, in the background, St. Mary Magdalen with
her box of ointment, emerging from her cave, (the Sainte Baume) in
Provence, in her character as the Penitent in the Desert. On the Second
or Outer Half, the body of Pilgrims is led by the gigantic form of St.
Christopher, with his staff and bare legs for wading; behind whom is a
pilgrim with a scallop-shell, and many other figures, not all of them
(to me) identifiable. Here again the presence of palms in the background
marks the esoteric idea of martyrdom.
I need not call attention throughout to the limpid sky, the fleecy
clouds, the lovely trees, the exquisite detail of architecture and
landscape.
=Upper Tier.=
The _three Central Panels_ (original) are attributed to Hubert. That in
the _middle_ represents, not (I feel sure) as is commonly said, Christ,
but God the Father (“Therefore they are before the throne of God”)
wearing the triple crown (like the Pope), holding the sceptre, and with
his right hand raised in the attitude of benediction. His face is
majestic, grave, passionless: his dress kingly: a gorgeous morse fastens
his jewelled robe of regal red. At his feet lies the crown of earthly
sovereignty. He seems to discharge the Holy Ghost on the Lamb beneath
him. The word Sabaoth, embroidered on his garments, marks him, I think,
as the Father: indeed, the Son could hardly preside at the sacrifice of
the Lamb, even in the Eucharist.
On the right of the Father, in the _panel to the_ (spectator’s) _left_
(Hubert: original), Our Lady, crowned, as Queen of Heaven, sits reading
in her blue robe. Her face is far more graceful than is usual in Flemish
art: indeed, she is the most charming of Flemish Madonnas. Behind her is
stretched a hanging of fine brocade.
The _panel to the right_ (Hubert: original) shows St. John the Baptist,
with his camel-hair garment, covered by a flowing green mantle. The
folds of all these draperies in Hubert’s three figures, though simple,
have great grandeur.
The _Outer Wing to the left_ (substituted clothed figure, not a copy:
original, by Hubert, at Brussels) has Adam, as typical (with Eve) of
unregenerate humanity: a sense further marked by the Offerings of Cain
and Abel above it.
The _Outer Wing to the right_ has an Eve with the apple, (similarly
clad, not copied from the original, by Hubert, now at Brussels:) above
it, the First Murder.
The _Inner Left Wing_ (copy: the original, attributed to Jan, is at
Berlin) has a beautiful group of singing angels.
The _Inner Right Wing_ (copy: the original, likewise attributed to Jan,
is also at Berlin) has an angel (_not_ St. Cecilia) playing an organ,
with other angels accompanying on various musical instruments.
Taking it in its entirety, then, the altar-piece, when opened, is a
great =mystical poem= of the Eucharist and the Sacrifice of the Lamb,
with the Christian folk, both Church and World, adoring. It was in order
to prepare your mind for recognition of this marked strain of mysticism
in the otherwise prosaic and practical Flemish temperament, that I
called your attention at Bruges to several mystic or type-emphasising
pictures, in themselves of comparatively small æsthetic value.
The composition contains over 200 figures. Many of them, which I have
not here identified, can be detected by a closer inspection, which,
however, I will leave to the reader.
Now, ask the sacristan to =shut the wings=. They are painted on the
_outer side_ (all a copy) mainly in grisaille, or in very low tones of
colour, as is usual in such cases, so as to allow the jewel-like
brilliancy of the internal picture to burst upon the observer the moment
the altar-piece is opened.
The _lower wings_ have (in this copy) representations of the Four
Evangelists, in niches, in imitation of statuary. Observe the
half-classical pose and costume of Luke, the Beloved Physician. These
figures, however, were not so arranged in the original, as I shall
afterwards explain.
The _upper wings_ represent on their first or lowest tier, the
Annunciation, a frequent subject for such divided shutters. In the
centre is the usual arcade, giving a glimpse of the town of Ghent where
Hubert painted it. (The scene is said to be Hubert’s own studio, which
stood on the site of the Café des Arcades in the Place d’Armes: the view
is that which he saw from his own windows.) To the L., as always, is the
angel Gabriel, with the Annunciation lily; to the R. is Our Lady,
reading. The Dove descends upon her head. The ordinary accessories of
furniture are present—prie-dieu, curtain, bed-chamber, etc. Note this
arrangement of the personages of the Annunciation, with the empty space
between Our Lady and the angel: it will recur in many other pictures.
Observe also the Flemish realism of the painter, who places the scene in
his own town at his own period: and contrast it with the mysticism of
the entire conception.
The _uppermost tier_ of all is occupied by figures of two Sibyls
(universally believed in the Middle Ages to have prophesied of Christ)
as well as two half-length figures of the prophets Zachariah and Micah,
(also as foretellers of the Virgin birth).
In several details the outer shutters in this copy =differ markedly from
the originals= at Berlin. Jan’s picture had, below, outer panels (when
shut), portraits of Josse Vydts and his wife: inner panels, imitated
statues (in grisaille) of St. John the Baptist and St. John the
Evangelist, patrons at that time of this church. If you are going on to
Berlin, you will see them: if back to London, then go to the Basement
Floor of the National Gallery, where you will find the water-colour copy
done for the Arundel Society, which will give you an excellent idea of
the work in its original condition.
A few words must be given to the =external history= of this great
altar-piece. It was begun by Hubert about 1420. His death in 1426
interrupted the work. Jan probably continued to paint at it till 1428,
when he went to Portugal. On his return, he must have carried it to
Bruges, where he next lived, and there completed it in 1432. It was then
placed in this the family chapel of Josse Vydts. During the troubles of
the Reformation it was carried to the Hôtel-de-Ville, but after the
capitulation to the Duke of Parma it was restored to the chapel of the
Vydts family. Philip II. wished to carry it off, but had to content
himself with a copy by Coxcie, the wings of which are now in this
chapel. The panels with Adam and Eve were removed in 1784, after Joseph
II. had disapproved of them, and hidden in the sacristy. In 1794, the
remaining panels were carried to Paris: after the peace, they were
returned, but _only the central portions_ were replaced in the chapel.
The wings, save Adam and Eve, were sold to a Brussels dealer, and
finally bought by the King of Prussia, which accounts for their presence
at Berlin. As for Adam and Eve, the church exchanged them with the
Brussels Museum for the wings of Coxcie’s copy. These various
vicissitudes will explain the existing condition of the compound
picture.
Do not be content with seeing it once. Go home, re-read this
description, and come again to study it afresh to-morrow.
* * * * *
The _chapel of the Holy Sacrament_, in the Apse, has very ugly rococo
monuments to bishops of the 18th century, in the worst style of the
debased Renaissance, and other monstrosities.
The _10th chapel_ has a famous *altar-piece by Rubens, St. Bavon
renouncing his worldly goods to embrace the monastic life. The Saint is
seen, attired as a Duke of Brabant of the 17th century, in his armour
and ducal robes, attended by his pages, making his profession at the
door of a stately Renaissance church, such as certainly did not exist in
the North in his time, and received with acclamation by a dignified body
of nobly-robed ecclesiastics, including St. Amand (see later, under the
Monastery of St. Bavon). The features of the patron saint are said to be
those of Rubens; they certainly resemble his portrait of himself at
Florence. The foreground is occupied by a group of poor, to whom St.
Bavon’s worldly goods are being profusely scattered. On the L. are two
ladies, in somewhat extravagant courtly costumes, who are apparently
moved to follow the Saint’s example. They are said to be the painter’s
two wives, but the resemblance to their known portraits is feeble. This
is a fine specimen of Rubens’s grandiose and princely manner, of his
feeling for space, and of his large sense of colour; but it is certainly
_not_ a sacred picture. It was appropriately painted for the High Altar
in the Choir (1624), after the church was dedicated to St. Bavon and
erected into a cathedral, but was removed from that place of honour in
the 18th century to make room for a vulgar abomination by Verbruggen. (I
defer consideration of Rubens and his school till we reach Brussels and
Antwerp.) Fair monument of a 17th century bishop.
Descend the steps again. Enter the =Choir=, a very fine piece of
architecture, cleared of the monstrosities of the last century: it has
beautiful grey stone arches (about 1300), a handsome Triforium, and
excellent brick vaulting. The lower portion, however, is still
disfigured by black-and-white marble screens and several incongruous
rococo tombs, some of which have individual merit. (That to the left,
Bishop Triest by Duquesnoy, is excellent in its own _genre_.) Over the
_High Altar_ flutters a peculiarly annoying and flyaway 17th century
figure of the Apotheosis of St. Bavon, the patron saint of the
Cathedral, who of course thus occupies the place of honour. It is by
Verbruggen. The huge copper candlesticks, bearing the royal arms of
England, as used by Charles I, belonged to his private oratory in Old
St. Paul’s in London, and were sold by order of Cromwell. Impressive
view down the Nave from this point.
=Tip the Sacristan= at the rate of 1 franc per head of your party.
_D._ THE OUTSKIRTS
=Old Ghent= occupied for the most part the island which extends from the
Palais de Justice on one side to the Botanical Gardens on the other.
This island, bounded by the Lys, the Schelde, and an ancient canal,
includes almost all the principal buildings of the town, such as the
Cathedral, St. Nicolas, the Hôtel-de-Ville, the Belfry, and St. Jacques,
as well as the chief Places, such as the Marché aux Grains, the Marché
aux Herbes, and the Marché du Vendredi. It also extended beyond the Lys
to the little island on which is situated the church of St. Michel, and
again to the islet formed between the Lieve and the Lys, which contains
the _château_ of the Counts and the Place Ste. Pharailde.
In the later middle ages, however, the town had spread to nearly its
existing extreme dimensions, and was probably more populous than at the
present moment. But its ancient =fortifications= have been destroyed,
and their place has been taken by boulevards and canals. The line may
still be traced on the map, or walked round through a series of shipping
suburbs; but it is uninteresting to follow, a great part of its course
lying through the more squalid portions of the town. The only remaining
=gate= is that known as the =Rabot= (1489), a very interesting and
picturesque object, situated in a particularly slummy quarter. It can
best be reached by crossing the bridge near the church of St. Michel,
and continuing along the Rue Haute to the Boulevard du Béguinage, (where
stood originally the Grand Béguinage, whose place is now occupied by
modern streets.) Turn there along the boulevard to the R., till you
reach the gate, which consists of two curious round towers, enclosing a
high and picturesque gable-end. Owing to the unpleasant nature of the
walk, I do _not_ recommend this excursion.
* * * * *
The =S. quarter= of the town, beyond the Cathedral and St. Nicolas, has
been much modernized during the last two centuries. Its only interesting
points are the recent =Palais de Justice= and the =Kouter= or =Place
d’Armes=, (once the archery ground) in which a pretty flower-market is
held on Friday and Sunday mornings. The Café des Arcades, at its E. end,
occupies the site of Hubert van Eyck’s studio.
The rest of the inner town contains little that throws light on its
origin or history.
* * * * *
There is, however, one small excursion which it would be well for those
to take who have a morning to spare, and who desire to understand the
development of Ghent—I mean to the =Monastery of St. Bavon=, which
alone recalls the first age of the city. Every early mediæval town had
outside its walls a ring of abbeys and monasteries, and Ghent was
particularly rich in this respect.
[=St. Amand= was the =apostle of Flanders= and the surrounding
countries. He was sent by the pious king Dagobert to convert the
Flemings _en bloc_, and is said to have built, about 630, a
little cell by the bank of the Lys, N.E. of the modern city. In
651, =St. Bavon= entered this infant monastery, which henceforth
took his name. The =abbey= grew to be one of the most important
in Flanders, and occupied a large area on the N.E. of the town,
near the Antwerp Gate. Eginhard, the biographer and son-in-law
of Charlemagne, was abbot in the 9th century. The Counts of
Flanders had rights of hospitality at St. Bavon’s; hence it was
here, and not in the Oudeburg as usually stated, that Queen
Philippa gave birth to John of Gaunt. In 1539, however, Charles
V. that headstrong despot, angry at the continual resistance of
his native town to his arbitrary wishes, dissolved the monastery
in the high-handed fashion of the 16th century, in order to
build a citadel on the spot. As compensation for disturbance to
the injured saint, he transported the relics of St. Bavon to
what was then the parish church of St. John, which has ever
since borne the name of the local patron. Around the dismantled
ruins, the Emperor erected a great fort, afterwards known as the
Spaniards’ Castle, (_Château des Espagnols_, or Het Spanjaards
Kasteel.) This gigantic citadel occupied a vast square space,
still traceable in the shape of the modern streets; but no other
relic of it now remains. The =ruins of the Abbey= are in
themselves inconsiderable, but they are certainly picturesque
and well worth a visit from those who are spending some days in
Ghent. The hurried tourist may safely neglect them.]
The direct route from the Place d’Armes to the =Abbey= is by the Quai du
Bas Escaut, and the Rue Van Eyck. A pleasanter route, however, is by the
Rue de Brabant and the Rue Digue de Brabant to the Place d’Artevelde,
passing through the handsomest part of the modern town. (In the Place
itself stands the fine modern Romanesque Church of St. Anne, the
interior of which is sumptuously decorated in imitation of mosaic.)
Thence, follow the Quai Porte aux Vaches to the Place Van Eyck. Cross
the bridges over the Upper and Lower Schelde, and the Abbey lies
straight in front of you.
Walk past the ivy-clad outer wall of the =ruins= to the white house at
the corner of the street beyond it, where you will find the _concierge_
(notice above the door). One franc is sufficient tip for a party. The
_concierge_ conducts you over the building, which has a picturesque
cloister, partly Romanesque, but mainly 15th century. The centre of the
quadrangle is occupied by a pretty and neatly-kept garden of the old
sweet-scented peasant flowers of Flanders. The most interesting part of
the ruins, however, is the octagonal Romanesque =Baptistery= or “Chapel
of St. Macaire,” a fine piece of early vaulting, with round arches, very
Byzantine in aspect. The chapel rests on massive piers, and its
Romanesque arches contrast prettily with the transitional Gothic work of
the cloister in the neighbourhood. Within are several fragments of
Romanesque sculpture, particularly some *capitals of columns, with
grotesque and naïve representations of Adam and Eve with the Lord in the
Garden, and other similar biblical subjects. (Examine closely.) There is
likewise an interesting relief of St. Amand preaching the Gospel in
Flanders, and a man-at-arms in stone, of Artevelde’s period, removed
from the old coping of the Belfry.
We next go on to the Crypt, the tombs of the monks, the monastery
cellars, etc., where are collected many pieces of ancient sculpture,
some found in the ruins and others brought from elsewhere. The Refectory
at the end, which for some time served as the Church of St. Macaire, is
now in course of transformation into a local Museum of Monumental Art.
It contains some good old tombs, and an early fresco (of St. Louis?)
almost obliterated. But the garden and cloister are the best of the
place, and make together a very pretty picture. You can return by the
Quai and the Rue St. Georges, or by the Place St. Bavon and the
Archiepiscopal Palace. (The castellated building to the L., much
restored, near the Cathedral, known as the =Steen of Gérard le Diable=,
is the sole remaining example of the mediæval fortified houses in
Ghent.)
* * * * *
Another monastery, a visit to which will lead you through the extensive
southern portion of the city, is the (wholly modernized) Benedictine
=Abbey of St. Pierre= (I do not recommend it). To reach it, you take the
Rue Courte du Jour and the Rue Neuve St. Pierre, to the large square
known as the Plaine St. Pierre, partly obtained by demolition of the
monastery buildings. It is situated on rising ground, which may pass for
a hill in Flanders. This is, in its origin, the oldest monastery in
Ghent, having been founded, according to tradition, by St. Amand
himself, in 630, on the site of an ancient temple of Mercury. The
existing buildings, however, hardly date in any part beyond the 17th
century. =The Church of Notre-Dame de St. Pierre= was erected between
1629 and 1720, in the grandiose style of the period. It is vast, and not
unimposing. The interior has a certain cold dignity. The pictures are
mostly of the school of Rubens, many of them dealing with St. Peter and
St. Benedict; among them are good specimens. The best, by De Crayer,
shows the favourite Benedictine subject of St. Benedict recognising the
envoy of King Totila, who personated the king.
The =Plaine de St. Pierre= is used for the amusing yearly =fair=, from
Mi-Carême to Easter.
* * * * *
The =Museum of Painting= (a small and unimportant gallery) is situated
in part of an old _Augustinian monastery_, which is reached by the
Oudeburg and the Rue Ste. Marguerite. (Church by the side, full of
Augustinian symbols.) Open daily from 9 to 12, and 2 to 5, free. (I do
not advise a visit, unless you have plenty of time to spare.) The
Picture Gallery is on the second floor.
The _Rooms to the L._ contain modern Belgian and French pictures, many
of them possessing considerable merit, but not of a sort which enters
into the scheme of these Guide-books.
The _Rooms to the R._ of the staircase contain the early pictures.
=1st Room=. F. Pourbus: A votive triptych for recovery from sickness. In
the centre, Isaiah prophesying to Hezekiah his recovery. On the wings,
the Crucifixion, and the donor with his patron St. James. Outside the
wings, in grisaille, the Raising of Lazarus (in two panels), giving a
symbolical meaning to this votive offering. On the wall beside it,
several tolerable pictures of the old Flemish School: a good Ex Voto of
a donor, with the Madonna and Child, by an unknown artist; a writhing
Calvary, by Van Heemskerk; a Holy Family, by De Vos; and a quaint
triptych of St. Anne and her family, with her daughter, the Madonna, and
her grand-child, the Saviour, at her feet. Around are grouped Joseph,
Mary Cleophas, Zebedee, Alpheus, Joachim, the husband of Anna, and Mary
Salome, with her children, James and John. This queer old work, by an
unknown artist, is interesting for comparison with the great Quentin
Matsys, which you will see at Brussels. St. Joseph holds in his hand the
rod that has flowered. (See _Legends of the Madonna_.)
Beneath this triptych are three interesting portrait groups of husbands
and wives, 16th century. On the wings, a “Noli Me Tangere”—Christ and
the Magdalen in the garden.
The _2nd Room_ has Dutch and Flemish works of the 17th century, mostly
self-explanatory. The Last Judgment, by R. Coxcie, shows a late stage of
a subject which we have already seen at Bruges, now reduced to an
opportunity for the display of exaggerated anatomical knowledge. There
are also several tolerable works of the School of Rubens, many of which
are interesting mainly as showing the superiority of the Master to all
his followers. Rombouts, The Five Senses, is, however, an excellent work
of its own class. The centre of the further wall is occupied by a
worthless picture of Duchastel’s, representing the Inauguration of
Charles II. of Spain as Count of Flanders, in 1666, interesting mainly
as a view of old Ghent. The action takes place in the Marché du
Vendredi, the centre of which is occupied by the statue of Charles V.,
destroyed at the French Revolution. All round are the original
picturesque houses, with their high Flemish gable-ends. On the R. is the
Church of St. Jacques, much as at the present day. In front of the
Municipal Council Chamber a platform is erected for the inauguration.
The picture gives a good idea of the splendour of Ghent, even at the
period of the Spanish domination.
Near it, Rubens’s St. Francis receiving the Stigmata, where the
conventional elements of the crucified six-winged seraph, the rays
proceeding from the five wounds to the saint’s hands, feet, and side,
and the astonished brother, Leo, in the distance, are all preserved,
though enormously transfigured. The colour is unpleasing. This is almost
a replica of the work in the Cologne Museum. Rombouts—tolerable Holy
Family. Close by, some of Hondekoeter’s favourite birds, and Zeghers’s
flowers. Over the door, a fine De Crayer. In the centre of the room are
a series of pictures from the Gospel History, by F. Pourbus, with the
Last Supper and donor at the back of one, formerly a triptych.
The _3rd Room_ has pictures of the School of Rubens, many of them of
considerable merit, particularly De Crayer’s Coronation of St. Rosalie
and Vision of St. Augustine, in both of which he approaches within a
measureable distance of the great master. His Judgment of Solomon is
also excellent. Some other pictures in the room, however, exhibit the
theatrical tendency of the 17th century in its worst form.
* * * * *
On the way back from the Picture Gallery, you pass on your L. the Rue
Longue des Pierres, down which, a little way on the R., is a small
=Museum of Antiquities=. I do not advise a visit to this. It contains
one good brass, and some silver badges worn by ambassadors of Ghent, but
otherwise consists, for the most part, of third-rate _bric-à-brac_.
* * * * *
Most visitors to Ghent go to see the =Grand Béguinage=. This was
originally situated in a little district by itself, close to the gate of
the Rabot, where its church, uninteresting, (dedicated, like that of
Bruges, to St. Elizabeth of Hungary), still stands; but the site has
been occupied by the town for new streets. The present Grand Béguinage
lies on the road to Antwerp. It is a little town in miniature, enclosed
by wall and moat, with streets and houses all very neat and clean, but
of no archæological interest. Yet it forms a pleasant enough end for a
short drive. And you can buy lace there. The description in Baedeker is
amply sufficient.
* * * * *
Bruges is full of memories of the Burgundian Princes. At Ghent it is the
personality of =Charles V.=, the great emperor who cumulated in his own
person the sovereignties of Germany, the Low Countries, Spain and
Burgundy, that meets us afresh at every turn. He was born here in 1500,
and baptized in a font (otherwise uninteresting) which still stands in
the N. Transept of the Cathedral. Ghent was really, for the greater part
of his life, his practical capital, and he never ceased to be at heart a
Ghenter. That did not prevent the citizens from justly rebelling against
him in 1540, after the suppression of which revolt Charles is said to
have ascended the Cathedral tower, while the executioner was putting to
death the ringleaders in the rebellion, in order to choose with his
brother Ferdinand the site for the citadel he intended to erect, to
overawe the freedom-loving city. He chose the Monastery of St. Bavon as
its site, and, as we have seen, built there his colossal fortress, now
wholly demolished. The Palace in which he was born and which he
inhabited frequently during life, was known as the Cour du Prince. It
stood near the Ancien Grand Béguinage, but only its name now survives in
that of a street.
The Spaniard’s Castle was long the standing menace to freedom in the Low
Countries. Within its precincts Egmont and Hoorn were imprisoned in 1568
for several months before their execution.
During the early Middle Ages, the Oudeburg was the residence of the
Counts of Flanders in Ghent. Later on, that castellated building grew
out of keeping with the splendour of the Burgundian Princes, and its
place as a royal residence was taken by the Cour du Prince, already
mentioned, which was inhabited by Maximilian and his wife, Mary of
Burgundy, as well as by Philippe le Beau and Johanna of Spain, the
parents of Charles V. No direct memorials of the great Emperor now exist
in Ghent, his statue in the Marché du Vendredi having been destroyed;
but a modern street commemorates his name, and mementoes of him crop up
at every point in the city.
Though the Ghenters were rebellious subjects, Charles V. was proud of
his capital, and several of his very bad _bon mots_, punning on the
words _Gand_ and _gant_, have been preserved for us. As Baedeker repeats
these imperial jests, however, I need not detail them.
III
BRUSSELS
_A._ ORIGINS OF BRUSSELS
B=RUSSELS= was in a certain sense the ancient =capital= of =Brabant=,
as Bruges and Ghent were the ancient capitals of West and East Flanders.
It grew up (as early as the 8th century) on the banks of the little
river =Senne=, whose course through its midst is now masked by the
modern Inner Boulevards, built on arches above the unseen stream. The
Senne is one of the numerous rivers which flow into the Schelde, and the
original town clustered close round its banks, its centre being marked
by the Grand’ Place and the church of St. Nicolas. Unlike Bruges and
Ghent, however, Brussels has always been rather an administrative than a
commercial centre. It is true, it had considerable trade in the Middle
Ages, as its fine Hôtel-de-Ville and Guild Houses still attest; but it
seems to have sprung up round a villa of the Frankish kings, and it owed
at least as much to its later feudal lords, the Counts of Louvain,
afterwards Dukes of Brabant, and to their Burgundian successors, as to
its mercantile position.
The Senne was never a very important river for navigation, though, like
most of the Belgian waterways, it was ascended by light craft, while a
canal connected the town with the Schelde and Antwerp: but the situation
of Brussels on the =great inland trade route= between Bruges or Ghent
and Cologne gave it a certain mercantile value. Bruges, Ghent, Brussels,
Louvain, Maastricht, and Aix-la-Chapelle all formed stations on this
important route, and all owed to it a portion of their commercial
prestige.
The burgher town which was thus engaged in trade and manufactures was
Flemish in speech and feeling, and lay in the hollow by the river and
the Grand’ Place. But =a lordly suburb= began to arise at an early date
on the hill to eastward, where the Counts of Louvain built themselves a
mansion, surrounded by those of the lesser nobility. After 1380, the
Counts migrated here from too democratic Louvain. Later on, in the
fifteenth century, the Dukes of Burgundy (who united the sovereignty of
Brabant with that of Flanders) often held their court here, as the
population was less turbulent and less set upon freedom than that of
purely commercial and industrial Bruges and Ghent. Thus the distinctive
position of Brussels as the aristocratic centre and the =seat of the
court= grew fixed. Again, the Dukes of Burgundy were French in speech,
and surrounded themselves with French knights and courtiers; to suit the
sovereigns, the local nobility also acquired the habit of speaking
French, which has gradually become the language of one-half of Belgium.
But the people of the Old Town in the valley were, and are still,
largely Flemish in tongue, in customs, in sympathies, and in aspect;
while the inhabitants of the Montagne de la Cour and the court quarter
generally are French in speech, in taste, and in manners. We will trace
in the sequel the gradual growth of Brussels from its nucleus by the
river (the Lower Town), up the side of the eastern hill to the Palace
district (the Upper Town), and thence through the new Quartier Léopold
and the surrounding region to its modern extension far beyond the limits
of the mediæval ramparts.
Choose an hotel in the airy and wholesome Upper Town, as near as
possible to the =Park= or the Place Royale.
=St. Michael the Archangel= is the =patron saint= of Brussels: he will
meet you everywhere, even on the lampposts. For the patroness, St.
Gudula, see under the Cathedral.
_B._ THE HEART OF BRUSSELS
[The =nucleus of Brussels=, as of Paris, was formed by =an
island=, now no longer existing. Round this islet ran two
branches of the little =river Senne=, at present obliterated by
the Inner Boulevards. Brussels, in short, has denied its
parentage; the Senne, which is visible N. and S. of the Outer
Boulevards, being covered over by arches within the whole of the
Inner City.
The =centre of the island= is marked by the little _Place St.
Géry_, which the reader need not trouble to visit. Here, at the
end of the 6th century, St. Géry, Bishop of Cambrai and apostle
of Brabant, built a small chapel, succeeded by a church, now
demolished. The true centre of Brussels, however, may be
conveniently taken as the existing Bourse. Close by, as the town
grew, the =Grand’ Place= or market-place was surrounded by noble
mediæval and Renaissance buildings. To this centre then, the
real heart of Brussels in the Middle Ages, we first direct
ourselves.]
Go from your hotel to the =Grand’ Place=. It may be reached by either of
two convenient roads; from the _Place Royale_ by the Montagne de la Cour
and the Rue de la Madeleine, or from the _Park_ by the Montagne du Parc
(which takes various names as it descends), and the Galérie St. Hubert.
Either route brings you out at the end of the Galérie, whence a short
street to the L. will land you at once in the Grand’ Place, undoubtedly
the finest square in Europe, and the only one which now enables us to
reconstruct in imagination the other Grand’s Places of Belgium and the
Rhine country.
The most conspicuous building in the Place, with the tall tower and open
spire, is the HÔTEL-DE-VILLE, with one possible exception (Louvain) the
handsomest in Belgium. It consists of a tapering central tower, flanked
by two wings, their high-pitched roof covered with projecting windows.
The ground floor is arcaded. The first and second floors have Gothic
windows, altered into square frames in a portion of the building. The
edifice is of different dates. The original Hôtel-de-Ville consisted
only of the wing to your L., as you face it, erected in 1402. The R.
wing, shorter in façade, and architecturally somewhat different, was
added in 1443. The style of the whole, save where altered, is Middle
Gothic “Decorated”). The beautiful open =spire= should be specially
noticed. On its summit stands a colossal gilt metal figure (1454) of the
Archangel Michael, patron of the city. The _statues_ in the niches are
modern, and not quite in keeping with the character of the building.
Observe, over the main portal, St. Michael, patron saint of the town,
with St. Sebastian, St. Christopher, St. George, and St. Géry. Below are
the Cardinal Virtues. The figures above are Dukes of Brabant. Inspect
the whole _façade_ carefully. You will hardly find a nobler piece of
civic architecture in Europe. The carved wooden door has also a figure
of St. Michael. The gargoyles and the bosses near the staircase entrance
to the L. are likewise interesting.
Now, go round the corners to the L. and R., to inspect the equally fine
_façades_, facing the Rues de l’Hôtel-de-Ville and de la Tête-d’Or. The
_back_ of the building is 18th century and uninteresting. You may also
pass rapidly through the _courtyard_, which however has very little
character. But you need not trouble to inspect the _interior_, unless
you are an abandoned sight-seer.
The other important and beautiful building which faces the
Hôtel-de-Ville is the MAISON DU ROI, formerly used as the HALLE AU PAIN
or _Broodhuis_. It is of late florid Gothic, verging towards Renaissance
(1514, restored:) and is in three storeys, two of them arcaded. The
first floor has an open gallery, like the loggia of a Venetian palace,
whence ladies could view processions and ceremonies in the square below.
The building terminates in a high roof, with projecting windows, and a
handsome open tower and lantern. The whole has been recently rebuilt and
profusely gilded. Within, is a small Communal Museum (open free daily,
10 to 4). Come again often to view these two noble halls.
The third principal building (on the E. side of the Square) known as the
MAISON DES DUCS was the Public Weighing House, constructed in a debased
Renaissance style, and also profusely gilded. It bears the date 1698,
but is now unworthily occupied by sale rooms and shops.
The whole of the remaining space in this glorious square is surrounded
by magnificent =Guild Halls= of the various corporations.
Beginning on the =S. side= (that occupied by the Hôtel-de-Ville), we
have, first, L., two high-gabled houses of good 17th century domestic
architecture. Next to them, R., comes the =Hôtel des Brasseurs=, dated
1752, and lately surmounted by a bronze equestrian statue of Charles of
Lorraine. This was originally the _Guild Hall of the Brewers_. After
that, again, rises the house known as “The Swan,” belonging to the
_Corporation of Butchers_. The small building at the corner, next the
Hôtel-de-Ville, with an open _loggia_, now in course of restoration, is
known as the Maison de l’Étoile: a gilt star surmounts its gable.
The finest group of houses, however, is that to the =W. side= of the
Square (R. of the Hôtel-de-Ville), unoccupied by any one prominent
building. Beginning on the L., we have, first, the house known as “The
Fox” (=Le Renard=), dated 1699: it is surmounted by a figure of St.
Nicholas resuscitating the three boys, and is adorned with statues of
Justice and the Four Continents on its first floor. Then comes the
=Guild Hall of the Skippers=, or _Maison des Bateliers_, its gable
constructed somewhat like the poop of a ship. The symbolism here is all
marine—sailors above; then Neptune and his horses, etc. R. of this, we
see the house known as “=La Louve=,” bearing as a sign Romulus and Remus
with the wolf. This was originally the =Guild Hall of the Archers=. It
shows an inscription stating that it was restored, after being burnt
down, by the _Confraternity of St. Sebastian_ (patron of archers). Its
relief of the Saint with a bow is appropriate. The two remaining houses
are “_La Brouette_,” dated 1697, and “_Le Sac_,” bearing on its gable a
medallion with three faces.
The houses on the =N. side=, (that occupied by the Maison du Roi,) are
less interesting, except those on the extreme R. Next to the Maison du
Roi itself come two pretty little decorated houses, beyond which is the
=Guild Hall of the Painters=, known as “The Pigeon,” and that called “La
Taupe,” the =Hall of the Tailors=. The two last at the corner of the
street have been recently restored. Several other fine houses of the
same period close the vista of the streets round the corner.
This imposing group of Guild Halls dates, however, only from the end of
the 17th century, mostly about 1697. The reason is that in 1695 the
greater part of the Grand’ Place was destroyed by Marshal de Villeroi
during the siege. Two years later, the Guild Houses were rebuilt in the
ornate and somewhat debased style of the Louis XIV. period. For
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