Belfry of Bergues

Opposite the town hall is the belfry of Sint-Winoksbergen, a sober creation of fifty-four meters high with a Flemish Lion on top. Every Monday, the carillon of fifty bells lets its sounds fan out over the square and the city at the foot of the tower. Although at first sight the belfry looks like a beautiful Gothic building, on closer inspection it turns out to be a very recent impression, and that is not surprising because it was built in the 2nd half of the 20th century. This structure, the most beautiful in northern France, was destroyed like so many others in this area and only rebuilt in 1961. The bell floor was already hit by a firebomb in May 1940, but the carillon itself, with bells from 1628 and the 18th century, had just been removed for repair and has therefore been saved. Because the high tower posed a threat to the enclosed fortress of Dunkirk, it was dynamited in September 1944. In the information office in the former Halle at the foot of the belfry you can see photos of what it was like in Bergen.

Motorrijder