Saint Martin

The church is open on the 1st, 2nd and 4th Sunday of each month.

Roesbrugge already had a chapel in the 13th century, first served by the Norbertines of Beauregard, later by the Discalced Carmelites of Ypres, and eventually by a chaplain. Baptisms, marriages, and funerals were not allowed there. 

Over the centuries, the chapel and the village suffered repeated fires, plundering, and destruction, yet each time they were rebuilt. On September 18, 1793, French revolutionary troops under General Vandamme burned the entire village and its large chapel.

After the suppression of the Ypres diocese in 1801, Roesbrugge became part of the Ghent diocese, which authorized the construction of a parish church. In 1805, the bishop asked all pastors of the Ypres region to collect funds. The nave was built in 1805–1806 and consecrated by Rev. Vermeersch on September 9, 1806. The church was dedicated to Saint Victor. In February 1807, Roesbrugge became an independent parish with Rev. Joannes Josephus Reyhins as its first pastor.

The church, initially a single nave building without a tower, remained unfinished until 1826. With state and provincial support, the tower and aisles were added, and construction ended in 1838. Meanwhile, the church was renamed St. Martin’s, after the suppression of St. Martin’s parish in nearby Haringe in 1807. When Haringe regained parish status in 1835, both villages had a St. Martin’s parish.

The hall church without a transept, built to replace the chapel destroyed in 1793, was further completed from 1826 onward. In 1837, it received a striking neoclassical belvedere tower designed by Ypres architect Lernould.

KIKIRPA : Photo-library online