Tour Val Des Ecoliers, Belgium

BE-94011

Near Mons station (100 meters), you can see, emerging from buildings, a picturesque building also enigmatic, high square tower with four floors, no roof, just crowned with a stone balustrade. It is the tower of the ancient abbey of Val-des-Schoolboys.

The tower of the same name at the front of the rue André Masquelier, is made of white stone and brick. It demonstrates a Renaissance without exaggerations of the time. On the east side, there is a low arch door with finials and brackets, dating from the fifteenth century. North side, the main entrance is topped by a beautiful niche that once housed a statue of the Virgin. Above, barely visible, the arms of the Father Melchior Joseph Honner who rebuilt the abbey. Saved in 1892 In 1876, the city of Mons decreed the demolition of abandoned buildings of the abbey to establish a large section street. Only a few buildings and the tower remained. But it did not have so sympathy Communal Council and many were anxious advisers disappear. Fortunately, the lively discussions which she was subjected in the Council ended with a verdict in his favor, and August 1, 1892, the Assembly voted to conservation and restoration. And remained curious witnessed a powerful institution in the city, and was preserved one of the jewels of the architectural glory of Mons.

The Abbey of the Val des Ecoliers was a monastery of the Order of St. Augustine, transferred from Valencia in Mons in 1252. First Priory Abbey goes back in its constitution in 1617. The monks were called "Schoolchildren". This community was suppressed for the first time in 1789 and then permanently in 1796 under the French regime. Since the Revolution, the abbey was assigned to various uses: arsenal, meeting facilities, shops. In 1805, the City moved to the Civil Hospital which operated until 1876, when he was transferred to the building it occupies today.

Liege, Belgium

Liège  is a major city and a municipality in the European country of Belgium. It is located in the province of the same name, Liège, of which it is the capital and is part of the Walloon (French-speaking) region of Belgium.

Belgium mapcard

BE-110561
BE-144541

Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federalmonarchy in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters as well as those of several other major international organisations such as NATO. Belgium covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres (11,787 sq mi) and has a population of about 11 million people.

Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Latin Europe, Belgium is home to two main linguistic groups: the Dutch-speaking, mostly Flemish community, which constitutes about 59% of the population, and the French-speaking, mostly Walloonpopulation and Brussels inhabitants, which comprises 41% of all Belgians. Additionally, there is a small group of German-speakerswho are officially recognized.

Meuse river with bridges, Belgium

The Meuse or Maas (Dutch: Maas; IPA: [ˈmaːs]) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea. It has a total length of 925 km (575 mi). The Meuse is one of the five oldest rivers in the world.

Mons, Belgium

Mons (French pronunciation: ​[mɔ̃s]; Dutch: Bergen "mountains"; Picard: Mont) is a Belgian city and municipality, and the capital of the province of Hainaut. The Mons municipality includes theformer communes of Cuesmes, Flénu, Ghlin, Hyon, Nimy,Obourg, Baudour (partly), Jemappes, Ciply, Harmignies, Harveng, Havré, Maisières, Mesvin, Nouvelles, Saint-Denis, Saint-Symphorien, Spiennes, Villers-Saint-Ghislain, Casteau (partly), Masnuy-Saint-Jean (partly), and Ville-sur-Haine (partly). Together with the Czech city of Plzeň, Mons is the European Capital of Culture in 2015.

Brussels, Belgium

Brussels (French: Bruxelles, [bʁysɛl] ; Dutch: Brussel, [ˈbrʏsəl] ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (French: Région de Bruxelles-Capitale, Dutch: Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is the capital and largest city of Belgiumand the de facto capital of the European Union (EU). It is also the largest urban area in Belgium, comprising 19 municipalities, including the municipality of the City of Brussels, which de jure is the capital of Belgium, in addition to the seat of the French Community of Belgium and of the Flemish Community.

Brussels has grown from a 10th-century fortress town founded by a descendant of Charlemagne to a sizeable city.The city has a population of 1.2 million and a metropolitan area with a population of over 1.8 million, both of them the largest in Belgium.

Since the end of the Second World War, Brussels has been a major centre for international politics. Hosting principal EU institutions, the secretariat of the Benelux and the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the city has become the polyglot home of numerous international organisations, politicians, diplomats and civil servants.

Brussels is just a few miles north of the boundary between Belgium's language communities—French in the south, Dutch in the North. Historically a Dutch-speaking city, it has seen a major shift to French since Belgian independence in 1830. Today, although the majority language is French, the city is officially bilingual. All road signs, street names, and many advertisements and services are shown in both languages. Brussels is increasingly becoming multilingual with increasing numbers of migrants, expatriates and minority groups speaking their own languages.