Gentpoort
Medieval gate guarded by a plague saint in stone, its spike once bearing an executed advisor's head.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to the Gentpoort gate in Bruges opens with a question: why has the city kept swans on its canals for centuries as a punishment? The answer reaches back to 1488, when Bruges rose against Archduke Maximilian, held him captive at the Craenenburg house on the Markt, and forced him to watch his advisor Pieter Lanchals tortured and beheaded before setting the man's head on a spike above this gate. You'll also hear about the statue of Saint Adrian set into the gateway, once believed to guard the city from plague entering with every traveler who passed beneath. Look up at the niche in the stone as you cross through.
This audio guide was created using AI.
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