Brussels Town Hall

Brief Information

The tower of Brussels Town Hall does not stand at the center of the facade, and this is not a builder’s mistake. The left part of the building appeared first, together with the bell tower; the right wing was added later, when the city authorities and craft guilds were already shifting the balance of power. As a result, the facade reads as the outcome of gradual expansion rather than as a symmetrical scheme drawn in advance.

The Town Hall on the Grand Place was a symbol of urban independence and survived the bombardment of 1695, although it was the main target. After the fire, the walls and tower remained, while the Cloth Hall that had burned down nearby gave way to new wings. Thus, its present appearance combines Gothic verticality, traces of forced reconstruction, and later rear sections of the building.

What to Notice First

It is worth comparing the left and right wings of the facade: the right one is shorter because there was less space for it, and the tower could no longer end up exactly in the middle. The pointed portal in the square base of the tower shows the building’s Gothic foundation, while higher up the form changes: the square turns into an openwork octagonal lantern tower with arcades, parapets, and gargoyles.

One particular detail explains the asymmetry better than the legend of the architect who died. For strength, Jan van Ruysbroeck added a buttress, and the first windows of the facade became half-blind. On the spire stands a gilded statue of Saint Michael, the patron saint of Brussels; it transforms the tower from a simple vertical landmark into a civic emblem. The U-shaped plan and the rear wing with the States Hall recall that the town hall not only looked out onto the square, but also continually adapted to new functions of power.