The ( French, , "Ball Game Square") or (

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People ...

; "Foxes' Square") is a

square In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90- degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length ad ...

located in the heart of the Marolles/Marollen district of the

City of Brussels The City of Brussels (french: Ville de Bruxelles or alternatively ''Bruxelles-Ville'' ; nl, Stad Brussel or ''Brussel-Stad'') is the largest municipality and historical centre of the Brussels-Capital Region, as well as the capital of the F ...

, Belgium. Since 1873, it has held a famous

flea market A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously-owned (second-hand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal' ...

, known as the ''Old Market''. The area around the square is characterised by the presence of restaurants and typical Brussels

café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-c ...

s. It can be accessed from Brussels-Chapel railway station, as well as by the

metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...

and ''

premetro A premetro is a tramway or light railway which includes segments built to rapid transit standards, generally as part of a process of conversion to a metro-standards railway usually by the construction of tunnels in the central city area. Histo ...

'' (underground tram) station Porte de Hal/Hallepoort on lines 2, 3, 4 and 6.

History

The square was laid out in 1853, at the same time as the neighbouring /. As its French name indicates, it was originally destined for the practice of the or ', a

ball game This is a list of ball games and ball sports that include a ball as a key element in the activity, usually for scoring points. Ball games Ball sports fall within many sport categories, some sports within multiple categories, including: *Bat-and- ...

similar to modern

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...

. Though the sport is no longer played much today, it enjoyed immense popularity in Brussels in the 19th century. The square's current Dutch name, ("Foxes' Square"), recalls that it was built on the site of a former

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the us ...

factory, the ' (literally the "Fox Company" in English; meaning "fox" in Dutch). In 1873, Brussels' municipal council decided to transfer the ''Old Market'' (french: Vieux Marché, link=no, nl, Oude Markt, link=no), which had until then occupied the Place Anneessens/Anneessensplein, to the Place du Jeu de Balle, a function the square has kept to this day.

Notable buildings

* The Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities ...

, built from 1854 to 1862 in

neo-Romanesque Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

style, which was once part of the Capuchin convent. * The former fire station of the Brussels Fire Department was built between 1859 and 1860 by the architect Joseph Poelaert in

eclectic Eclectic may refer to: Music * ''Eclectic'' (Eric Johnson and Mike Stern album), 2014 * ''Eclectic'' (Big Country album), 1996 * Eclectic Method, name of an audio-visual remix act * Eclecticism in music, the conscious use of styles alien to th ...

style. Decommissioned in 1982 during the relocation of the fire brigade staff to the / in the Northern Quarter, the former barracks now houses apartments, art galleries, and shops, while its former

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

entrance has been refurbished into a café. * A concrete

air raid shelter Air raid shelters are structures for the protection of non-combatants as well as combatants against enemy attacks from the air. They are similar to bunkers in many regards, although they are not designed to defend against ground attack (but many ...

from World War II is located under the square. Its entrances were walled up in 1945.

Events and folklore

* A flea market takes place on the square every day of the week from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and weekends from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. * Every year, on 20 July, the eve of

Belgian National Day Belgian National Day ( nl, Nationale feestdag van België; french: Fête nationale belge; german: Belgischer Nationalfeiertag) is the national holiday of Belgium commemorated annually on 21 July. It is one of the country's ten public holidays a ...

, the National Ball is held there.

Gallery

File:Bruxelles Place du Jeu de Balle 904.jpg, Official names of the square in French and Dutch, followed by popular local names File:Brussel-Vossenplein (2).jpg, Panoramic view of the square with a

taking place File:Bruxelles caserne pompiers.jpg, The former fire station of the Brussels Fire Department with its portico entrance. In the background is the Palace of Justice. File:Bruxelles, Notre-Dame-Immaculée.JPG, Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception

References

Notes