{"id":47753,"date":"2021-10-15T15:46:12","date_gmt":"2021-10-15T19:46:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebeertimes.com\/?p=47753"},"modified":"2026-07-06T13:24:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T17:24:14","slug":"battle-gravensteen-castle-1949-student-protest-flemish-legend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebeertimes.com\/en\/battle-gravensteen-castle-1949-student-protest-flemish-legend\/","title":{"rendered":"The Battle of Gravensteen Castle: The Student Protest That Became a Flemish Legend"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The “Battle of Gravensteen” today is primarily known as a song based on the texts of the poem by Eugeen De Ridder, to whom Armand Preud’homme later composed the music.<\/p>\n

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The Battle of Gravensteen Castle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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To understand the significance of this work, it is useful to recall that Eugeen De Ridder was a prominent Flemish poet committed to the cultural identity of Flanders, while Armand Preud’homme established himself as a leading composer of Belgian popular music in the mid-20th century. Their collaboration turned a local episode into an anthem of collective memory.<\/p>\n

The song describes the occupation of Gravensteen (“Castle of the Counts”), located in Ghent, in East Flanders of Belgium. A medieval castle that was built in 1180.<\/p>\n

The events occurred on November 16, 1949, when 138 students from the University of Ghent<\/a> (137 men and 1 woman) barricaded themselves in the castle to protest the increase in beer prices.<\/p>\n