De Sint-Salvatorkathedraal

The Sint-Salvator Cathedral, the main church of the city, is one of

the few buildings in Bruges that have survived the onslaught of the

ages without damage. Nevertheless, it has undergone some changes and

renovations. This church was not originally built to be a cathedral;

it was granted the status in the 19th century. Since the 10th century

the Sint-Salvator was a common parish church. At that time the St

Donatian's Cathedral, which was located at the very heart of Bruges,

opposite of the town hall, was the central religious building of the

city. At the end of the 18th century the French occupiers of Bruges

threw out the bishop of Bruges and destroyed the Sint-Donatius Church,

which was his residence.

In 1834, shortly after Belgium's independence in 1830, a new bishop

was installed in Bruges and the Sint-Salvator church obtained the

status of cathedral. However, the buildings external image did not

resemble a cathedral back then: it was much smaller and less imposing

than the nearby Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk and had to be adapted to its new

role. Building a higher and more impressive tower was one of the

viable options.

The roof of the cathedral collapsed in a fire in 1839. Robert

Chantrell, an English architect, famous for his neo-Gothic

restorations of English churches, was asked to restore to

Sint-Salvator its former glory. At the same time he was authorized to

make a project for a higher tower, in order to make it taller than

that of the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk. The oldest surviving part, dated

from the 12th century, formed the base of the mighty tower. Instead of

adding a neo-Gothic part to the tower, Chantrell chose a very personal

Romanesque design. After completion there was a lot of criticism and

the royal commission for monuments (Koninklijke Commissie voor

Monumenten), without authorization by Chantrell, had placed a small

peak on top of the tower, because the original design was deemed too flat.

Thanks for comments.

PDE