Bruges

Sister cities

• Salamanca
• Burgos
• Guadalajara

History

Bruges was a location of coastal settlement during prehistory. This Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement are unrelated to medieval city development. In the Bruges area, the first fortifications were built after Julius Caesar's conquest of the Menapii in the first century BC, to protect the coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the whole region from the Gallo-Romans around the fourth century and administered it as the Pagus Flandrensis. The Viking incursions of the ninth century prompted Count Baldwin I of Flanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications. Bruges gained some fame as destination for pilgrimage, when the relics of Saint Donatian of Reims were brought to the town and venerated in the St. Donatian's church. Saint Donatian became the patron saint of Bruges. In 1089, Bruges became the capital of the County of Flanders. Bruges received its city charter on 27 July 1128, and new walls and canals were built. By the 12th century, the city had gained an autonomous administration. Het Zwin (Golden Inlet), the tidal inlet of Bruges, was crucial to the development of local commerce. Since about 1050, gradual silting had caused the city to lose its direct access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a natural channel at the Zwin. The new sea arm stretched to Damme, The city eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably the Portuguese traders selling pepper and other spices. With the reawakening of town life in the 12th century, a wool market, a woolens weaving industry, and the cloth market all profited from the shelter of city walls, where surpluses could be safely accumulated under the patronage of the counts of Flanders. The city's entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and…

Geography

The municipality comprises the following sub-municipalities: * The historic city centre of Bruges, Sint-Jozef and Sint-Pieters (I) * Koolkerke (II) * Sint-Andries (III) * Sint-Michiels (IV) * Assebroek (V) * Sint-Kruis (VI) * Dudzele (VII) * Lissewege (with Zeebrugge and Zwankendamme) (VIII) Bruges has an oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb).

Most-observed species

• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,952
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,566
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,415
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,364
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,810
• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,595
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,472
• Eurasian Collared-Dove

  Streptopelia decaocto (Frivaldszky, 1838) · Aves
  2,441

Most recent

• M 3.2 — 2019-04-06
  7 km ENE of Chevanceaux, France
• M 4.5 — 2019-03-20
  5 km NNE of Montendre, France
• M 2.6 — 2006-09-30
  6 km ENE of Barbezieux-Saint-Hilaire, France
• M 2.8 — 2006-07-09
  0 km NNW of Médis, France
• M 2.5 — 2005-03-18
  5 km ESE of Fontcouverte, France
• M 3 — 2004-08-05
  19 km W of Biscarrosse, France