The Markt

Heraldic banners float from venerable facades on the Markt. This square, along with the Burg , is the heart of Bruges and the focal point of your sightseeing. Most major points of interest in the city are little more than 5 or 10 minutes' walk away.

Other Sights Around the Markt -- The sculpture group in the center of the Markt depicts a pair of Flemish heroes, butcher Jan Breydel and weaver Pieter de Coninck. The two led an uprising in 1302 against the wealthy merchants and nobles who dominated the guilds, and then went on to win an against-the-odds victory over French knights later that same year in the Battle of the Golden Spurs. The small, castlelike building called the Craenenburg (it's now a restaurant), at the corner of Sint-Amandsstraat, was used by a rebellious citizenry to imprison the Habsburg Crown Prince and future Emperor Maximilian of Austria in 1488 over a small matter of increased taxes. In revenge for that humiliation, Maximilian later hit Bruges in its pride by transferring his capital to Ghent, and in its pocketbook by transferring its trading rights to Antwerp. The large neo-Gothic Provinciaal Hof (Provincial Palace) dates from the 1800s and houses the government of the province of West Flanders.