Qualla: Belfry of Bruges https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:05 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/u/1/4/7/belfry-of-bruges-wp/atmosphere-2634176610.jpg Qualla: Belfry of Bruges https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges Belfry of Bruges: Introduction https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges/ Photo credit Christoph Radtke, CC BY 3.0. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow captured it perfectly: 'In the market-place of Bruges stands the belfry old and brown; thrice consumed and thrice rebuilded, still it watches o'er the town.' The Belfry of Bruges has endured fire in 1280, lightning in 1493, and flames again in 1741. Each time the tower burned, the city rebuilt it. The wooden spire that once crowned its summit, bearing an image of Saint Michael with banner raised and dragon underfoot, was never restored after the 1741 fire. Yet the 83-meter tower that remains has become one of the most recognizable silhouettes in Belgium, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that draws visitors to climb its 366 steps and listen to its 47 bells ring out over the medieval rooftops below.

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Image: Christoph Radtke | CC BY 3.0

]]> Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/1/4/7/belfry-of-bruges-wp/u147-belfry-of-bruges-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Belfry of Bruges: When Cloth Was King https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges/ Photo credit Tania Dey, CC BY-SA 3.0. The belfry rose above the Markt around 1240, when Bruges was emerging as a center of the Flemish cloth trade. In an age when most disputes were settled by custom or sword, the bell tower represented something new: civic authority independent of noble or church. The bells announce...

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Image: Tania Dey | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/1/4/7/belfry-of-bruges-wp/u147-belfry-of-bruges-when-cloth-was-king.mp3 0:06 2 full Belfry of Bruges: Saint Michael's Short Reign https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges/ Photo credit Eric Gaba (Sting - fr:Sting) and NordNordWest, CC BY-SA 3.0. Between 1483 and 1487, builders added the octagonal upper stage that gives the belfry its distinctive crown. They capped their work with a wooden spire bearing a gilded statue of Saint Michael, the archangel who defeats evil, shown with banner in hand and a dragon crushed beneath...

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Image: Eric Gaba (Sting - fr:Sting) and NordNordWest | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/1/4/7/belfry-of-bruges-wp/u147-belfry-of-bruges-saint-michaels-short-reign.mp3 0:06 3 full Belfry of Bruges: Forty-Seven Voices https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges/ Photo credit Uwe Samsel, Duisburg, CC BY-SA 3.0. The first carillon was installed in the 16th century, allowing the bells to be played from a keyboard. By 1604, the city employed a carillonneur to perform during Sundays, holidays, and market days. The bells designed by Melchior de Haze of Antwerp in 1675 were lost in the 1741 f...

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Image: Uwe Samsel, Duisburg | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/1/4/7/belfry-of-bruges-wp/u147-belfry-of-bruges-forty-seven-voices.mp3 0:06 4 full Belfry of Bruges: A Tower for the Ages https://qualla.com/belfry-of-bruges/ Photo credit Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, CC BY-SA 4.0. The belfry leans slightly to the east, a gentle tilt accumulated over nearly eight centuries. Visitors who climb the narrow, steep staircase of 366 steps pass the former treasury where medieval charters and coffers were once secured, then continue past the mechanical drum and the...

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Image: Jean-Pol GRANDMONT | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/u/1/4/7/belfry-of-bruges-wp/u147-belfry-of-bruges-a-tower-for-the-ages.mp3 0:06 5 full