COURTRAI, an important and once famous town (Flemish, Kortrijk) of west Flanders, Belgium, situated on the Lys. Pop. 38,639. It is now best known for its fine linen, which is retted in the Lys, "the golden river," whose waters possess chemi cal properties which artificial processes have not yet satisfactorily copied. The lace factories are also important. The prosperity of modern Courtrai cannot compare with what it was in the middle ages, when the population numbered 200,000.
Courtrai, the Cortracum of the Romans, ranked as a town from the 7th century onwards. It was destroyed by the Normans, but was rebuilt in the loth century by Baldwin III. of Flanders, who endowed it with market rights and laid the foundation of its indus trial importance by inviting the settlement of foreign weavers.
The Pont de Broel, with its towers at either end of the bridge, is a characteristic monument of ancient Flanders. The i6th century hotel de ville, restored in 1846, contains two elaborately carved chimney-pieces. The church of St. Martin (15th century) was practically rebuilt after a fire in 1862. The most important building at Courtrai is the church of Notre Dame, which was begun by Count Baldwin IX. in 1191 and finished in 1211. In the chapel behind the choir, which is an i8th century reconstruc tion, is one of Van Dyck's masterpieces, "The Erection of the Cross." Attached to the church is the chapel of the counts (13 73 ) which contains mural paintings (restored) of the counts and countesses of Flanders.
Battle of Courtrai.—In mediaeval and military history Courtrai is famous for the battle of July 1302, and because of the defeat there inflicted by the despised Flemish burghers upon the chivalry of France. Earlier than the earliest of the victories of the Swiss pikemen, earlier than the triumph of the Scottish pikemen at Bannockburn, still earlier than the successes of Eng lish bowmen over French knights in the Hundred Years' War, the experience of Courtrai was so novel and startling as to send a quiver of shocked surprise through the knightly ranks of western Europe. The battle bears a striking resemblance to Bannockburn (q.v.). It came about through the French king's action in im prisoning and confiscating the estates of Guy, count of Flanders. The latter's Flemish subjects rose in revolt, but as their levy had only a slight leaven of knights it appeared an easy target for the powerful army which Robert of Artois brought to crush the revolt. On his approach the Flemish army took up a position to cover their siege of Courtrai. This position, as at Bannockburn, was aptly chosen, for the Groeninghebeke covered the front, the Lys guarded the left flank and marshy ground lay on the right. On the other hand, with Courtrai lying on the rear, it gave the Flemings no hope of retreat in case of defeat.
After a preliminary duel across the stream by the rival cross bowmen, the French vaward, or first line, of cavalry was launched to a frontal attack. The passage through their own cross-bowmen, through the stream and then up the slope beyond disordered the ranks of the men-at-arms. Before they could either reach their enemy or reknit their ranks, the heavy mass of Flemish pikemen was launched forward against them and rolled them backwards. Robert of Artois strove to stop the ebb by infusing his second line. But this also lost impetus and order during its advance and, in the melee, suffered such a disadvantage that the horsemen, unseated or with their horses disembowelled, fell easy victims. The Flemings gave no quarter to any knight, and Robert of Artois was himself among the slain, with 63 nobles and 700 knights. When the wreckage was hurled back into the brook, the intact third line and the French foot retired from the field. Legends of all varieties were propagated to explain this defeat of mail-clad knights by mere burghers, but by obscuring the truth of their stupid storm tactics against an enemy who ably used ground, these legends helped to pave the way for the greater disaster of Crecy (q.v.).
After the battle as many as 70o pairs of golden spurs were collected on the field from the bodies of French knights and hung up as an offering in an abbey church—which has long disappeared —of the town.