Church of Our Lady of Laeken
Encyclopedia
The Church of Our Lady of Laeken is a neo-Gothic Roman Catholic church in Laeken, Brussels
. It was originally built in memory of Queen Louise-Marie, wife of King Leopold I
to the design of architect Joseph Poelaert
.
Louise-Marie died in Ostend
in 1850 and wished to be buried in Laeken. The nearby Royal Castle of Laeken was, and still is, the royal residence. Leopold I wished the church to be constructed in her memory and as a mausoleum for her.
The young architect Joseph Poelaert
was chosen to design the new church. (He later became best known for the Law Courts of Brussels
.)
The first stone was laid by Leopold I in 1854. The church was consecrated in 1872, but not completed until 1909 after a lengthy interruption of the work. The crypt holds the tombs of the Belgian royal family, including those of all the former Belgian kings. These tombs include:
The adjacent Laeken Cemetery
behind the church is sometimes known as the "Belgian Père Lachaise" because it used to be the burial place of the rich and the famous.
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
. It was originally built in memory of Queen Louise-Marie, wife of King Leopold I
Leopold I of Belgium
Leopold I was from 21 July 1831 the first King of the Belgians, following Belgium's independence from the Netherlands. He was the founder of the Belgian line of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
to the design of architect Joseph Poelaert
Joseph Poelaert
Joseph Poelaert was a Belgian architect.- Life :Born in Brussels to Philip Poelaert , a former architecture student at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Poelaert also trained there under Tilman-François Suys, and then in Paris under Louis Visconti and Jean-Nicolas Huyot.Poelaert...
.
Louise-Marie died in Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
in 1850 and wished to be buried in Laeken. The nearby Royal Castle of Laeken was, and still is, the royal residence. Leopold I wished the church to be constructed in her memory and as a mausoleum for her.
The young architect Joseph Poelaert
Joseph Poelaert
Joseph Poelaert was a Belgian architect.- Life :Born in Brussels to Philip Poelaert , a former architecture student at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Poelaert also trained there under Tilman-François Suys, and then in Paris under Louis Visconti and Jean-Nicolas Huyot.Poelaert...
was chosen to design the new church. (He later became best known for the Law Courts of Brussels
Law Courts of Brussels
The Law Courts of Brussels or Brussels Palace of Justice is the most important Court building in Belgium, and is a notable landmark of Brussels. It was built between 1866 and 1883 in the eclectic style by architect Joseph Poelaert...
.)
The first stone was laid by Leopold I in 1854. The church was consecrated in 1872, but not completed until 1909 after a lengthy interruption of the work. The crypt holds the tombs of the Belgian royal family, including those of all the former Belgian kings. These tombs include:
- Leopold II of BelgiumLeopold II of BelgiumLeopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...
- Baudouin of Belgium
- Elisabeth of Bavaria (1876–1965)
- Prince Leopold, Duke of BrabantPrince Leopold, Duke of BrabantPrince Leopold of Belgium, Duke of Brabant, Count of Hainaut , was the second child and only son and heir-apparent of Leopold II of Belgium and his wife, Archduchess Marie Henriette of...
- Prince Baudouin of BelgiumPrince Baudouin of BelgiumPrince Baudouin of Belgium , born in Brussels, was the first child and eldest son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders and his wife, Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen.Baudouin was the nephew of Leopold II of Belgium...
- Charlotte of BelgiumCharlotte of BelgiumCharlotte of Belgium is remembered today as Carlota of Mexico as empress consort of Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico, ex-Archduke of Austria.-Princess of Belgium:The only daughter of Leopold I, King of the Belgians by his second wife,...
, later known as Carlota of Mexico, empress consort of Emperor Maximilian I of MexicoMaximilian I of MexicoMaximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
The adjacent Laeken Cemetery
Laeken Cemetery
The Laeken Cemetery , located in Laeken in the northern part of Brussels, is one of the major cemeteries in Belgium.-Description:...
behind the church is sometimes known as the "Belgian Père Lachaise" because it used to be the burial place of the rich and the famous.