Ghent

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Ghent :: Ghent_University

This page is about the Belgian city. For other places called Ghent, see Ghent (disambiguation).

Ghent		- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"	Province:	East Flanders	- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"	District:	Ghent	- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"	Area:	156.18 km²	- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"	Population:	230.951 (2005)	- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"	Population density:	1478.74 /km²	-

Ghent (; Gent in Dutch; Gand in French, formerly Gaunt in English) is a city and a municipality located in Flanders, Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders Province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and became in the Middle Ages one of the largest and richest cities of northern Europe. Today it is a busy city with a large harbour and University. The city is connected to the sea by the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal, it lies at the intersection of the European highways E17 and E40 and it has the third busiest railway station in Belgium.

The municipality comprises the city of Ghent proper and the towns of Afsnee, Desteldonk, Drongen, Gentbrugge, Ledeberg, Mariakerke, Mendonk, Oostakker, Sint-Amandsberg, Sint-Denijs-Westrem, Sint-Kruis-Winkel, Wondelgem and Zwijnaarde. With 232 961 inhabitants at the end of 2005, Ghent is Belgium's second largest municipality and the country's third largest conurbation. The current mayor of Ghent, Frank Beke, leads a coalition of the SP.a and VLD.

History

Archeologic evidence shows human presence in the region of the confluence of Scheldt and Lys going back as far as the Stone Age and the Iron Age. Most historians believe that the older name for Ghent, 'Ganda' is derived from the Celtic word 'ganda' which means confluence. There are no written records of the Roman period but archeological research confirms that the region of Ghent was further inhabited.

When the Franks invaded the Roman territories (from the end of the 4th century and well into the 5th century) they brought their language with them and Celtic and Latin were replaced by (ancient) Dutch.

Around 650 Saint Amand founded two abbeys in Ghent the Saint Peter Abbeye and the Saint Bavo Abbeye. The city grew from several nuclei, the abbeys and a commercial centre. Around 800 Louis the Pious, son of Charlemagne, appointed Einhard, the biographer of Charlemagne, as abbot of both abbeys. In 851 and 879 the city was however attacked and plundered twice by the vikings.

The city recovered and flourished from the 11th century on. Until the 13th century Ghent was the biggest city in Europe after Paris; it was bigger than London, Cologne or Moscow. Within the city walls lived up to 65,000 people. Today, the center of the city still has several large towers, the belfry and the towers of the Cathedral and Sint-Niklaas Church are just a few examples of what could be called the 'Manhattan of the Middle Ages'.

The rivers flowed in an area where a lot of land was periodically inundated. These richly grassed 'meersen' ("water-meadows": a word related to the English 'marsh', but not meaning exactly the same, a 'meers' is not permanently under water) were ideally suited for herding sheep, the wool of which was used for making cloth. In fact, Ghent was during the middle ages the most important city for cloth.

The wool-industry, originally established at Bruges, created the first European industrialized zone in Ghent in the High Middle Ages. The mercantile zone was so highly-developed that wool had to be imported from England. This was one of the reasons for Flanders' good relationship with England. Ghent was the birthplace of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. The trade with England suffered significantly during the Hundred Years War.

The city recovered in the 14th century, while Flanders was united with neighbouring provinces under the Dukes of Burgundy. High taxes led to a rebellion and eventually the Battle of Gavere, in which Ghent suffered a terrible defeat at the hands of Philip the Good. Around this time the center of gravity in the Low Countries started to shift from Flanders (Bruges–Ghent) to Brabant (Antwerp–Brussels), although Ghent would continue to play an important role.

In 1500 Juana of Castile gave birth to Charles V, who became Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain. Although native to Ghent, he punished the city after the 1539 Revolt of Ghent and obliged them to walk in front of the emperor barefoot with a noose (Dutch: strop) around the neck. Since this incident the people of Ghent are called "Stroppendragers" (noose bearers).

The late 16th and the 17th century brought devastation because of the Religious wars. At one time Ghent was a calvinistic city, but eventually the Spanish army reinstated catholicism. The wars ended the role of Ghent as a center of international importance.

In the 18th and 19th century Ghent the textile industry flourished again in Ghent. Lieven Bauwens introduced the first mechanical weaving machine on the European continent, of which he smuggled the plans out of England.

Ghent was also the site of the signing of the Treaty of Ghent which formally ended the War of 1812 between Britain and the United States of America. After the battle of Waterloo Ghent became a part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands for 15 years. In this period Ghent got its own university (1817) and a new connection to the sea (1824–27).

After the Belgian Revolution, the first Belgian trade-union originated in Ghent. In 1913 there was a World exhibition in Ghent. As a preparation for these festivities the Sint-Pieters railway station, was completed in 1912.

Tourism

Architecture

Much of the city's medieval architecture remains intact and is remarkably well preserved and restored. Its center is the largest carfree area in Belgium. Interesting highlights are the Saint Bavo Cathedral with the Ghent Altarpiece, the belfry, the Gravensteen castle, and the splendid architecture along the old Graslei harbour. Ghent established a nice blend between comfort of living and history - it is not a city-museum. The city of Ghent houses also three béguinages and numerous churches, among which the Saint-Jacobs church and the Saint-Nicolas Church are the most beautiful examples. There is an opera house and a few theatres. Highlights of modern architecture are the University buildings (the "Boekentoren" or Book Tower) by Henry Van de Velde.

Restaurants

As most Belgian cities, Ghent offers a rich variety of local and foreign cuisine. Especially the quarter called "Patershol" has a concentration of restaurants. The "Sleepstraat" a little bit further north houses a bunch of Turkish restaurants and food bars.

Festivities

The city is host to some big cultural events such as the Gentse Feesten, I Love Techno, Flanders International Film Festival Ghent and Festival van Vlaanderen. In weekends, the city offers night bus services free of charge.

Museums

Important museums in Ghent are the Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Museum of Fine Arts), with paintings by Hieronymus Bosch, Jean Fouquet, and many Flemish masters; the SMAK or Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst (City Museum for Contemporary Art), with works of the 20th century, including Joseph Beuys and Panamarenko; and the Designmuseum. The Huis van Alijn (House of the Alijn family) was originally a beguinage and is now a museum for folk art. This museum often presents theatre and puppet shows for children. There is also a museum presenting the industrial strength of Ghent, the Museum voor Industriële Archeologie en Textiel or MIAT. Here you can find recreations of workshops and stores from the 1800s and can see the spinning and weaving machines that remain in this building what was once a weaving mill.

Economy

The port of Ghent, in the north of the city, is the third largest port of Belgium. It is accessed by the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal, which ends near the Dutch port of Terneuzen on the Western Scheldt. The port houses, among others, big companies like Sidmar, Volvo Cars, Volvo Trucks, Volvo Parts, Honda, Stora Enso.

The Ghent University and a number of reasearch oriented companies are situated in the centre and southern part.

As the biggest city of East-Flanders, Ghent has many hospitals, schools and shopping streets.

More and more tourism becomes a major segment of employment.

Famous people

Famous people that were born, lived or died in Ghent include

External links

Official website - Information available in Dutch, English, French and German
Use-it.be - Ghent for youngsters
Radio Urgent - Local Radio Station run by young people
Beyondjazz.net - Beyondjazz.net Ghent Cityguide
Gent.blogt - Blog about Ghent
An image gallery - with 21 pictures about Gent

References

Cities and towns in Belgium | Municipalities of East Flanders | Port cities

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