PLACE ROYALE

Description

Essentials about Place Royale in brief

Next to Grand Place, Place Royale (Royal Square) is the most important and also the most beautiful square in Brussels. Built on the site of the Coudenberg Palace, which burned down in the 18th century, Place Royale is today a beautiful ensemble of neoclassical buildings. Visitors to museums in particular will almost inevitably end up in Place Royale, as it is home to a number of important museums, such as the Magritte Museum about one of Belgium’s most important artists and the BELvue Museum on the history of Belgium. Place Royale is not only an architectural and museum highlight of the Belgian capital, but also offers a great view of the lower town of Brussels.

The history of Place Royale

Place Royale was built on the site of the former Place des Bailles, the former market square next to the Coudenberg Palace, which was the seat of the Dukes of Brabant for many centuries. After the palace was almost completely destroyed in a major fire in 1731, no funds were available to rebuild the site for over 40 years. It was not until 1774 that Charles Alexander of Lorraine, governor of the Austrian Netherlands, proposed demolishing the palace ruins and laying out a new square.

Place Royale and its buildings were laid out in the period from 1773 to 1780 according to the plans of the French architect Barnabé Guimard. The square is an almost exact copy of Place Royale of the same name in Reims. Originally, the Gothic chapel of Coudenberg Palace, which had been spared from the fire, was to be preserved in the square. However, due to the conflict of styles with the newly planned neoclassical buildings, it was decided to demolish the chapel.

The buildings on Place Royale

The main building on Place Royale is the Église Saint-Jacques sur-Coudenberg (Church of Saint John on Coudenberg), consecrated in 1787, on the east side of the square. Right next to the church, the Hôtel de Coudenberg houses the Constitutional Court of Belgium.

On the west side of the square is the main building of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts. Next to it is the Magritte Museum, dedicated to the work of René Magritte, one of Belgium’s most famous artists. On the southeast side of the square is the BELvue Museum, where visitors can expect an exhibition on the history of Belgium.

In the center of the square is the equestrian statue of Gottfried of Bouillon, the leader of the first crusade in 1096. The statue was sculpted by Eugène Simonis in 1848 and replaced the monument to Charles Alexander of Lorraine that had previously stood here, which was melted down during the French Revolution.