Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: West Flanders

Sanctuary Wood ( Heiligdombos ) was named by British troops in November 1914 during World War I, when they used the cover of a forest at this location to tend to their wounded during the First Battle of Ypres, so it was literally a ‘sanctuary’ of sorts for those casualties. At the end of the battle the front line stabilized and would remain so until the Third Battle of Ypres, when the Commonwealth troops managed to push the front line a few miles into German-held territory. In the Spring Offensive of 1918, however, the Germans pushed the Allies back towards Ypres and Sanctuary Wood was occupied by the Germans until the final battle and the defeat of Germany. In 1919 the farmer who had owned the land of what became Sanctuary Wood returned to reclaim his property. He decided to preserve some of the British trench system he found. It is one of the very few original sets of World War I trenches left as they were found at the end of the war. Nowadays it is a privately owned museum nearby the Canadian Hill 62 Memorial and the Sanctuary Wood Cemetery.

At the end of October 1914, World War I stalled in Flanders Fields. After the first battle of Ypres (October-November 1914), trenches were dug in a wide arc around the city of Ypres. The second battle followed the first gas attack (April 1915). The front line shrank into the “Little Ypres Salient” at 3.5 to 4.5 km away from the city centre. The front started moving again on 7 June 1917. British troops broke open the Ieperboog (Ypres Salient) at the cost of huge losses during the third battle of Ypres (July-November 1917). However the German spring offensive of 1918 pushed the Ypres Salient back towards Ypres. The German troops were forced to give up the Ieperboog at the end of September 1918, due to exhaustion and the arrival of American troops. These battles almost completely destroyed the city of Ypres, while thousands of citizens and over hundreds of thousands soldiers from around the world lost their lives. More than 150 military cemeteries were built and monuments erected in and around the city in the 1920’s. Cemeteries, monuments, trenches, mine craters and museums nowadays still remind us of the futility of war.

The Lakenhalle (Cloth Hall) is a well-known landmark, located in the heart of Ypres. This large hall was built in Gothic style between 1200 and 1304. It was one of the largest commercial buildings of the Middle Ages, when it served as the main market and warehouse for the Flemish city's prosperous cloth industry. At 125 meters in width, with a 70 meters high belfry tower, it recalls the importance and wealth of the medieval trade city. The Lakenhalle was completely destroyed during World War I. Between 1933 and 1967, it was meticulously reconstructed to its prewar condition, under the guidance of architects J. Coomans and P. A. Pauwels. In 1999, the Lakenhalle was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the Belfries of Belgium and France. Nowadays the building houses the In Flanders Fields Museum, the Yper Museum and the local tourist information office.

Sint-Maartenskerk or Sint-Maartenskathedraal (St Martin's Church or St Martin's Cathedral) is the former cathedral and seat of the former diocese of Ypres from 1561 to 1901. Construction started on the church in 1230, and was finished in 1370. There had previously been a Romanesque church in the area, dating from the 10th or 11th century. Sint-Maartenskerk was heavily damaged during the World War I. Subsequently (1922–1930) the ruin was cleared and the church was entirely rebuilt following the original plans, although the tower was built with a higher spire than the original. With a height of 102 meters it is one of the tallest buildings in Belgium.

The Sint-Pieterskerk (St Peter's Church) is located in on the place where the Flemish count “Robrecht de Fries” is said to have founded a place of worship in 1073. This Romanesque church dedicated to St Peter was built in the 12th-13th centuries. At the end of the 15th and the first half of the 16th century, it was converted into a Gothic hall church. The first tower burned down in 1638. It was not until 1868 that the church had a new tower. During World War I, the church was almost completely destroyed. Only the vaults of the church were spared. The famous reconstruction architect Jules Coomans has integrated the remains of the walls in the new church and replaced the Gothic superstructure of the tower with a Romanesque tower.

In the Middle Ages Bruges ( Brugge in Dutch) had more than twenty windmills, which were located on the city walls. Nowadays there are only four remaining mills on the ramparts between the Kruispoort and the Dampoort . One of them is the Bonne Chiere, which was built in the village of Olsene in the year of 1844. This windmill was rebuilt on its current location in Bruges in 1911, after the original mill was blown down during a storm. It is built in the same architectural style: wooden standard mill on four brick dices. The ‘new’ Bonne Chiere has never grinded grain, but was just for decoration. The mill is not open for visitors.

The Jan van Eyckplein is a square - named after the famous painter - located a little bit further away from the other touristic highlights of Bruges. As a result, it is not flooded with hordes of tourists and one can quietly enjoy the beautiful architecture of the typical brick houses with their stepped gables and quaint facades. The square - constructed in 1787 - is located on the beginning of the Spiegelrei , which once was once was the old harbour of Bruges, where ships loaded and unloaded their goods.

Bruges (or Brugge in Dutch) is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage site and has one of the best preserved medieval city centres of the world with its bell tower, wide open market square, cobble stoned streets and brick archways and quaint bridges. Canals loop across the town like a string of pearls and did give the city its nickname: “Venice of the North”. For many years Bruges was more or less been known as a "dead city" for many years. The sanding of the harbour and the difficulties to dig canals in the sand caused heavy economical burdens on the city between the Middle Ages and the 20th century. But nowadays Bruges is a lively city and one of the most important tourist attractions in Belgium.

The Grote Markt (Market Square) is the heart of the old city and covers an area of about 1 hectare. It is lined with stepped gabled houses, the Provincial Palace and the 83-metre high Belfort.

The 'Prinselijk Begijnhof Ten Wijngaarde’ (Princely Beguinage Ten Wijngaarde) with its white-coloured house fronts and tranquil convent garden was founded in 1245. This little piece of world heritage was once the home of the beguines, emancipated lay-women who nevertheless led a pious and celibate life. It is the only preserved beguinage in the city of Bruges. Nowadays, the Beguinage is inhabited by the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict; the church is still fully functioning. The complex houses a beguinage museum where one can gain insights into what daily life was like in the 17th century. (PiP: entrance gate to the beguinage)