The residence, known as the Coudenberg Palace, was the seat of counts, dukes, regents, kings and emperors. It was the pride of Brussels.
Holy Roman Emperor Charles V was the most powerful man in Europe in the early 16th century, running a territory that sprawled across the continent and beyond, to the New World.
The French seized control of the territory, effectively ending the Hapsburg rule from Vienna. But the Parisian overlords were initially unsure what to do with their newly-conquered land.
Belgium was once a patchwork of semi-independent duchies, counties, lordships and most puzzling, a principality ruled by a bishop.
Philippe spent most of his life lingering in the shadows of his older brother, who would later become King Leopold II.
Copyright © 2025 The Brussels Times. All Rights Reserved.
