Church of Our Lady of Laeken

The church was founded on the initiative of the first king of Belgium, Leopold I. He fulfilled the last will of his wife, Queen Louise-Marie, who, before her death in 1850, expressed her wish to be buried in Laeken.​
Construction of this impressive church began in 1854. The project was made by the outstanding architect Joseph Poelaert. However, he worked on the construction of the church only for some time, because he later devoted himself to the implementation of his most famous project, the Palace of Justice.

The church was consecrated in 1872 a year. However, due to financial problems it was not completed until 1907 a year. In the last phase, the project was led by architect Fridrich von Schmidt, who is responsible for building the central belfry, which is one of the highest in Belgium, and part of the facade.

The church has a crypt in which members of the royal family are buried. In the royal chapel, which is no longer used for worship, you can see a permanent exhibition devoted to the life and work of Cardinal Joseph-Leon Cardijn, founder of JOC (Catholic Working Youth). Many personalities of the 19th century are buried in the cemetery next to the church.

In the crypt of the Royal Family rest:

King Leopold
King Leopold II
King Albert I
Queen Elisabeth of Bavaria
King Baudouin
Queen Fabiola
Leopold, Prince of Brabant
Prince Baudouin
Princess Charlotte

Address: 

Parvis Notre-Dame, B- 1020 Brussels

Opening hours: 

tuesday-saturday: 14.00-17.00

Ticket price: 

Free entrance