Brussels (Bruxelles) | City centre
- Maximus Nostramabus
- Oct 24, 2020
- 12 min read
Updated: 6 hours ago
World's most beautiful town square - La Grand-Place, Brussels 857; Ommegang of Brussels, an annual historical procession and popular festival 01366
What and Why
Possibly one of the most beautiful, if not the most beautiful, city squares in the world, the Grand-Place, in French and English, is the landmark of Brussels (French: Bruxelles). The square is surrounded by impressive mediaeval and opulent guildhalls and buildings. The Grand Place is voted the most beautiful square in the world in almost every travel surveys.
Brussels' historic centre is essentially a compact walkable centre: with a mediaeval pentagon core ringed by the old city walls. Now this core is further constructed with a political and supranational layer. In these layers, there are a number of monuments that add a certain distinct character and power to the centre, be it religious, civic, dynastic, national, artisanal and finally the cross-sectional and cross-dimensional European Union (EU). The city when read together sounds almost like cross-sections of the same city at different depths and epoch.
An important biennial event at even number of year is the ephemeral flower carpet (tapis de fleurs), as main picture above, which takes place usually in August, during which a colossal is woven out of colourful begonias. Begonia is the only main flower chosen as it is the main Belgian export since the mid-19th century. Unfortunately I visited during an odd year and, at the time of writing the important event is cancelled due to the worldwide COVID pandemic.
Brussels was founded in the 10th century and almost immediately this piece of land is identified as the central marketplace for the city, just like any other European cities. The square gained in prominence during the 14th century and remained until today, although like other European cities, the square and its surrounding buildings was burnt down by fire over and over again during its history. Today, while the buildings around the square still functions commercially somehow the place is largely a tourist spot.
See
We shall start from the Grand-Place and walk outside from its core.
Town Hall (Hôtel de Ville)
The Grand Place is clearly the anchor of everything Brussels, and its current appearance is actually the result of catastrophe rather than continuous design, as in typical European history books. The square was largely destroyed in 1695, when French troops bombarded the city; with only the facade and tower of the Town Hall (Hôtel de Ville), ironically the actual target surviving the cannon fire. What you see today is the guilds' rebuild: guildhalls reconstructed in stone within a few years, under a coherent building code issued after the war that gave the square its unusual visual unity, despite being built by dozens of different guilds. One of my favourite writers, Victor Hugo, who lived in exile facing the square, is widely quoted calling it the most beautiful square in the world, and perhaps this remains true today, at least serving as a reference point for other city squares.
The square measures 68 m by 110 m with the Town Hall facing South approximately.
Widely considered as a masterpiece of Gothic (German: Gotik) architecture, the town hall is the only mediaeval building still standing in the square, dating back to 1420s. The impressive tower in the middle is the archangel Michael (Hebrew: מִיכָאֵל, Mîkhā'ēl), the patron saint of Brussels.
While the building belongs to the Middle Age, the town hall has of course undergone multiple number of renovations and restorations, and as a matter of fact the lavish front facade and its sculptures are largely restored during the late 19th century. The tower is conspicuously off-centre, as a result of the multiple extensions and rebuilding during its long history.
King's House (Maison du Roi)
If the Town Hall is impressive, the opposite King's House (Maison du Roi) is of equal stature and probably takes more photoshots as its facade shows more opulence and decor. The building was originally a bakery house and hence its Dutch name Bread House (Dutch: Broodhuis) still sticks. The original building was replaced in the 15th century by its current form which housed the administrative services of the Duke of Brabant (Dutch: Hertog Van Brabant), and the same duke became the King of Spanish Netherlands (Dutch: Spaanse Nederlanden), it was renamed the King's House. In the 16th century, the Holy Roman Emperor (Latin: Imperator Romanorum) Charles V (German: Karl V, né Karl Habsburg) rebuilt it in a Gothic style similar to the then contemporary design. The building was badly damaged during Nine Year's War (Dutch: Negenjarige Oorlog), and was heavily renovated in the mid-18th century CE with a Gothic-revival style, which stands until today. It now houses the Brussels City Museum (Musée de la Ville de Bruxelles), where the original statue of Manneken Pis is placed.
There are a number of impressive buildings around the square, for example the House of the Dukes of Brabant (Maison des Ducs de Brabant) at the Eastern end. The entire square houses many guildhalls of a variety of professions.
The building next to the Town Hall is called Le Cygne (The Swan) where Karl Marx wrote his Communist Manifesto (German: Manifest der Kommunistischen Partei) in the late 19th century, while almost direct opposite was Victor Hugo's residence during his stay in Belgium (Belge).
Flower carpet (Tapis de fleurs)
While I could not attend the Flower Carpet event, I still need to write about it as it is one of the most famous cultural spectacles hosted in the historic heart of Brussels. Every two years in mid-August the Grand Place is transformed into a massive, ephemeral tapestry woven entirely out of fresh cut flowers, as main picture above. The carpet covers the entire plaza up to an area of 1,680 m², consuming more than half a million fresh cut flowers, mainly begonia and dahlia, packed closely together. The installation is strictly ephemeral, staying on display for four days, typically Thursday evening through Sunday.
There was nothing historic or commemorative about this event. It simply started in 1971 by Ghent (Dutch: Gent) landscape architect Étienne Stautemans who tried this artform in a large scale. Stautemans had experimented with smaller floral carpets in the 1950s and realised that the enclosed, ornate Flemish Baroque architecture of the Grand Place provided an unparalleled backdrop. The entire flower puzzle was assembled during the early morning of the event within six hours.
Coincidentally during the time of writing, the event was recently held in Brussels and this edition reimagines the famous iconic woodblock print The Great Wave off Kanagawa (Japanese: 神奈川沖浪裏, Kanagawa-oki Nami Ura) to mark 160 years of diplomatic relations between Belgium and Japan (Japanese: 日本, Nippon).
Manneken Pis
If the Grand Place is the main face of Brussels, then the Manneken Pis (little pissing mannequin) is literally the other rather sarcastic symbol of Brussels, which is replicated all around the world in various fountains. The original statue, that dates back to the 1600s is housed in the City Museum (Musée de la Ville), while this current statue is a replacement that is fairly recent in the 1960s. The statue area, is naturally extremely crowded and easily it is where every tourist first spot in Brussels, so much that the small fountain is literally unmissiable and it would easily take a few minutes to get close to it.
The statue is apparently both an embodiment of the Belgian sense of humour, free spirit and independence of mind. Its design is deliberately unheroic, as it serves as a piece of civic self-deprecation, not civic grandeur.
The statue is so famous that it has suffered from a large number of theft and vandalism and hence the original is placed inside a museum. The current bronze figure was made by Jérôme Duquesnoy and installed in 1619, though the statue actually began as something more mundane and basic: simply a functioning fountain distributing drinking water to the neighbourhood.
One of the best best-known legends, though definitely unconfirmed, was that this commemorate an anonymous boy extinguishing a lit fuse with his pee aimed at the city's gunpowder store, saving Brussels through an act that was funny, unglamourous and probably unintentional. This statue is a real thread in its civic identity and literally becomes Brussels' identity of its sense of humour and self-deprecation.
Stock Exchange (Bourse)
The former Stock Exchange (Bourse) is now a totally vacant building which has become a tourist resting and photospot.
Palace of the Nation (Palais de la Nation)
We now move from folk heritage to dynastic and national political history proper. The Palace of the Nation (Palais de la Nation) is now the Belgian parliamentary building. Construction of the building began in the late 18th century, commissioned under Empress Maria Theresa (née Maria Theresa von Habsburg) during the Habsburg rule, the mansion was designed to originally house the regional supreme court of Habsburg Austria (German: Österreich), not a parliament at all. Its function changed constantly over time until 1830, from Habsburg judicial council, to French court, to Dutch parliament, to independent Belgian legislature when it was formally used as a parliament building under the provisional Belgian government, and on 18th November 1830 Belgium was declared an independent constitutional monarchy inside the building. This building became witness to history, one single structure physically containing that whole sequence of regime change.
Royal Palace (Palais Royal)
The Royal Palace of Brussels (Palais Royal de Bruxelles) is the official and ceremonial reception palace of the Belgian Monarch, although this is not their residence. Most importantly and unfortunately this is not open for visit. There seems to be some heavy security during our visit as seen from the barricades.
Hill of Arts (Mont des Arts)
The Hill of Arts (Mont des Arts) offers the best and unrivalled view of the city centre as it sits on a small mount at a short distance of walk from the Grand Place. As the name suggests, it is the culture meeting point of Brussels where the art museum and library is located. The area used to be a Jewish quarter until it was entirely renovated as an art area during the end of the 19th century CE. Bears an uncanny micro-resemblance to Trocadéro of Paris.
Poelaert Square (Poelaertplein)
Poelaert Square, named after the architect of the adjacent Palace of Justice (Palais de Justice), is the largest square in Brussels and provides another good and spacious view point of the city. During our visit the Palace of Justice was under renovation. Most unfortunately they have erected to eye-sore ferris wheel in the square recently.
Parliamentarium, European Parliament (Parliamentarium, Parlement européen)
While there is no 'official' capital of EU, Brussels is its de facto capital and hence Brussels is often seen as the centre of Europe. Its Parliamentarium is an absolute gem of a visitor-centre-cum-museum. The cluster also holds the European Council and European Commission. Recall my blog on the EU in Strasbourg.
This is the newest and most different in kind of everything from anything else. The Parliamentarium is the European Parliament's visitor centre, billed as the largest of its kind in Europe, offering an extremely well-curated self-guided multimedia exhibition on European integration and the Parliament's workings, available in all 24 official EU languages. It comes with free entry and reportedly over 4 million visitors to date.
Where Palace of the Nation represents the 1830 founding of the Belgium as a nation-state, the Parliamentarium represents the layer built on top of it as the capital of a supranational institution. Absolutely unmissable.
The EU was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012 CE for its contribution to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe by a unanimous decision.
Tintin comic mural (Fresque murale de Tintin)
Created in 1929, the adventurous reporter Tintin, with his signature hairdo and his loyal dog Snowy is without any doubt Belgium’s most emblematic figure. Tintin solves mysteries and stands up against injustice. Similar to our blog on George Town, there is now a comic mural route right next to the Grand Place. Tintin is not alone, there are other non-Belgian comic murals, but Tintin is definitely the most beloved of them all. Tintin is perhaps Belgian most famous and iconic export, outside its chocolate. However, there have been recent criticisms of Tintin's earlier strips, as it includes various references of racial stereotypes, animal cruelty, colonialism, violence, and prejudiced portrayals of non-Europeans, understandably so when the world had vastly different values; hence resulting in some of the these murals being vandalised.
Buy and Do
Chocolate (Chocolat)
What else but chocolates? There is almost a chocolatier, either branded, chained or homemade in every blocks in Brussels, and you just cannot be under more evil temptation. We have already covered the origin of chocolates in Belgium in our blog on Bruges (Brugge). In particular the confection praline, chocolate with a soft-centred filling, is a genuine Belgian invention, tied to a single address in the city centre of Neuhaus. In fact the story of praline is quite interesting: Jean Neuhaus, a Swiss immigrant who failed his medical examinations, opened a pharmacy in 1857 in the Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert and began coating bitter medicines in chocolate to make them palatable to children. In 1912, his grandson Jean Neuhaus Junior inverted the idea: instead of medicine wrapped in chocolate, he filled a chocolate shell with a flavoured cream centre, creating the praline as we know today. Hence failure in studies should really not be seen as any major obstacle in life, in fact almost every successful person seemingly come with some kind of examination failure...
On this particular blog, it has to be emphasised that the famous chocolatier Godiva opened its shop in the Grand Place in 1926, and the shop is still in operation today, although the brand is now owned by a Turkish company Yıldız.
Amongst the myriads of the brands, we were recommended these top Belgian brands:
In particular, Neuhaus, Godiva, Leonidas are genuine Brussels brand. Lead us not into temptation...
By the way, the high-street of Belgium is along the exceptionally ornate Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert, where your shopping thirst might be quenched and of course where Belgian chocolate began. This is one of Europe's oldest covered shopping arcades, itself a 19th-century architectural landmark just a few minutes from Grand-Place.
Ommegang
As mentioned in my earlier blog on Brussels (Bruxelles) - Outer districts, I arrived in Brussels in August and hence I missed the famous Ommegang of Brussels (Ommegang de Bruxelles), although I did read a lot about this in the City Museum. The processional parade is a lavish commemoration of the victory entry into the city of the Holy Roman Emperor (Latin: Imperator Romanorum) Charles V (German: Karl V, né Karl Habsburg) presenting his son as his heir, and is now mainly staged in the Grand-Place. However the real beginning came much earlier in the 14th century, way before the town square was constructed, when it was a Christian processing honouring a statue of Mary (Hebrew: מרים, Miryam).
The tradition declined and effectively died out in the 18th century. What exists today is a 1930 revival, deliberately reconstructed from historical descriptions of that 14th century Charles V event, staged annually in late June or early July with more than a thousand participants processing towards the Grand-Place.
Ommegang in Dutch simply means to 'roam around' and it signifies the leisure and happy nature of this procession. Today it is an important tradition of the great processions of notable riders and giants that are found everywhere in Belgium and France, and has become an important ICH. This ICH really threads the physicality of Grand Place with the civic-religious life together.
Eat and Drink
Moules-frites
Moules-frites (mussel-fries) is the national dish of Belgium, and originates from the Flemish coasts with a humble origin as it was simply considered cheap. The correct way to eat the mussel is to use the mussel shell as a clamp to ply open the mussel and pick out the meat like a pair of tongs. There are a large variety of flavours, and my favourite is moules marinière, which is white-wine based broth. The dish can be found in every block.
Travel Suggestions and Logistics
All these sites can be completed by foot on a full day of walk, and Brussels itself is well connected by metro. Clearly I would recommend a Brussels visit of at least a week to fully immerse into its classic atmosphere, as Brussels is a massive city. The entrance fee to the City Museum is EUR €8.
UNESCO Inscriptions
La Grand-Place in Brussels is a remarkably homogeneous body of public and private buildings, dating mainly from the late 17th century. The architecture provides a vivid illustration of the level of social and cultural life of the period in this important political and commercial centre.
Ommegang of Brussels, an annual historical procession and popular festival takes place annually over two evenings in July in the historic centre of Brussels. The celebration begins with a crossbow competition and a ceremony in Sablon Church. In the surrounding streets, various groups form a large procession. The procession follows a 1.5 km route through the city to the Grand-Place, where the groups join the Magistrate of Brussels and bearers of various forms of living heritage. Together, they march around and some groups partake in an organic performance that has evolved since 1930. Having originated as a religious event in 1348, the tradition declined in the 18th century and the modern Ommegang was then recreated in 1928-1930 based on descriptions of the procession Charles V attended in 1549. Nowadays, the tradition has evolved into a festive, local heritage event. Among the participants are various groups of volunteers who meet and prepare their roles together, encouraging younger members to get involved. These groups have become club associations which, during the Ommegang in early July, meet and socialize with other groups. Children attend with their parents, and many people have been involved for forty or fifty years. The viability of the practice is constantly monitored, and the association overseeing the Ommegang is continuously engaged in preparing and promoting the next event.
References
Comments
Please share your thoughts and comments about the blog. If you need suggestions to build a travel itinerary, please let me know. More than willing to help. I would also like to build a bespoke-in-depth travel community around UNESCO WHS and ICH.
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