ABSTRACT
The economic expansion of thirteenth-century Flanders brought significant profits to some churches and hospitals, but perhaps not enough to compensate for the immense expenses that they incurred in bringing the land into production. It is clear, however, that the economic growth of the thirteenth century did not benefit most great lay lords. The secularism that characterized Flemish intellectual life in the previous centuries continues in the thirteenth, with stronger evidence of anticlericalism and the development of a vibrant vernacular culture. The Flemish church was hampered by the fact that it was not really Flemish. The first bishop of Tournai who came from Germanic Flanders was Philip Mus of Ghent in 1274. There were thus significant developments in Flemish law during the thirteenth century, as well as in governmental administration. Flemish property law also had made a significant evolution.
