- Battle of Beverhoutsveld
Prelude
The city of Ghent had rebelled against their lord, count
Louis II of Flanders , in 1379. The powerful guilds in Ghent did not take kindly to his rule, and wanted more privileges and less interference from the count. The nearby city ofBruges was a loyal supporter of the count and this only served to fan the flames of the rivalry between the two cities, both commercial powerhouses.The Battle
Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Beverhoutsveld
partof=Ghent rebellion
caption=
date=May 13 1382
place=Bruges
casus=
territory=
result=Ghent victory
combatant1=County of Flanders
combatant2=Ghent rebels
combatant3=
commander1=Louis II of Flanders ,Count of Flanders
commander2=Philip van Artevelde , leader of theGhent Rebels
commander3=
strength1=
strength2=
strength3=
casualties1=
casualties2=
casualties3=
notes=The Battle of Beverhoutsveld took place onMay 3 ,1382 , on a field situated between the towns ofBeernem ,Oostkamp andAssebroek . It marked an important phase in the rebellion ofGhent (led byPhilip van Artevelde ) against count Louis II of Flanders.The Gent-Oostende canal is one of the oldest shipping routes in Belgium. A natural watercourse between the towns of
Bruges andBeernem was adapted for this shipping route. It was this piece of canal that caused the conflict between theBruges andGhent people.To force Ghent to surrender, the Count of Flanders had blockaded the access roads to the city. Philip van Artevelde, the leader of the Ghent rebels, was attempting to negotiate with the Count in
Doornik , but these negotiations failed and the only option was to assault the town of Bruges to force access to the sea.The Bruges warriors appeared on the battlefield after the annual Blood Procession, a religious holiday in Bruges. The soldiers came straight from the various inns and taverns around the area, and many had stopped along the way to drink themselves into extra courage. After a short battle Artevelde defeated the Bruges army (who were in no condition for serious combat), and occupied the town of Bruges that same day. Count Louis II managed to escape and fled to the town of Rijssel. Legend says the Ghent warriors removed the Dragon from the St. Donaaschurch in Bruges and transported it to Ghent to mount it on the Belfort tower there.
Aftermath
Philip van Artevelde's victory caused uprisings all over Flanders; only
Dendermonde andOudenaarde remained loyal to the Count. This victory had repercussions abroad as well; uprisings and riots broke out inHolland ,Leuven ,Paris ,Rouen andAmiens .Philip van Artevelde died a few months later in a new battle with the Count in the Battle of Westrozebeke. Louis II of Flanders died in combat in
Saint-Omer (Sint-Omaars) in1384 .It was only in
1613 that the cities managed to negotiate an agreement to dig the canal between Ghent and Bruges. The execution of the work was entrusted to the Dutch in the Republic of the 7 United Provinces, and the canal was opened in1621 .A memorial plaque commemorating the battle can be found in the "Bibliotheekstraat" in Ghent.
Links
* [http://www.beernem.be/Pdf/toerisme/beverhoutsroute%20fiets.pdf Beverhoutsroute bij www.beernem.be (Dutch)]
* [http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/_bru002brug01/_bru002brug01_002.htm Kroniek van Vlaanderen (Dutch)]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.