The town was probably founded by the Vikings in the 9th Century. Its name may be related to brygga, a Scandinavian word meaning ‘moors’. Bruges was connected with the North Sea by a sea-arm called Zwin, and it prospered as an international port. When the Zwin began to silt up and the ships could no longer sail to the town, two outposts were created at Sluis and Damme. Traders from near and far came to Bruges to buy Flemish cloth, a high-quality woollen material produced in other Flemish cities.

The town saw its peak as a trading and financial centre in the 13th to 14th Century, but went into decline in the 15th Century with a crisis in the textile industry and the competition of other harbours. As the crisis wasn’t felt yet, cultural life continued to flourish at the time, with developments in the Flemish school of painting, with illustrious representatives such as Van Eyck and Hans Memling. By the late 16th Century, however, Bruges had become the poorest town in Belgium, and was only revived by tourism during the 20th Century.

Bruges holds many attractions for its visitors. The Reie, the river which flowed through Bruges, was turned into a network of canals in the Middle Ages in order to allow merchant ships to take their goods to the Market. These canals earned Bruges the nickname Venice of the North. Today, they’re only used by tourist boats. Minnewater is a park with a beautiful lake spanned by a bridge. Swans can often be seen on the canals and the lake.

The Belfry Tower in the market square is probably the best-known building in Bruges. The original cloth hall, where trading in cloth took place, and the tower were built in 1240, but were destroyed by fire soon afterwards and subsequently rebuilt in stages, only to suffer two more fires in 1493 and 1741. If you climb the 366 steps to the top of the tower, you’ll be rewarded with the best panoramic view of Bruges. The carillon, consisting of 47 bells, is often used for concerts.

The Market Square dominated by the Belfry was the Medieval commercial heart of the town. The Provincial Court now stands in the place of the Medieval water-halls, where merchants would unload their goods and sell them on the market. First built in the Classicist style in the late 19th Century, the building was later reconstructed in the Neo-Gothic style, which was believed to better fit the general architectural milieu. The nearby St. Saviour's Cathedral, erected in the 12th Century, is the oldest parish church in Bruges. Dominated by a massive tower, it holds fine tapestries and paintings, along with a beautifully carved choir.