nl, Sint-Pieter-en-Sint-Guidokerk , native_name_lang = , image = Anderlecht, Sint-Pieter-en-Sint-Guidokerk 01.jpg , imagesize = 200px , imagealt = , caption = Collegiate Church of St. Peter and St. Guido , coordinates = , country =

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, osgridref = , osgraw = , location = Place de la Vaillance / Dapperheidsplein
B-1070

Anderlecht Anderlecht (, ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, and Saint-Gilles, as well as the ...

Brussels-Capital Region Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, previous denomination = , churchmanship = , membership = , attendance = , website = , former name = , bull date = , founded date = , founder = , dedication = , dedicated date = , consecrated date = , cult = , relics = , events = , past bishop = , people = , status =

Collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a ...

, functional status = Active , heritage designation = Protected , designated date = 25/10/1938 , architect = , architectural type =

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

, style = , years built = 14th–16th centuries (church)
19th century (spire) , groundbreaking = , completed date = 1898 , construction cost = , closed date = , demolished date = , capacity = , length = , width = , width nave = , height = , diameter = , other dimensions = , floor count = , floor area = , dome quantity = , dome height outer = , dome height inner = , dome dia outer = , dome dia inner = , tower quantity = , tower height = , spire quantity = 1 , spire height = , materials = , bells = , bells hung = , bell weight = , parish = , deanery = , archdeaconry = , episcopalarea = , archdiocese = Mechelen–Brussels , metropolis = , diocese = , province = , presbytery = , synod = , circuit = , district = , division = , subdivision = , archbishop =

Jozef De Kesel Jozef De Kesel (born 17 June 1947) is a Belgian prelate of the Catholic Church who has been a cardinal since 2016 and Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels since 2015. He served as Bishop of Bruges from 2010 to 2015. Early life De Kesel was b ...

(

Primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including huma ...

of Belgium) , bishop = , abbot = , prior = , subprior = , vicar = , exarch = , provost-rector = , provost = , viceprovost = , rector = , dean = , subdean = , archpriest = , precentor = , succentor = , chancellor = , canonchancellor = , canon = , canonpastor = , canonmissioner = , canontreasurer = , prebendary = , priestincharge = , priest = , asstpriest = , honpriest = , curate = , asstcurate = , minister = , assistant = , seniorpastor = , pastor = , chaplain = , archdeacon = , deacon = , reader = , student intern = , organistdom = , director = , organist = , organscholar = , chapterclerk = , laychapter = , warden = , verger = , businessmgr = , liturgycoord = , reledu = , rcia = , youthmin = , flowerguild = , musicgroup = , parishadmin = , serversguild = , logo = , logosize = , logolink = , logoalt = , embedded = , imagelink = , landscape = , deaconness = , elder = The Collegiate Church of St. Peter and St. Guido (french: Collégiale Saints-Pierre-et-Guidon, nl, Sint-Pieter-en-Sint-Guidokerk) is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a ...

located in the centre of

, a municipality of

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, Belgium. It is dedicated to

Saint Peter Saint Peter; he, שמעון בר יונה, Šimʿōn bar Yōnāh; ar, سِمعَان بُطرُس, translit=Simʿa̅n Buṭrus; grc-gre, Πέτρος, Petros; cop, Ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ, Petros; lat, Petrus; ar, شمعون الصفـا, Sham'un ...

and Saint Guy, the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

of the

. The church, in

Brabantine Gothic Brabantine Gothic, occasionally called Brabantian Gothic, is a significant variant of Gothic architecture that is typical for the Low Countries. It surfaced in the first half of the 14th century at St. Rumbold's Cathedral in the City of Mechele ...

style, was built between the 14th and 16th centuries above an earlier Romanesque

crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...

. Partially attributed to the

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

architect Jan van Ruysbroeck, it is a notable illustration of late medieval architecture in Brussels. Its

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spires are ...

dates from the 19th century. The complex was designated a

historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, hist ...

in 1938. The church is located on the northern side of the Place de la Vaillance/Dapperheidsplein, not far from

Erasmus House The Erasmus House (french: Maison d'Érasme, nl, Erasmushuis), also known as the Erasmus House Museum (french: Musée de la Maison d'Érasme, link=no, nl, Erasmushuismuseum, link=no), is a museum in Anderlecht, a municipality of Brussels, Bel ...

, the old

beguinage A beguinage, from the French term ''béguinage'', is an architectural complex which was created to house beguines: lay religious women who lived in community without taking vows or retiring from the world. Originally the beguine institution was ...

of Anderlecht and the

Constant Vanden Stock Stadium The Constant Vanden Stock Stadium (french: Stade Constant Vanden Stock, nl, Constant Vanden Stockstadion), also known as the Lotto Park for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in the municipality of Anderlecht in Brussels, Belgium. It is ...

(the main football stadium of Anderlecht). This area is served by Saint Guidon/Sint Guido metro station on line 5 of the

Brussels Metro The Brussels Metro (french: Métro de Bruxelles, nl, Brusselse metro) is a rapid transit system serving a large part of the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium. It consists of four conventional metro lines and three ''premetro'' lines. The me ...

History

Early history

A first church was founded by a chapter of

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...

s shortly before 1078. This first church was of the Romanesque style, as attested by the 11th century-

still remaining beneath the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ove ...

, and which was intended for the worship of

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

s. In this crypt lies a very old tombstone, resting on two brick pedestals, with no inscription and with only design a branch with a few leaves. A long tradition of

pilgrimages A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

consider it to be the tomb of Saint Guy (french: Saint Guidon, link=no, nl, Saint Guido, link=no), the ''Poor Man of Anderlecht'', who died around 1012. The following centuries, this "tomb" of Saint Guy began to attract a large number of pilgrims, eventually becoming a place of dedication for the

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

. The

building that we know today was erected in stages from 1350 to 1527. At that time, Anderlecht was still a village in the outskirts of Brussels counting barely 300 inhabitants. Built in the centre of the village, the church was intended for gatherings much bigger than just the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

community, hence its large size. was responsible for the works from 1443, succeeding his friend . De Mol was in turn succeeded between 1479 and 1485 by Jan van Ruysbroeck, the court architect of

Philip the Good Philip III (french: Philippe le Bon; nl, Filips de Goede; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) was Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonge ...

, who also designed the tower of Brussels' Town Hall. Van Ruysbroeck mainly oversaw the construction of the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

. After him, Jan van Evergem took over the building in 1485, followed by his son Hendrik. The famous master builder , the architect behind the

Royal Monastery of Brou The Royal Monastery of Brou is a religious complex located at Bourg-en-Bresse in the Ain ''département'', central France. Made out of monastic buildings in addition to a church, they were built at the beginning of the 16th century by Margaret of ...

Bourg-en-Bresse Bourg-en-Bresse (; frp, Bôrg) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Ain Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in Eastern France. Located northeast of Lyon, it is the capital of the ...

(France), designed the

portal Portal often refers to: * Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel Portal may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...

. From 1517, Matthijs III Keldermans worked on the originally square tower and the side chapels. Construction was completed in 1527.

19th century–present

Restoration works were carried out on the church between 1843 and 1847, under the direction of the architect , which lead to the discovery of several wall paintings from the early 15th and 16th centuries. In 1898, the square tower was surmounted with a

, giving the church its current appearance. The church was designated a

on 25 October 1938. It was the subject of a cleaning campaign from 1994 to 1997.

Gallery

File:Saint Guidon.P9100008.jpg, File:St Guidon portail.P9100010.jpg, File:Anderlecht, Sint-Pieter-en-Sint-Guidokerk 06.jpg, File:Tombe à Anderlecht des chanoines van Dievoet.JPG,

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * {{Catholic Church in Belgium Roman Catholic churches in Brussels Anderlecht Protected heritage sites in Brussels Gothic architecture in Belgium