Grand-Place

The Grand-Place, or Grote Markt in Dutch, is the central square of Brussels, and no other square in Europe is so completely enclosed by ornate buildings. It is a fully paved rectangle of about 68 by 110 m, surrounded on all sides by gilded guildhalls, a Gothic town hall and the neo-Gothic King's House. It began as a market on drained marshland in the 11th century and became the seat of city government in the 15th century. It was pedestrianised in 1990, and in 1998 it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

On the south side stands the Town Hall, built in stages between 1401 and 1455. Its openwork spire rises about 96 m and is topped by a 2.7 m gilded statue of St Michael slaying the devil. Opposite, the King's House was built for the dukes of Brabant, although no king ever lived there; its Dutch name, Broodhuis or "bread house", recalls the bread market that stood on the site. Its present form is a romantic neo-Gothic rebuilding of 1874–96, and it houses the Brussels City Museum. The square's history includes darker moments: in 1568 the Counts of Egmont and Horn were beheaded in front of it, an event that helped spark the revolt of the Netherlands against Spain.

The guildhalls that make the square so harmonious are younger than they look. In August 1695, during the Nine Years' War, French artillery bombarded Brussels and burned almost the whole square, sparing only the town hall's stone façade and tower, which the gunners had used as their target. The guilds rebuilt within about four years, under rules laid down by the city that kept the frontages in line, and the result is an unusually unified Baroque ensemble. It is full of individual details, with house names such as the Swan. Victor Hugo lived in one of the houses in 1852.

The square is at its best early in the morning before the crowds, or after dark when the façades are lit. In August of even-numbered years a carpet of nearly a million begonias or dahlias fills the centre for a few days, a tradition begun in 1971. At the turn of June and July the Ommegang pageant ends here, and a Christmas tree and light shows fill the square in winter. The streets around it form a large pedestrian zone in the centre of Brussels.

Getting there

The Grand-Place is in the pedestrian centre of Brussels, a few hundred metres from Brussels-Central railway station. Brussels Airport (BRU), about 11 km away at Zaventem, has trains every 10–20 minutes to the city's three main stations, including Central.