Free University of Brussels

The Free University of Brussels (French: Université Libre de Bruxelles) was a university in Brussels, Belgium established in 1834. The university, founded on the principle of secularism by Pierre-Théodore Verhaegen and Auguste Baron in 1834, formed part of a reaction to Catholic dominance in Belgian education. In 1969, during the Linguistic Wars, it split into two separate universities: the French-speaking Université Libre de Bruxelles (known as ULB) and the Dutch-speaking Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).

The two universities continue to collaborate, and are together referred to as the Brussels Free Universities.

History

In 1834, in response to the foundation of the Catholic University of Mechlin by the Catholic church, many recognized the need for a secular counterweight to the new Catholic university. After sufficient funding was collected among , including Freemasons, led by Pierre-Théodore Verhaegen and Auguste Baron, the Free University of Brussels was inaugurated on 20 November 1834, in the Gothic room of the city hall of Brussels. This day, called St V is still celebrated today. After its establishment, the Free University of Brussels faced difficult times, since it received no subsidies or grants from the government; yearly fundraising events and tuition fees provided the only financial means. Verhaegen, who became a professor and later head of the new university, gave it a mission statement which he summarized in a speech to King Leopold I: the principle of "free inquiry" and academic freedom uninfluenced by any political or religious authority.

.brussels

.brussels is a generic top-level domain for Brussels, Belgium.

See also

References

Brussels

Brussels (French: Bruxelles, [bʁysɛl]; Dutch: Brussel, [ˈbrʏsəl]), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (French: Région de Bruxelles-Capitale, Dutch: Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels which is the capital of Belgium, the French Community of Belgium, and the Flemish Community. The region has a population of 1.2 million and a metropolitan area with a population of over 1.8 million, the largest in Belgium.

Since the end of the Second World War, Brussels has been a major centre for international politics and has become the polyglot home of numerous international organisations, politicians, diplomats and civil servants. Brussels is the de facto capital (or one of three capitals including Luxembourg and Strasbourg) of the European Union as it hosts a number of principal EU institutions. The secretariat of the Benelux and the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are also located in Brussels.

City of Brussels

The City of Brussels (French: Ville de Bruxelles [vil də bʁysɛl] or alternatively Bruxelles-Ville [bʁysɛl vil], Dutch: Stad Brussel [stɑd ˈbrʏsəl] or Brussel-Stad) is the largest municipality of the Brussels-Capital Region, and the de jure capital of Belgium.

The City of Brussels is a municipality consisting of the central historic town and certain additional areas within the greater Brussels-Capital Region, namely Haren, Laeken and Neder-Over-Heembeek to the north, and Avenue Louise and the Bois de la Cambre park to the south.

On 1 January 2015, the City of Brussels had a total population of 175,534. The total area is 32.61 km² which gives a population density of 5,464 inhabitants per km². As of 2007, there were approximately 50,000 registered non-Belgians in the City of Brussels.

Territorial history

At first, the City of Brussels was simply defined, being the area within the second walls of Brussels, the modern-day small ring. As the city grew, the surrounding villages grew as well, eventually growing into a contiguous city, though the local governments retained control of their respective areas.