The Beguinage (Begijnhof) of Bruges

Just behind the Minnewater and the 'Lake of Love' lies the Beguinage 'De Wijngaard'. It is one of those rarer areas in Bruges where one can find peace and quiet amidst the busy and overcrowded streets of the town centre.

What is a 'Beguinage' I hear you ask?

Well .... in the rapidly changing world of the 13th century, some people became more attracted to a purer and more mystical form of religion as a reaction to the growing material and formal aspirations of the regular clergy. The example to be followed had been shown by the apostles - one of poverty, simplicity and preaching - and people from both sexes decided to follow this new movement.

The official religious institutions distrusted this new order and it was very often persecuted or forbidden. In the Low Countries, however, the female followers of the mystical movement were tolerated in the form of the 'Beguine' movement. They were allowed to live in separate parts of the cities, in the so-called Beguinages. In this way, the religious authorities could control and supervise them. The beguines lived like regular nuns, but did not make the same binding vows that nuns normally made. Beguines usually made the vows of obedience and chastity, but not the vow of poverty. Moreover, they could at all times break their vows and leave the beguine community.

In the early middle-ages most beguines worked in the textile industry of the cities in which they grew up. It was not a religious movement exclusively for poor and needy women however. Very often, girls from rich and noble families joined the beguine community. They were then very often chosen to become 'Grand mistress of the Beguinage' and they lived in the nicest houses, whereas the poorer beguines lived in the 'convents' where several sisters lived together.

The Beguinage of Bruges was founded in 1245 by the Countess of Flanders, Margaretha of Constantinople, daughter of Count Baldwin who conquered Constantinople (now Istanbul) 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 and 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 although some houses were built in the 19th century in neo-gothic style. In the southern part is a little dead end street where some houses of the 15th-16th century can be found. The largest and most impressive house is situated in the left corner behind the garden. It was here that the 'grootjuffrouw', or 'grand-dame' lived. It was she who ruled over the Beguinage. The original church of the 13th century was destroyed by a fire in 1584. It was rebuild in 1609 and later again renovated in late baroque style.

In 1937 the Beguinage became a monastery for the Benedictine sisters who still live here now, alongside approximately 50 single women given leave to reside in the community until such time as they choose to move on or find love.

The shot I picked was taken in a corner of the poplar covered square where the Benedictine chapel is situated. What I loved about this shot was the light drifting through the leaves and creating almost a watercolour painting of the scene made, I think, more striking by the simplicity of the tone in the picture.