Leuven Town Hall

Leuven Town Hall stands on the Grote Markt in Leuven, the capital of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium, opposite the Church of St Peter. It was built between 1448 and 1469 on the orders of the city magistrates at a time when Leuven was a major cloth-producing and trading centre, and before its university, founded in 1425, took over as the main source of prestige. The design is attributed to Sulpitius van Vorst, and after his death Matheus de Layens oversaw the construction. The building is a rectangular block in Brabantine late Gothic style, with three storeys of tall windows, pointed gables, and eight slender corner turrets rising above a steep roof. The exterior is covered with elaborate stone tracery. The niches on the facade stood empty for centuries, and between about 1850 and 1865 they were filled with 236 statues representing figures from local and regional history, including counts and dukes of Brabant, scholars, artists and biblical characters. The town hall survived World War I, during which German troops burned much of Leuven in August 1914 and destroyed the university library, and was also spared in 1940. It has been restored in several campaigns and the stonework is regularly maintained. Visitors can see the interior only on guided tours at fixed times. The tours pass through the Gothic Hall, the Mayor's Office and the Council Chamber, with rich panelling, paintings and chandeliers, and explain the 19th-century statue programme. The interior combines medieval structure with later decoration, and the tour is typically presented in chronological order, from the building's origins to its modern role. The town hall remains in official use for weddings and receptions.