The canals of Bruges have con­nect­ed the city to the sea for cen­turies. Inter­na­tion­al mer­chants guar­an­teed wealth and pros­per­i­ty. Bruges soon became one of the largest Hanse cities. Until today, the medieval build­ings and struc­tures of the 15th cen­tu­ry remained main­ly intact. UNESCO des­ig­nat­ed the entire city cen­tre as a World Her­itage site in 2000.