Clarified: Bruges swans were there earlier than legend prescribes

According to legend, Pieter Lanchals, a confidant of Maximilian of Austria, was executed in 1448 after a rebellion. Maximilian later takes revenge and obliges the citizens of Bruges to maintain 52 swans – or ‘long necks’ – on the canals for eternity.

Earlier notification

The legend now turns out to be really fictional: “The exhibition clearly shows that there were swans on the canals of Bruges at least as early as 1403,” says alderman Nico Blontrock. “That year they appear for the first time in the Bruges city account. Swans have always had an exceptional status in Bruges: initially they even wore a copper chain as a sign of ownership. There are penalties for stealing or killing them – something to put in the to tie ears now that those beautiful animals are in the breeding season.”

“More than worth telling”

The legend therefore turns out to be no more than that, but for Blontrock she may live on. “The legend of Pieter Lanchals and the Bruges swans probably only originated in the 19^e century, when the myths around Bruges started to live. I myself am a fan of beautiful stories, and this is a beautiful example, which is still more than worth telling, but as a legend and not so much as a historical fact.”