The Church of Saint Nicholas ( Flemish : Sint-Niklaaskerk ) is one of the oldest and most prominent monuments in the city of Ghent , Belgium . Its construction began at the beginning of the 13th century , replacing a previous Romanesque church located in the same place and which burned down in 1176, construction continued during the rest of the century in the Tournaisian Gothic style typical of the Scheldt area . The characteristics of this local style is the use of blue-gray stone from the Tournai area, the existence of a bell tower or lantern over the transept, and some small conical towers at the corners of the building.
Built in the historic shopping center of Ghent, near the bustling Korenmarkt (wheat market), the Church of Saint Nicholas was popular with merchant guilds, whose members conducted their businesses nearby. These guilds built their own chapels that were added to the church between the 14th and 15th centuries.
The central tower, which was partly financed by the city, served as an observation post, with the city's bells being moved when the neighboring Ghent bell tower was built . These two towers, along with that of the Cathedral of San Bavón , still define the medieval skyline of the city. One of the treasures of the church is its organ, built by the famous French organ maker Aristide Cavaillé-Coll .
The church was severely damaged during the Protestant Reformation , in which the Gothic ornamentation was lost, and also during the French Revolution and the two world wars, remaining under restoration since 1960.
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