A moment of silence for those that gave their rinds.
Underated comment, this one – everyone upvote
Who won the battle? What was the cost (in terms of lost produce)?
I don’t have any pre-existing knowledge of the event, and the English-speaking web is pretty sparse on the topic, but as far as I can tell: no prosecutions, and the beer tax hike was abolished; total student victory o7
according to 5+ articles i read on the topic no student faced prosecution but the 33% price increase in beer stayed in place.
Only thing I found that said the price increase was cancelled was the ever beloved bullshit factory sometimes called “AI”.
I hate that website search results nowadays are not only untrustworthy because people are dumb (like in the GOOD OLD DAYS), but also because people are dumb and copy-pasting AI.
On the website of the College they were from they said:
While the students held a meeting in the courtyard, the fire department were able to bring out their ladder and get inside. Where the students were beaten by the police.
Nobody was prosecuted, because they had the public on their side. Many found the beatings to ask for cheaper beer going way too far.
Since 1950, they organize a parade every year in their honor. With a party at the end. Mostly for students.
There is also a song to commemorate (loosely translated): “Ghent roars with delight: the Gravensteen (the castle) occupied by students. They are inside, who will get them out? They fear neither club, nor water, nor fruit.”
source: https://www.schamper.ugent.be/editie/652/artikel/de-slag-om-t-gravensteen
So for those who want to know more: this was a joke protest because the students were bored. The cited demands for the protest were: repeal the increase in the price of beer, repeal the new police uniforms because they are shit and abolish the city prison.
Source: https://frankpersblog.blogspot.com/p/stad-de-studentikoze-bezetting-van-het.html?m=1
The fire department hosed them with beer until they could be peacefully removed.
I never saw an army trying to siege down a castle with fire hoses before.
