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Bruges Wool Trade Center

Type Object Region Flanders Time 1100–1500

Bruges was one of the most prosperous commercial cities of medieval Flanders, famed for wool textiles, international trade fairs, and Hanseatic ties;…

Timeline

  1. 1100–1300Bruges · FlandersBruges relied on the Zeeland straits to connect with North Sea routes; wool fairs and textile guilds rose, and the count's castle and market square became a regional trade hub.
  2. 1300–1420Bruges market square · FlandersEnglish wool was transshipped through Bruges to Flemish textile workshops; Italian merchant-bankers and Hanseatic trading houses gathered, making the city a key node in the Northern Europe–Mediterranean commercial network.
  3. 1421–1430Bruges · FlandersBruges still maintained wool imports and cloth exports, but the Zwin channel silted up increasingly, making it difficult for large merchant ships to enter port, and some trade began shifting to Antwerp.
  4. 1450–1500Bruges · BelgiumAntwerp at the Scheldt estuary used its deep-water port advantage to replace Bruges as the Low Countries' foremost trade center; Bruges gradually became a regional city, ending its role as a wool trade hub.

Sources