Begijnhof Bicycle

by Joan Carroll

Title

Begijnhof Bicycle

Artist

Joan Carroll

Medium

Photograph - Digital Photograph

Description

When you need a break from the sometimes busy and overcrowded streets of the town center of Bruges, take a small trip to the Beguinage 'De Wijngaard' (= the Vineyard). The Beguinage is a group of houses around a little garden covered with large poplar trees. It was here that during the last seven centuries lived the beguines of Bruges. A beguinage (French) or begijnhof (Dutch) is a collection of small buildings used by Beguines. These were various lay sisterhoods of the Roman Catholic Church, founded in the 13th century in the Low Countries, comprising religious women who sought to serve God without retiring from the world. In 1937 the beguinage of Bruges became a monastery for the Benedictine sisters who still live here now. The Beguinage of Bruges was founded in 1245 by the Countess of Flanders, Margaretha of Constantinopel, daughter of Count Baldwin who conquered Constantinopel (now Istambul) during the crusades. In 1299, Philip the beautiful of France, placed the Beguinage under his own rule, thereby withdrawing it from the influence of the town magistrate. Visitors enter the place via a bridge over the canal. The entrance gate bears the date 1776. A lot of houses, however, are much older than that. Most date from the 17th and 18th century. In the southern part is a little dead end street where still some houses of the 15th-16th century can be found. The success of the beguinages was due at least in part to a surplus of women occasioned by violence, war, military and semi-military operations, which took the lives of many men. Great numbers of women had no option but to unite and collectively secure the aid of rich benefactors.

FEATURED PHOTO, ABC Group's T IS FOR TRANQUILITY theme, 7/16/18

FEATURED PHOTO, Traveling Europe group, 3/18/15

FEATURED PHOTO, Belgium group, 6/19/14

FEATURED PHOTO, FAA Featured Images group, 10/13/13

FEATURED PHOTO, Healing Through Arts group, 10/13/13

FEATURED PHOTO, Photography and Textures make Fine Art group, 10/10/13

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October 5th, 2013

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