Brussels Park

As you head toward the Royal Palace, you’re walking through Brussels Park, which was once known as the Royal Park.This is the oldest park in the city and also the first one to be declared public. It was built in same time as the Place Royale, both constructed over the ruins of the former palace of the Dukes of Brabant, which once stood atop the Coudenberg hill, one of Brussels’ highest points. The vast castle was destroyed in a fire in 1731, leaving behind only a land of ruins. With no funds to rebuild it, the area was abandoned for decades and was often called the “burnt court.” It wasn’t until 1775 that the city finally decided to transform the area into a park and a square. Architects and gardeners worked for years to create this elegant neoclassical park, which is symbolically located between two major powers that govern the country—on one side, the Federal Parliament, and on the other, the Royal Palace.