Magical Brugge
Brugge, Belgium
With the reawakening of town life in the twelfth century, a wool market, a woollens weaving industry, and the market for cloth all profited from the shelter of city walls, where surpluses could be safely accumulated under the patronage of the counts of Flanders. Bruges was already included in the circuit of the Flemish cloth fairs at the beginning of the 13th century. The city’s entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotland’s wool-producing districts. English contacts brought Normandy grain and Gascon wines. Hanseatic ships filled the harbor, which had to be expanded beyond Damme to Sluys to accommodate the new cog-ships. In 1277, the first merchant fleet from Genoa appeared in the port of Bruges, first of the merchant colony that made Bruges the main link to the trade of the Mediterranean. This development opened not only the trade in spices from the Levant, but also advanced commercial and financial techniques and a flood of capital that soon took over the banking of Bruges. The Bourse opened in 1309 and developed into the most sophisticated money market of the Low Countries in the 14th century. By the time Venetian galleys first appeared, in 1314, they were latecomers.[5]
Such wealth gave rise to social upheavals, which were for the most part harshly contained. In 1302, however, after the Bruges Matins (the nocturnal massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by the members of the local Flemish militia on 18 May 1302), the population joined forces with the Count of Flanders against the French, culminating in the victory at the Battle of the Golden Spurs, fought near Kortrijk on July 11. The statue of Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck, the leaders of the uprising, can still be seen on the Big Market square.
In the 15th century, Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, set up court in Bruges, as well as Brussels and Lille, attracting a number of artists, bankers, and other prominent personalities from all over Europe. The weavers and spinners of Bruges were thought to be the best in the world, and the population of Bruges grew to 200,000 inhabitants at this time.
The new Flemish-school, oil-painting techniques gained world renown. The first book in English ever printed was published in Bruges by William Caxton. This is also the time when Edward IV and Richard III of England spent time in exile here.
(Source: Wikipedia)
The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO
Magical Brugge belongs to the following groups:
! 100% !, European Everyday Life (add the place!), Historic Places *2 per day*, Live, Love, Dream: May you have a Blessed Christmas Season , Moody, Dark, Evocative (no nudes), Style! Class! Elegance! Excellence! and Your Magic Place (PLACES only!!) Available for sale asGreeting Cards, Matted Prints, Laminated Prints, Mounted Prints, Canvas Prints, Framed Prints and Posters
Sean Jansen
Oh wow, this is gorgeous Bella. Beautiful perspective and capture. Awesome immage !!
Lucindawind
perfect lighting my friend .. its beautiful
JennyDean
as above, great scene with perfect lighting :))
rodeorose
I love the warm yellow light against the dark sky Bela- this is beautiful my friend!
Steve & Lesley
brilliant work
Vida
Beautiful image my friend !
Brenda Dow
Bela, this is beautiful!!!! The light is just perfect!!!! The scene and commentary are wonderful!! I’d give you a 12+ out of 10 !!!!!! I love the shadow from the building on the left scaling the facade of the buildings on the right… just perfect!!!
annalisa56
Very beautiful capture Béla !!!
presbi
Great shot, Béla, the colours and tha light are so warm!! Love the contrast with the dark sky.
I’m off for the most of my time from october till end of November, so I apologize for my lack of visits and comments. Lucky I saw this stunning capture!!!
Take care, Sergio
Béla Török replied
No problem, Sergio…see you on the end of November :-))
Irene Burdell
Great shot and superb lighting Bela. x
daffodil
Brugge is a wonderful city . Awesome capture,
fabulous lighting and colors ! You are a great photographer Béla. Thank you for your interesting writing . Instant favorite !
Simone Byrne
Lovely light and composition Béla..
Maureen Maliha
Beautiful work and love your words :-)
Trudy Wilkerson
Magnificent Bela…. you cease to amaze me with your photography.
Gene Walls
Great capture of true “old world” charm, Béla! Wonderful work!
Jeff Burns
wonderfully done
Adri Padmos
Yesss….Béla…Brugge again…..and how beautiful!!!
This light and these colors…..amazing!
lorilee
A fabulous perspective – - – beautiful!!!!!
LudaNayvelt
ah, so perfect, beautiful sunny day & gorgeous image
anisja
Great capture of a beautiful light . Very good work.
Paul Thompson ...
Great shot, you always seem to get a moody sky
LYN EVANS
Magical is definitely the word here Bela. A very beautiful light capture. Gorgeous!!!
Laurie Search
Ohhh, how lovely this is!!!! What a beautiful place, and I love the light and color!
PhotosEcosse
Beautiful Golden Light, great capture !
i l d i l a z...
Absolutely fabulous scene!Excellent image dear Béla!
Lois Bryan
Oh, Bela!!!! Once again your rich color and needle-sharp detail yank us right off our sofas and plunk us down right beside you as you snap your shutter!!!!! Glorious, glorious work .. I LOVE this photography style!!!!!!!
Tom Gomez
Fantastic work Béla, beautiful image …
CraigsMom
Martina Fagan
Amazingly beautiful shot Bela
David Lewins LRPS
Fantastic light and a wonderful composition
Daidalos
Fabulous image Bela, great work
Gerry Danen
Awesome, Bela!
naturelover
Beautiful Bruge- great lighting and stunning work Bela!!
Noelene Davies
Outstanding and wonderful capture Bela.
Evita
♥ Excellent capture Bela !!! :D ♥
Eivor Kuchta
Wonderful light, Béla!
BarbaraManis
Oh Bela, this is so beautiful! Wonderful lighting!
kemal91
Superb shot Bela, love the clash between the bright cheer colours and the moody sky. :)
Mariann Kovats
Gorgeous colors and lighting, dear Bela!
Steven Agius
Fantastic capture !
Charuhas Images
Excellent composition. Brilliant!!
Gyuri Nagy
Absolutely fabulous scene!
rosedew
....and a magical shot!!
kathy s gillen...
beautiful and magical with all the warm colors
janice( jinne...
This is a Majical Capture!
Beautiful capture-also thankyou for sharring more of your wonderful
photos and history from your trip..its very exciting to see!
-jinneyx
Rainy
Beautiful capture Bela!!
Chris Fawkes
Wonderful image.
ej29
WOW!!! What a beautiful place….your work is so wonderful.
TFFDavid
Such stunning work once again from you Bela.
RichardIsik
Great POV, Bela..love the lighting
traveller
I never realised Brugge was such a beautiful place, its been great to see it through your camera Béla.
Shaun Whiteman
Lovely lighting and colours Bela, the brooding clouds in the distance look great!!
Beve Brown-Clark
OOOO such beauty…makes one want to pack their bags and catch a flight to Europe!
Olga Zvereva
Hi Bela! So beautiful collection of images.
Veikko Suikkanen
Beautiful old town, great capture my friend!
Nira Dabush
So beautiful, with such warm lighting..
Inviting scenery..
Just love this.
MAGICAL!!
Ellen Price 27 days ago
Absolutely beautiful…Excellent capture, Béla :-)