All About Royal Families

Imperial Interferences  with disastrous consequences In Ghent, the capital of Eastern Flanders in the northern part of Belgium,  there once was a beautiful Abbey called the Saint Bavo's Abbey.  However due to Imperial Interferences, this Abbey was demolished in the 16th. century.  Luckily for us, there still are a few traces from the Saint Bavo's Abbey and it still has a wonderful royal history. St. Bavo's Abbey and the eldest wall of Ghent Royal history Saint Bavo's Abbey was founded in the 7th. century by Saint Amand, who also founded the Saint Peter's Abbey in Ghent. Originally the Saint Bavo's Abbey was called Ganda, which meant "river mouth in Celtic" referring to the location of the area.  Louis the Pious , the youngest son of Charlemagne and also King of the  Franks, from 814-840 chose Einhard as abbot of the St. Bavo's Abbey. Einhard was the biographer of Charlemagne.  In the 9th. century, the St. Bavo's Abbey was raided twice by the Vi

King William I of The Netherlands and his statue in Ghent, Belgium  People from Flanders, the northern part of Belgium, have not only the language in common with citizens from The Netherlands but they also share some royal history together. Common royal history From 1815  Belgium and thus Flanders, was a part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. But not everybody was happy with this union it led to the independence of Belgium in 1830.  However in Ghent, the capital of Eastern Flanders, the people were happy with the reign of King William I of The United Kingdom of The Netherlands.  The Monarch founded the University of Ghent and he gave the order to create  the canal of Ghent-Terneuzen.  A statue In 2015 (200 years after the formation of the United Kingdom of The Netherlands), Ghent honoured King William I with a statue. This statue was erected on a beautiful location at the Reep and was revealed on 20 October 2018. The statue costed 25.000 euro and was paid by crowdfunding, gifts

On 24 Febuary 1500, the future Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V was born at Gent (in English: Ghent) in the Prinsenhof. On the picture of the painting, which is now at the STAM Museum at Gent, people can see a part of the christening procession of Charles V. The neighbourhood of the Prinsenhof is located from the Rabot to the Gravensteen. Unfortunately this huge castle was demolished in the 19th century. However this castle really has a great and even a royal history. Some royal history In 1064, Count Baldwin V of Flanders offered a swampy area for use to Burgrave Hugo II and his wife Oda. In 1323 this region came into the possession of Simon de Mirabello. Later this man was killed by the people of Gent. In 1340, Louis II, Count of Flanders was the owner. He rebuilt the place to a home that was fit for the Count of Flanders. These Counts were vazals of the King of France! Later this place was inherited by the Valois Dukes of Burgundy. In 1477 the joyous entry

Gravensteen Castle view from the water in Gent, Flanders, Belgium One of the most important historical buildings in Ghent, certainly is the Gravensteen, which meant actually the 'castle of the count'. Gravensteen Castle view from the street in Ghent, Flanders, Belgium. Sorry for the annoying car on it.  Some (royal) history The Gravensteen Castle was actually the castle of the Counts of Flanders, who were vassals of the King of France. Gravensteen Ghent, Flanders Belgium, entrance This magnificent building was built by count Philip of Alsace in 1180 and it was modeled after the crusaders castles that Philip had seen when he participated in the second crusade. Count Philip of Alsace Source picture: Wikipedia Before the construction of the Gravensteen (the castle in stone) there was a wooden building on the same place probably built in the 9th century. This castle served as the main seat of the Count of Flanders until they abandoned it in