Saint Eloi

After it was evangelized by St. Eloi, bishop of Noyon-Tournai, the first counts of Flanders built their castle there (9th century) against Norman invaders. By the 13th century the town held a monopoly on English wool, was a leading emporium for the Hanseatic League, and, with the other “members from…

Eloi erected a chapel on the site of the present St. Martin’s Church. Chartered in 1190, Kortrijk reached its peak in the Middle Ages as a centre of the linen damask industry.