Tour Saint-Georges - Tournai

The St. George's Tower is one of the few remains of the first city wall built at the end of the 12th century to protect the center of Tournai.

It takes its name from the moat that bordered it and was used by the crossbowmen, whose patron saint is Saint George . The moat is circular and flanks a partially preserved part of the curtain wall. The ensemble is typologically representative and of architectural and archaeological importance.

The tower is built of assembled limestone. Narrow arches pierce the masonry on two levels. The facade is not complete. Two doors with low arches open to the north side. The door on the ground floor gives access to the inner passage of the curtain wall, made of more or less leveled rubble. The door on the first floor leads to the tower itself.

As Tournai's population grew and new suburbs were purchased at the end of the 13th century, the city expanded the boundaries of its defenses , creating the second city wall

This listed monument was successively converted into a stable and then into a pottery workshop and was thoroughly restored in 1977. It is now part of the garden of the former Hôtel Peeters, which houses the Musée de la Marionnette .

Willem Vandenameele