Belgian City of Ghent Is Still a Medieval Marvel

Wearing a length of hangman’s rope around the neck to show stubborn defiance of authority may seem a bit peculiar, but that’s exactly what feisty citizens of this lovely Flemish town have been doing yearly since they were first forced to become Stroppendragers (rope carriers) in 1540.

If the people of any one European city could lay claim to being first in rising against the medieval yokes of royalty, the oppressive merchant aristocracy and unfair taxation, the headstrong folks of Ghent have as good a case as anyone.

Second in size only to Paris in 13th-Century Northern Europe, Ghent was the Continent’s largest producer of woolen cloth, with more than 30,000 guildsmen creating an industrial behemoth that brought immense wealth to the town but was controlled by patrician families and rich landowners. Such control, and lack of fruits from their labors, finally caused the guildsmen to revolt and wrest power from their suppressors.

In 1540, Spain’s Charles V, who was born in Ghent, returned and levied heavy penalties on the town for its government’s refusal to pay taxes to help maintain his army. He hanged a few city fathers and made others wear a length of rope around their necks to remind fellow citizens of the price of defiance. Thus began the tradition of the Stroppendragers , which continues to this day in an annual July festival when young men of the city wear a length of hemp around their necks as a sort of “don’t-tread-on-me” statement.

So what is Ghent like today after all these centuries of turbulence? Walk into the Graslei, Ghent’s oldest port, and, apart from a few cars and glass-topped sightseeing boats, one is neck-deep in the 16th and 17th centuries of its breathtaking guild houses lining the cobblestone quay.

Or stand before the foreboding battlements of the Castle of the Counts, built as a home for the counts of Flanders in 1180, and imagine what it must have been like to be called in to face its courts of inquiry and perhaps be sent to the dungeon--or worse, the torture chamber’s racks, thumb screws, spiked collars, branding irons and small but quite effective guillotine.

Ghent’s array of guild houses rival those of Brussels’ Grand Place, and the town has as many formidable medieval towers as we can remember anywhere in Europe.

There is almost a sensual quality to all this architecture of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, one that gives Ghent all the lustrous appeal and historic intrigue of its Flemish neighbor and medieval masterpiece, Bruges.

How long/how much? Give Ghent two full days. Its also a good home base for visiting other Belgian towns: Rubens’ Antwerp, Bruges, even Brussels on day trips by rail. We found lodging and dining costs very moderate.

Getting settled in: Erasmus, dating from 1450, was until this year a private townhouse, and is now is a charming little hotel on a quiet street near the old port. The 1450 date goes back a few years or more every time the owners unearth another vaulted cellar or storage room below, and there is a distinct feeling that the place was built during its namesake’s lifetime.

Bedrooms are spacious, baths brand-new with wonderful fluffy towels. There are fireplaces in every room, and antiques flood the place. There’s a high-ceiling dining room with wooden beams, stained-glass windows, lots of plants and old copper all around. Breakfast is the only meal currently served, but another formal dining room will open early next year for all meals.

Even older is the Cour St. Georges, built in 1228 and Europe’s oldest hotel, standing across from the Town Hall and resembling an old guild house in its intricate facade, each window lined with boxes of radiant geraniums. Bedrooms are in another building across a side street, and they’re all medium to small in size, contemporary in furnishings. A large buffet breakfast is included in room rates.

Much more formal than either of the above, Hotel Gravensteen is a neo-Baroque, 19th-Century mansion that sparkles with elegance. It has a gorgeous lounge with Second Empire furnishings, an intimate bar and a garden in back by the carriage house.

Bedrooms have every amenity of a first-class hotel, and there’s a feeling of luxury in every corner of the Gravensteen. Breakfast only here, but there are plans for a full-service dining room soon.

Regional food and drink: Probably the two best-known Flemish dishes are carbonade flamande (beef braised in beer) and anguilles au vert (eel in a heavenly green sauce), but watersooi (a chicken or fish soup) is almost as popular. The latter can range from a watery and rather bland treatment to a rich and flavorful treat, with the fish version offering the best bet for the latter.

The very freshest seafood, particularly Ostend sole, is always prepared well, and seasonal game is hearty and satisfying. Lapin a la flamande (rabbit braised with prunes) can be a dish for the gods. Gods and everyone else usually get a heaping order of glorious Belgian French fries with just about any dish.

Mokken are anise-flavored cookies that are delicious, and Belgian waffles ( gaufres ) equally so when slathered with fresh cream and fruit. Just about every town and village in Flanders has its own brand, type and flavor of beer, and one of the best is Ghent’s Stropke.

Good local dining: Trio’s (Donkersteeg 26) is regarded as one of the best places for traditional Ghent cooking. A long and attractive dining room is usually filled with town regulars, and the menu seldom strays from local fare. This is the place to try the eel in green sauce ($16) or the carbonade flamande for $9.50. A four-course menu for $22.50 offers the likes of lobster bisque with Armagnac, coquille St. Jacques, steak in a creamed green pepper sauce and dessert.

De Koperen Pomp (Hooiaard 4) has an antique copper pump hanging outside. It’s a small, warm and very cozy room lined with banquettes within. Gentse stovery ($10) is the local version of carbonade flamande , served with plenty of French fries and a vegetable. Spareribs, a local craze, with the same garnishes are $11, garlic scampi the same. A five-course menu here is $27, including an aperitif and wine or beer.

The dining room of Hotel Cour St. Georges looks like a room at Hearst Castle--a balconied hall on two levels with soaring beamed ceiling, dark paneled walls and heraldic trappings everywhere. Lapin a la flamande is $18, breast of duck $20, Ostend sole $21.50, all with suitable accompaniments. A dinner at St. Georges can be a very regal affair.

On your own: Start with an aimless stroll around the old port and its marvelous lineup of guild houses, followed by another short walk to the Castle of the Counts. A climb to the castle’s uppermost parapets will be rewarded with a superb view of the town, and the museum of torture implements will ring the changes of terror in anyone’s belfry.

Ghent’s greatest pride is the 24-panel masterpiece, Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, painted by Jan van Eyck and his brother Hubrecht and completed in 1432. Mounted in St. Bavo’s Cathedral, this enormous work is noted for its luminous colors, harmony of composition and arresting detail. Anyone will be transfixed by this monumental work of Flemish primitive painting, an acknowledged milestone of Western art.

St. Bavo’s also has a Rubens Chapel, with the one major work in Ghent of the Antwerp master, painted at the request of the cathedral in 1624. And while drafty crypts are usually of little interest to us, the enormous Romanesque one below St. Bavo’s should not be missed. This vaulted sanctuary houses 14th-Century frescoes, ancient manuscripts, a breathtaking silver-casket reliquary and innumerable other religious works that make it a museum in itself.

Ghent, too, is one gigantic museum, and may we suggest that Patrick Collin, an independent guide with a phenomenal knowledge of the town and its treasures, could be of immense help. Collin, who has a lively manner and sense of humor, may be reached by telephone locally: 745190.

GUIDEBOOK

Ghent, Belgium

Getting there: Fly American, TWA, Pan Am-Delta and a number of foreign carriers to Brussels. An advance-purchase, round-trip ticket will cost about $830. The one-hour Brussels-Ghent train ride is about $5.25.

A few fast facts: Belgium’s franc recently sold for 34.92 to the dollar, about .0286 each. Late spring to late fall is the best time for a visit, with a chance of sprinkles throughout the year.

Accommodations: Hotel Erasmus (Poel 25; $85 double); Cour St. Georges (Botermarkt 2; $74-$86 double B&B;); Hotel Gravensteen (Jan Breydelstraat 35; $109-$123 double B&B;).

For more information: Call the Belgian National Tourist Office at (212) 758-8130, or write (745 Fifth Ave., Suite 714, New York 10151) for brochures on Ghent and Flanders, plus a map of Belgium and information and cost for the Benelux rail pass.