Palais du Coudenberg

Brussels, Belgium

---

The Palais du Coudenberg in Brussels, Belgium, was a grand royal palace perched on the Coudenberg hill, evolving from a 12th-century fortified castle of the Dukes of Brabant into one of Europe's most splendid residences by the 15th to 18th centuries under rulers like the Dukes of Burgundy, Emperor Charles V, and Archdukes Albert and Isabella.

It served as a political hub, diplomatic center, and pleasure palace with lavish additions like the Gothic Grand Chapel, Renaissance galleries, and the vast Aula Magna hall for receptions and early States General meetings.

Destroyed by a massive fire in 1731 and fully demolished in the 1770s to create the neoclassical Place Royale, its underground archaeological remains including cellars, streets like Rue Isabelle, and foundations are now accessible via a museum tour beneath the modern square.