Timeline of Brussels: Difference between revisions

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The following is a timeline of the history of Brussels, Belgium.

Prehistory

• 3000–2200 BCE – First known settlements in the region during the Neolithic era, located in the Sonian Forest.
• 1000–800 BCE – Celtic tribes settle in what is now Brussels.

Roman Period

• 1st century CE – A Roman villa is constructed in Anderlecht, located near today's Allée de la Villa Romaine/Romeinse-Villadreef.
• 2nd century CE – A Gallo-Roman villa is constructed in Jette, located in today's King Baudouin Park.
• 175 CE – A Roman villa in existence in Laeken.

Middle Ages

Charles of Lorraine founded what would become Brussels, c. 979.

• 4th–6th centuries CE – Frankish tribes occupy territories between the Meuse and Scheldt rivers.
• 580 – Saint Gaugericus builds a chapel on an island in the river Senne, laying the origin of the settlement which was to become Brussels.
• 843 – 10 August: The region becomes part of Lotharingia after the signing of the Treaty of Verdun.
• 870 – First mention of the County of Uccle or Brussels in the Treaty of Meerssen.
• 977–979 – A castrum is constructed.
• 979 – Charles, Duke of Lower Lorraine, transfers the relics of Saint Gudula to the chapel built by Saint Gaugericus, marking the city's official founding.
• 959 – The city becomes part of Lower Lotharingia.
• 1001 – Otto, Duke of Lower Lorraine, becomes Count of Uccle or Brussels.
• 1012 – Saint Guy dies in Anderlecht on his return home from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
• 1015–1020 – Oldest written record of the city by Olbert of Gembloux.
• 1041–1047 – Palace of Coudenberg is built.
• 1047 – The relics of Saint Gudula are transferred from Moorsel to the original Church of St. Michael.
• 1063–1100 – The first fortifications are built.
• 1095 – Dieleghem Abbey first attested.
• 1105 – Forest Abbey is founded.
• 1142 or 1147 – The Battle of Ransbeek takes place.
• 1183 – The Duchy of Brabant is formed after the merger of the Counties of Uccle or Brussels and Leuven and the Landgraviate of Brabant.
• 1190 – Richard I of England passes through the city.
• 1195 – Saint John Clinic is established.
• 1196 – La Cambre Abbey is founded.
• 1225 – Construction begins on the current Church of St. Michael and St. Gudula.
• 1229 – 10 June: Henry I, Duke of Brabant, issues a charter of rights for the city.
• 1250 – The Great Beguinage is formalised by John the Victorious.
• 1252 – The Beguinage of Anderlecht is founded.
• 1267 – John the Victorious relocates the capital of the Duchy of Brabant from Leuven to the city.
• 1282 – First mention of the Drapery Court.
• 1292 – John the Victorious grants the town the right to revenues collected at the city gates.
• 1295 – John the Peaceful authorises aldermen to collect duty on beer as a town revenue.
• 1296 – 14 February: Obbrussel becomes part of the Coop of Brussels.
• 1303–1306
  • Unsuccessful revolt by the Guilds of Brussels to secure power-sharing with the patriciate.
  • First democratic government.
• 1304 – The Church of Our Blessed Lady of the Sablon is founded.
• 1306 – Seven Noble Houses of Brussels first attested.
• 1308 – The Meyboom is first attested.
• 1348 – The Ommegang begins as a Marian procession.
• 1349
  • The Black Death arrives in the city.
  • Pogrom against the Jewish population.
• 1356
  • The Joyous Entry of Joanna and Wenceslaus into the city takes place.
  • 17 August: Battle of Scheut: Louis II, Count of Flanders defeats Joanna, Duchess of Brabant, who then besieges Brussels.
  • 24 October – The city is liberated by group of Brabantian patriots led by Everard 't Serclaes, Lord of Kruikenburg.
  • The expansion of the city's fortifications begins.
• 1367 – Red Cloister is founded.
• 1370 – The Sacrament of Miracle occurs, killing 6–20, followed by the expulsion of the city's remaining Jewish population.
• 1380 – Geert Pipenpoy becomes the city's first mayor.
• 1383 – The original Halle Gate is built.
• 1388 – 31 March: Everard t'Serclaes dies at the L'Étoile/De Sterre guildhall on the Grand-Place/Grote Markt.
• 1401 – The Town Hall begins construction on the Grand-Place.
• 1421
  • Popular uprising.
  • The guilds are represented in the city government alongside the patrician lineages of the Seven Noble Houses.
• 1436 – Rogier van der Weyden appointed city artist.
• 1455
  • The Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament of the Miracle is built.
  • The Town Hall is completed.
• 1476 – The first printing press is in operation in the city.
• 1477
  • The Habsburgs come to power in the Burgundian Netherlands, with the city as their capital.
  • Popular insurrection.

16th–18th centuries

• 1511 – The Miracle of 1511 takes place.
• 1515 – 28 January: Joyous Entry of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and Philip the Prudent.
• 1521 – May–October: Erasmus moves to Anderlecht for health, political, and religious reasons and stays in the house of Canon Peter Wijchmans.
• 1536 – The original King's House is built on the Grand-Place for the Duke of Brabant.
• 1555 – 25 October: Charles V abdicates in the Aula Magna of the Palace of Coudenberg.
• 1561 – The city's port and the Willebroek Canal are opened.
• 1567 – August 22: The Duke of Alba arrives in the city.
• 1568 – The Counts of Egmont and Horn are executed at the Grand-Place.
• 1575 – A plague outbreak kills thousands.
• 1576 – 4 September: The Calvinist Republic of Brussels is founded.
• 1577 – 24 September: The Joyous Entry of William the Silent into the city takes place.
• 1580 – 9–10 July: The city tries to capture Halle under command of Olivier van den Tympel.
• 1585 – 10 March: The city is besieged by the Army of Flanders.
• 1595 – The Kaiserliche Reichspost postal service is established in the city.

Ommegang of Brussels in 1615

• 1607 – Brussels Carmel is founded.
• 1619
  • The original Manneken Pis statue is commissioned.
  • 12 July: A riot breaks out after the city imposes a tax on wine and beer (the gigot).
• 1622 – The funeral of Archduke Albert VII takes place.
• 1646 – The Small Beguinage is founded.
• 1672 – Fort of Monterey is built.

Brussels in the 17th century

• 1695 – 13–15 August: The city is bombarded by the French, destroying a third of its buildings, including the Grand-Place.

The Grand-Place/Grote Markt in flames during the bombardment of Brussels in 1695

• 1697–1698: Reconstruction of the Grand-Place is largely completed.
• 1698 – 1 May: Manneken Pis receives his first costume from the Governor of the Austrian Netherlands, Maximilian II Emanuel of Bavaria.
• 1700 – The first Theatre of La Monnaie, then spelled La Monnoye, is built.
• 1705 – Fort Jaco is built.
• 1706 – The English–Dutch army enters Brussels.
• 1711 – The Royal Academy of Fine Arts is established.
• 1714
  • The Belfry of Brussels collapses.
  • March 6: Treaty of Rastatt is signed; the city becomes part of the Austrian Netherlands.
• 1717 – 14–18 April: Peter the Great visits the city.
• 1719 – François Anneessens is executed at the Grand-Place.
• 1731 – 3–4 February: The Palace of Coudenberg is destroyed by fire.
• 1744 – Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine enters the city.
• 1746 – The city is besieged and captured by the French.
• 1749 – January: The city is returned to Austria with the rest of the Austrian Netherlands following the 1748 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle.
• 1772
  • The Imperial and Royal Academy is established.
  • The Opéra flamand is established.
• 1774 – The Rue Royale/Koningsstraat is laid out.
• 1775
  • Brussels Park is laid out.
  • The Place des Martyrs/Martelaarsplein is laid out.
• 1778 – The Palace of the Nation begins construction.
• 1779 – The Brussels Arsenal is built.
• 1781 – Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor visits the city.
• 1782
  • The Place Royale/Koningsplein is laid out.
  • The Royal Park Theatre opens.
• 1787 – The Vauxhall opens.
• 1783 – The Royal Palace of Brussels begins construction.
• 1784
  • The city's gates are demolished, except for the Halle Gate.
  • The Palace of Schonenberg is built.
• 1787 – The Church of St. James on Coudenberg is consecrated.
• 1789 – The Brabant Revolution reaches the city and makes the Austrian authorities flee.
• 1790
  • 11 January: The city becomes the capital of the United Belgian States.
  • 2 December: The Austrians take the city back and pledge to reverse the reforms of Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor.
• 1792 – 14 November: General Charles-François Dumouriez enters the city.
• 1795 – The French rule begins; the city becomes part of the department of the Dyle.
• 1796
  • The Guilds of Brussels are suppressed.
  • La Cambre Abbey and Forest Abbey are abolished.
  • The Church of St. Gaugericus is demolished.

19th century

• 1801 – 8 July: The Brussels Stock Exchange is founded by decree of Napoleon.
• 1803
  • The Museum of Fine Arts opens.
  • First Consul Napoleon visits the city.
• 1806 – 25 March: The Academy of Brussels, an academy of the Imperial University of France, is established.
• 1810
  • Official visit by Emperor Napoleon.
  • 19 May: Ordinance to built the Small Ring.
• 1813 – The Royal Conservatory of Brussels is founded.
• 1815
  • The Duchess of Richmond's ball takes place.
  • The city becomes the joint capital of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
• 1819
  • The new Theatre of La Monnaie is inaugurated.
  • The city is illuminated by gas.
• 1822 – The Société Générale de Belgique is headquartered in the city.
• 1826
  • The Botanical Garden of Brussels is founded.
  • The Royal Observatory of Belgium is founded.

Episode of the Belgian Revolution of 1830, Gustaf Wappers, 1834

• 1830
  • 25 August: The Belgian Revolution starts in the city.
  • The Royal Theatre Toone is founded.
  • Population: 98,279 city; 120,981 metro.
• 1831
  • 7 February: The Constitution of Belgium is ratified; the city becomes the capital of the Kingdom of Belgium.
  • 21 July: The coronation of King Leopold I takes place at the Place Royale/Koningsplein.
• 1832
  • A cholera epidemic kills over 3,000.
  • 22 September: The Brussels–Charleroi Canal is officially opened.
• 1834 – 24 June: The Free University of Brussels is founded.

Opening of the Brussels–Mechelen railway on 5 May 1835

• 1835 – 5 May: The first passenger train on a public railway in continental Europe departs from the Allée Verte/Groendreef railway station.
• 1837 – 19 June: The Royal Library of Belgium is founded.
• 1845
  • Saint Mary's Royal Church begins construction.
  • First telegraph line links the city with Antwerp.
• 1846
  • The Museum of Natural Sciences is founded.
  • Population: 123,874.
• 1847
  • The Avenue Louise/Louizalaan is commissioned.
  • May: Systematic construction of sidewalks begins.
  • 20 June: The Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries open.
• 1848 – September: The second International Peace Congress is held in the city.
• 1850 – Population: 142,289 city; 222,424 metro.

View into Brussels along the Brussels–Charleroi Canal from Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, c. 1855

• 1853 – 7 April: The European Quarter is annexed from Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Etterbeek and Schaerbeek by the City of Brussels.
• 1855
  • The Brussels-Luxembourg railway station is built.
  • Last public execution is held at Halle Gate.
• 1856 – The reconstructed Royal Theatre of La Monnaie opens.
• 1857
  • The Ancienne Belgique opens.
  • Saint-Louis University moves to the city from Mechelen.
  • First municipal water service is established.
• 1859 – The Congress Column is erected.
• 1860
  • Population: 185,982 city; 300,341 metro.
  • Duties and tolls on goods entering the city are abolished.
• 1861 – The Bois de la Cambre/Ter Kamerenbos is laid out.
• 1864 – The Avenue Louise and Bois de la Cambre are annexed from Ixelles by the City of Brussels.
• 1868 – The Wiertz Museum opens.
• 1869 – Trams begin operating in the city.
• 1871
  • The covering of the Senne takes place; the Central Boulevards are laid out.
  • The Bank of Brussels is established.
  • The Halle Gate is renovated in the neo-Gothic style.
• 1873
  • The new building for the Brussels Stock Exchange is completed.
  • The daily Old Market on the Place du Jeu de Balle/Vossenplein is established.
• 1874
  • The Royal Greenhouses of Laeken begin construction.
  • 23 December: Les Tramways Bruxellois is formed.
• 1877
  • Ixelles Cemetery is created.
  • 6 May: The Musical Instruments Museum opens.
• 1880
  • A National Exhibition is held to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Belgian independence.
    • The Parc du Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark is laid out.
  • The White slave trade affair scandal is exposed and attracts international attention.
  • The Midi Fair begins.
• 1881 – L'Echo newspaper begins its publication.
• 1883 – The Palace of Justice is inaugurated.
• 1885
  • Population: 171,751.
  • 15 June: Saint-Gilles Prison opens.
• 1886 – The city is linked by telephone to Paris.
• 1887
  • Le Soir newspaper begins its publication.
  • The Palace for Fine Arts is built.
  • The Brussels City Museum opens in the King's House.
  • 1 October: The Brussels Arsenal reopens as the Royal Flemish Theatre.
• 1888
  • Het Laatste Nieuws newspaper begins its publication.
  • 24 November: The first Saint Verhaegen/Sint-Verhaegen takes place as a student protest against a reorganisation of the Free University.
• 1889 – 18 November: The Brussels Anti-Slavery Conference 1889–90 begins.
• 1890
  • The Abattoirs of Anderlecht enter service as a central abattoir for the whole city.
  • The Square du Petit Sablon/Kleine Zavelsquare is laid out.
• 1891
  • August: The International Socialist Labor Congress is held in the city.
  • 12 December: VIVAQUA is established.
• 1893
  • The Paris–Brussels cycle race begins.
  • The Hôtel Tassel is built.
  • The Hankar House is built.
  • The Autrique House is built.
• 1894 – The Société Belge d'Études Coloniales is headquartered in the city.
• 1895 – The Hotel Métropole opens at the Place de Brouckère/De Brouckèreplein.
• 1896
  • The King's House is rebuilt in the neo-Gothic style.
  • The Villa Bloemenwerf is built.
  • 1 March: The first public showing of moving pictures takes place in the Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries.
• 1897
  • The Brussels International world's fair is held.
  • The Avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan is laid out.
• 1898 – The Saint Roch Quarter is demolished.
• 1899
  • The Maison du Peuple/Volkshuis is built.
  • 1 October: The Pavilion of Human Passions is inaugurated.
• 1900
  • The Cantillon brewery is founded.
  • New Saint John Clinic is built.
  • 4 April: Edward, Prince of Wales is shot at by Jean-Baptiste Sipido at Brussels-North railway station.

20th century

Equestrian Statue of Leopold II, Place du Trône/Troonplein, Brussels

• 1901 – The Maison & Atelier Horta is built.
• 1902 – 15 November: Attempted assassination of Leopold II by Gennaro Rubino.
• 1904 – 26 June: The Josaphat Park opens.
• 1905
  • The Cauchie House is built.
  • Busses begin operating in the city.
  • 25 September: The Cinquantenaire Arcade opens.
• 1908 – The Chapel of the Resurrection is built.
• 1910
  • The Hôtel Astoria opens.
  • 23 April–1 November: The Brussels International world's fair is held.

The 1911 Solvay Conference in Brussels was the first world physics conference.

• 1911
  • The Stoclet Palace is built.
  • The North–South connection begins construction.
  • 30 October–3 November: The first Solvay Conference is held.
• 1914
  • 11 May–4 June: The Great Zwanz Exhibition is held.
  • 21 August: The city is captured and occupied by the German Army.
• 1915 – Edith Cavell is executed by firing squad at the Tir National/Nationale Schietbaan.
• 1917 – The Constant Vanden Stock Stadium opens.
• 1918 – 21 August: King Albert I returns to the city.
• 1919
  • The Lignes Farman airline begins operating its Paris–Brussels route.
  • Population: 685,268 metro.
• 1920 – The Oscar Bossaert Stadium opens.
• 1921 – 30 March: Haren, Laeken and Neder-Over-Heembeek are annexed by the City of Brussels.
• 1922
  • The Experimental Garden Jean Massart is established.
  • 12 November: Tour & Taxis officially opens.
• 1923
  • The Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History opens.
  • The Brugmann Hospital opens.
  • 23 May: The Societé anonyme belge d'Exploitation de la Navigation aérienne (Sabena) is established.
• 1927 – 24–29 October: The fifth Solvay Conference, perhaps the most famous, is held.
• 1928
  • The Charlier Museum opens.
  • The Villa van Buuren is built.
• 1929
  • 4 January: Tintin first appears in Le Petit Vingtième.
  • 19 October: The Centre for Fine Arts opens.
• 1930
  • The Hotel Le Plaza opens.
  • 18 June: The National Institute for Radio Broadcast (NIR) established.
  • 23 August: The Jubilee Stadium opens.
• 1931 – The Brussels Symphony Orchestra is founded.
• 1934
  • The Villa Empain is built.
  • The Citroën Garage is built.
  • 22 February: The funeral of King Albert I takes place.
• 1935
  • The Brussels International world's fair is held; the Palais des Expositions is built.
  • The Basilica of the Sacred Heart is consecrated.
• 1937 – The Queen Elisabeth Competition begins.
• 1938
  • The Royal Belgian Film Archive is established.
  • The Flagey Building is built.
• 1939 – The Constantin Meunier Museum opens.
• 1940
  • 17 May
    • World War II: The German occupation begins.
    • Belgian Government flees the city to Bordeaux.
  • 31 May: The German Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France is headquartered in the city.
  • 1 July: The Zéro intelligence network in formed by employees of the Bank of Brussels.
  • 20 July: The Frontstalag 110 prisoner-of-war camp is established by the Germans.
  • 31 July: The Radio Bruxelles and Zender Brussel radio stations are established by the Military Administration.
  • 15 August: La Libre Belgique clandestine newspaper begins its publication.
  • 17 December: The Belgian National Movement is established.
• 1941
  • 1 February: Le Drapeau Rouge and De Roode Vaan clandestine newspapers begin its publication by the Communist Party of Belgium.
  • 13 March: The Frontstalag 110 POW camp is dissolved.
  • 29 May: The 'Hunger march for the release of prisoners of war', 3,000 women rally behind slogans and march trough the city.
  • 18 August: The Comet Line starts operating.
  • 10 October: Bombing of the Rex headquarters at Rue de Laeken/Lakensestraat, Jean-Joseph Oedekerken is killed.
  • 25 November: The Free University of Brussels closes.
• 1942
  • January: Groupe G is formed by a group of former students of the Free University of Brussels.
  • 10 March: Violence erupts in the city during a parade of the Walloon Legion before leaving for the Eastern Front, marked by bombings and attacks from communist militants against collaborators and military targets.
  • 3 September: A razzia occurs in the Marolles/Marollen, 718 are arrested and transported to Dossin.
  • 24 September: Greater Brussels is formed by merging 18 municipalities into the City of Brussels; Jan Grauls is appointed mayor.
• 1943
  • 20 January: Attack on the Gestapo headquarters by Baron Jean de Selys Longchamps DFC.
  • 14 April: Paul Colin is assassinated by Arnaud Fraiteur.
  • 7 September: The city is bombarded by the Allies, killing 342.

Scenes of jubilation as British troops liberate Brussels, 4 September 1944

• 1944
  • 1 August: Attacks in the city against the Occupier and collaborators, they retaliated and execute 30 people.
  • 23 August: 15 people are executed by the Occupier.
  • 3–4 September: The city is liberated by the Welsh Guards; the Palace of Justice is burnt by the Germans to destroy legal records during their retreat.
  • 8 September: The Belgian government in exile returns to the city after four years in London.
  • 20 September: Prince Charles, Count of Flanders takes becomes regent.
  • 20 November: The Free University of Brussels reopens.
  • 15 December: The District of Brussels, formed by Nazi Germany, is no longer in control of the territory.
• 1948
  • The Treaty of Brussels, founding the Western Union (WU), is signed.
  • Brussels Airport opens.
• 1950
  • 1 August: King Leopold III ask the Government and Parliament to vote on a law delegating his powers to Prince Baudouin, Duke of Brabant.
  • 11 August: Prince Baudouin, Duke of Brabant, becomes regent and becomes the Prince Royal.
  • 23–27 August: The city hosts the 1950 European Athletics Championships.
• 1951 – 17 July: The coronation of King Baudouin takes place in the Palace of the Nation.
• 1952 – The North–South connection is completed; Brussels-Central railway station and Brussels-South railway station open.
• 1953 – Transports Intercommunaux de Bruxelles is formed replacing Les Tramways Bruxellois as the city's main public transport operator.
• 1956: The Atomium starts construction.

The Atomium and cable car during the 1958 Brussels World's Fair (Expo 58)

• 1958
  • 17 April–19 October: Expo 58 world's fair is held.
  • The city becomes one of the seats of the European Community.
• 1959 – The State Administrative Center begins construction.
• 1960
  • The city hosts the Congolese Round Table Conference.
  • Ballet of the 20th Century contemporary dance company is established.
  • 1 November: The city becomes the seat of the Secretariat-General of the Benelux.
  • 15 December: The wedding of King Baudouin and Fabiola de Mora y Aragón takes place.
• 1961
  • 15 February: Sabena Flight 548 crashes on approach to Brussels Airport, killing all 72 people on board and one person on the ground.
  • 21 December: The Film Museum is founded.
• 1962
  • The Royal Institute for Theatre, Cinema and Sound (RITCS) is established.
• 1963 – 2 August: Brussels becomes part of the bilingual area Brussels-Capital.
• 1965 – The Maison du Peuple/Volkshuis is demolished and is replaced with the Sablon Tower.
• 1967
  • The South Tower is built.
  • 1 May: The European Commission starts moving into the Berlaymont.
  • 22 May: The À L'Innovation department store is destroyed by fire.
  • 16 October: NATO's headquarters are established in the city.
• 1968 – May: Student demonstrations at the Free University of Brussels.
• 1969
  • The Brussels Hilton opens.
  • 1 October: The Free University splits along linguistic lines into the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).
• 1970 – 8 October: Forest National/Vorst Nationaal opens.
• 1971
  • The Flower carpet begins at the Grand-Place.
  • 26 July: The Brussels Agglomeration is created.
  • 25 November: First and only elections of the Brussels Agglomeration Council.
• 1974 – The Brussels Independent Film Festival begins.
• 1975
  • Bank Brussels Lambert is headquartered in the city.
  • The Université catholique de Louvain's Jardin des plantes médicinales Paul Moens is established.
• 1976
  • 20 September The Brussels Metro begins operating.
  • 28 September: The Brussels Planetarium opens.
• 1978
  • The Brussels Ring is constructed.
  • The RTBF Symphony Orchestra is formed.
• 1979
  • The Archives of the City of Brussels moves into the former Magasins Waucquez.
  • The city celebrates the 1,000th anniversary of its founding.
• 1980
  • The Flemish Community and the French Community of Belgium each designate Brussels as their capital city.
  • Population of the Brussels-Capital Region: 1,008,715.
• 1981
  • 21 March: King Baudouin Park is laid out.
  • 4 December: The Wittockiana is founded by Michel Wittock.
• 1982–1985 – The Brabant Killings occur in and around the city, killing 28 and injuring 22.
• 1982 – The Brussels Urban Transport Museum is established.
• 1983 – 17 May: La Fonderie, Brussels Museum of Industry and Labour, is established.
• 1985
  • 16 May: Pope John Paul II visits the city.
  • 29 May: The Heysel Stadium disaster takes place.
• 1986 – 29 September: Autoworld opens.
• 1988 – Kinepolis Brussels opens.
• 1989
  • 9 March: The Jewish Museum of Belgium opens.
  • 12 June: Mini-Europe opens.
  • 18 June: The Brussels-Capital Region is formed; the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region is established.
  • 12 July: Charles Picqué becomes the first Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region.
  • 6 October: The Belgian Comic Strip Center opens.
• 1990
  • 23 December: The Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company is formed by the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region replacing Transports Intercommunaux de Bruxelles.
  • Population of the Brussels-Capital Region: 964,385.
• 1991 – First comic strip murals is created on the Rue du Marché au Charbon/Kolenmarkt.
• 1993
  • The Espace Léopold opens.
  • 7 August: The funeral of King Baudouin takes place.
  • 9 August: The coronation of King Albert II takes place in the Palace of the Nation.
• 1994
  • The City of Brussels is designated capital of Belgium and seat of the Federal Government.
  • Freddy Thielemans becomes mayor.
  • May: The Kunstenfestivaldesarts (KFDA) is inaugurated.
• 1995
  • The Erasmus Brussels University of Applied Sciences and Arts (EhB) is established.
  • 1 January: The Province of Brabant is split into Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant.
• 1996
  • The South Tower is renovated.
  • 20 October: The White March takes place as a protest against the mishandling of the Dutroux affair.
• 1998
  • The Musical Instruments Museum (MIM) relocates to the Hôtel de Spangen and the former Old England department store.
  • 2 December The Grand-Place is declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• 1999
  • 5 June: The René Magritte Museum opens.
  • 8 September: The Clockarium is established.
  • 4 December: The Wedding of Prince Philippe and Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz takes place.
• 2000
  • The city is named European Capital of Culture alongside eight other European cities.
  • 27 May: The first Zinneke Parade is held.

21st century

• 2001
  • Tour & Taxis begins redevelopment.
  • 13 July: Lambermont Accord is signed, increasing the representation of Dutch speakers in Parliament.
  • 25 October: Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant is born at Erasmus Hospital.
• 2002 – 10 December: The Film Museum in integrated into CINEMATEK.
• 2003 – 20 September: The Wittockiana opens to the public.
• 2004 – The North Galaxy Towers are built.
• 2005 – 19 July: The BELvue Museum opens in the Hôtel Belle-Vue.
• 2006 – The Atomium is renovated.
• 2007
  • The Hogeschool-Universiteit Brussel (HUB) is established.
  • 25 May: The WIELS contemporary art centre opens in the former Wielemans-Ceuppens brewery.
• 2009
  • 2 June: The Magritte Museum opens.
  • 12 December: The funeral of Queen Fabiola takes place.
• 2010 – Population of the Brussels-Capital Region: 1,089,538.
• 2012 – First Picnic the Streets occurs.
• 2013
  • 7 May: Rudi Vervoort becomes Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region.
  • 21 July: The coronation of King Philippe takes place in the Palace of the Nation.
  • 6 December: The Fin-de-Siècle Museum opens.
  • 13 December: Yvan Mayeur becomes mayor.
• 2014
  • 1 January: Odisee is established.
  • 10 March: Vlaams-Brusselse Media forms.
  • 23 May: Choco-Story Brussels is established.
  • 24 May: The Jewish Museum of Belgium shooting occurs, killing 4.
• 2015
  • 25 September: Train World opens in Schaerbeek railway station.
  • 11 December: Design Museum Brussels opens.
• 2016
  • 8 March: The CIVA architectural centre is established.
  • 22 March: The Brussels bombings occur, killing 34 and injuring 230.
• 2017
  • 6 May: The House of European History (HEH) opens.
  • 25 May: NATO's new headquarters open.
• 2018
  • 5 May: KANAL - Centre Pompidou opens in the former Citroën Garage.
  • 12 May: Manneken Pis receives his 1000th costume created by fashion designer Jean-Paul Lespagnard.
• 2019 – 12 October: The MigratieMuseumMigration opens.
• 2020
  • 2 February: The first recorded case of COVID-19 in Belgium after nine Belgian nationals living in Hubei were repatriated.
  • 11 March: First COVID-19 related death in Belgium is confirmed of a 90-year-old female patient from who was being treated in Etterbeek.
  • 18 March: The city joins the rest of Belgium in a nationwide lockdown that lasts until 8 June in an attempt to reduce the number of cases.
• 2023
  • 14 September: The Université Saint-Louis – Bruxelles becomes part of Université catholique de Louvain.
  • 16 October: The Brussels shooting occurs, killing 3 and injuring 1.

See also

• History of Brussels
• List of mayors of the City of Brussels (largest municipality in the Brussels-Capital Region)
• List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region
• Timeline of Belgian history
• Timelines of other municipalities in Belgium: Antwerp, Bruges, Ghent, Leuven, Liège

Bibliography

In English

Published in the 19th century

• New Picture of Brussels, and its Environs, or, Stranger's Guide to the Curiosities of that Interesting City, London: Samuel Leigh, 1820, OCLC 63579821
• "Brussels". Galignani's Traveller's Guide through Holland and Belgium (4th ed.). Paris: A. and W. Galignani. 1822. hdl:2027/njp.32101073846667.
• David Brewster, ed. (1830). "Brussels". Edinburgh Encyclopædia. Edinburgh: William Blackwood.
• "Brussels", Cabinet Cyclopædia, vol. Cities and Principal Towns of the World, London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, & Green, 1830, OCLC 2665202
• "Brussels", A hand-book for travellers on the continent (2nd ed.), London: John Murray, 1838, OCLC 2030550
• Frederick Knight Hunt (1845), "Brussels", The Rhine: its scenery & historical & legendary associations, London: Jeremiah How
• "Brussels". Coghlan's Illustrated Guide to the Rhine (18th ed.). London: Trubner & Co. 1863.
• Stranger's Guide to Brussels and its environs (6th ed.), Kiessling & Co., 1876
• W. Pembroke Fetridge (1885), "Brussels to Antwerp", Harper's hand-book for travellers in Europe and the east, New York: Harper & Brothers

Published in the 20th century

• "Brussels". Chambers's Encyclopaedia. London. 1901. hdl:2027/njp.32101065312876 – via Hathi Trust.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Ernest Gilliat-Smith (1906), The story of Brussels, London: Dent, OL 24358871M
• Ernest Gilliat-Smith (1908). "Brussels". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• "Brussels", Belgium and Holland, Leipzig: Karl Baedeker, 1910, OCLC 397759
• "Brussels". Belgium. Grieben's Guide Books. Vol. 141. London: Williams & Norgate. 1910. hdl:2027/uiuc.3096224_001.

Published in the 21st century

• Anton Kreukels; et al., eds. (2005). "Brussels". Metropolitan Governance and Spatial Planning: Comparative Case Studies of European City-Regions. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-49606-8.
• Xhardez, Catherine (2016). "The integration of new immigrants in Brussels: an institutional and political puzzle". Brussels Studies. Translated by Jane Corrigan. doi:10.4000/brussels.1434. - translation of "L’intégration des nouveaux arrivants à Bruxelles : un puzzle institutionnel et politique"

In other languages

• Almanach royal de la cour, des provinces méridionales et de la ville de Bruxelles (in French). Bruxelles: A. Stapleaux. 1817.
• Marie-Nicolas Bouillet [in French]; L.G. Gourraigne (1914). "Bruxelles". Dictionnaire universel d'histoire et de geographie (in French) (34th ed.). Paris: Hachette.
• Hennaut, Eric (2000). La Grand-Place de Bruxelles. Bruxelles, ville d'Art et d'Histoire (in French). Vol. 3. Brussels: Éditions de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale.
• Henne, Alexandre; Wauters, Alphonse (1845). Histoire de la ville de Bruxelles (in French). Vol. 3. Brussels: Perichon.
• Spapens, Christian (2005). Les Boulevards extérieurs de la Porte de Hal à la Place Rogier. Bruxelles, ville d'Art et d'Histoire (in French). Vol. 40. Brussels: Centre d'information, de Documentation et d'Etude du Patrimoine. ISBN 978-2-96005-026-4.
• Zeiller, Martin (1654). "Brussel". Topographia Circuli Burgundici. Topographia Germaniae (in German). Frankfurt. p. 44+.

External links

• Europeana. Items related to Brussels, various dates.