See also: Royal Place

The hill of Coudenberg, where current the Royal Place is (in Dutch: Koningsplein ) was during nearly seven centuries the site of the castle, then of the Ancien palate of Coudenberg, seat of the capacity of the dukes of the Brabant.

Following a violent one sets fire to who devastates the palate in 1731, several projects of refitting of this space are proposed: Annessens and Royet, inter alia, proposed a style of Royal Place traditional. But these outlines remain in suspends during long years, for lack of money.

In 1774, to celebrate the 25e birthday of the reign of Charles-Alexandre of Lorraine, one decides realization of a statue. As it is out of the question to rebuild a palate at this place (meanwhile the court had settled with palate Nassau the Orange), this space is dedicated to the construction of a royal place, decorated of a statue of the governor and would be thus intended only to represent the political power: the Place of Lorraine is inaugurated.

The Barré architect played a big role in the development of the project. Its plans show us that it intended to open the place on a street which would create a direct axis with the church Saint-Jacques-on-Coudenberg, bored which had such an urban goal symbolic system but. He also imagined other openings which are still present today (street of Regency, street of Namur).

But this plan was modified towards 1780 by the architect Joachim Zinner, who imagined the comparison of the place with the Palate of Charles of Lorraine and the Parc of Brussels (sheltering the statue of the Marie-Therese empress). This new district, designed on a structure connecting three strategic points, aimed at unchoking this part of the city.

Thereafter, of the gantries were imagined by Barnabé Guimard for the openings, in order to give to the perimeter more coherence.

The statue of the governor Charles-Alexandre of Lorraine is carried out by Verschaffelt. The pedestrian statue is preferred with the formula of the equestrian statue, because it represents less the authority with the direction forcing of the term. It is the statue of a lit, organizing sovereign of his territories, and either a machine of war. The development of the statue is ensured by the perimeter. Thus, the place, with the regular buildings pointing out the harmony of the Lights, constitutes a kind of architectural niche for the statue, avoiding to him floating in space. The vacuum which is between the buildings and the statue is not useless, it has on the contrary a symbolic system role and policy, because it is thanks to him that the population will be able to make the experiment of a proximity with its personified sovereign (and either an allegory of the capacity) and with the rules of sociability in force. The vacuum makes it possible to the people to maintain a daily proximity with the capacity the city.

Under the domination of the French revolutionists, the statue molten and is transformed into coins. Later, one will think of replacing this statue by a tree of Freedom.

It will be replaced at the 19th century by a representation of Godefroy de Bouillon, at one time or the young person Belgium is in search for patriotic reference marks. A new statue of Charles-Alexandre of Lorraine is set up Place of the Museum.

External bond

• virtual Visit of the Royal Place.