Bruges Hotels Guide: The belfort
Dominating the Markt is the 83 metre high Belfort (or Belfry). The original cloth hall and tower were built in 1240 but destroyed by fire in 1280. The octagonal lantern atop the original square tower was then added between 1482 and 1486 crowned with a wooden spire. This last structure was destroyed by fire twice (in 1493 and 1741) after which the structure was left as we see it now.
The bell tower was used to keep the city's important documents and records and was also used to keep a look out. In the sixteenth century a carillon was added allowing the bells to be rung using a hand key board. There are now still 47 bells in the Belfort, of which 26 date from 1741.
Today's visitors can climb the Belfort's 366 steps and admire outstanding views of the city as well as the clock's impressive mechanism.
The Cloth Hall adjacent to the Belfort bear testimony to Bruges' importance as a Mediaeval commercial centre and this is where cloth manufactured by Flemish weavers was sold to the rest of the world.
