Kortrijk

Kortrijk (kôrt'rīk) [key], Fr. Courtrai, city (1991 pop. 76,141), West Flanders prov., SW Belgium, on the Leie River. It is an important linen, lace, and textile-manufacturing center. Kortrijk was one of the earliest (14th cent.) and most important cloth-manufacturing towns of medieval Flanders. In 1302, Flemish burghers defeated French knights there in the first Battle of the Spurs. The Church of Notre Dame (13th cent.) in the city contains Anthony Van Dyck's Elevation of the Cross (1631). The Gothic city hall dates from the 16th cent.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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