The Senate of Belgium

In the summer of 2019, I had the chance to see a wonderful exhibition at the Sentate of Belgium. Meanwhile my husband and I got a guided tour  in the building.

It really is a splendid royal destination not only due to its history but also due to the building and due to the many royal links inside. 

I must admit, I'm not a political genious and most of the time, I stay far away from the complicated politics in Belgium. However I really liked  being in the Belgian senate.

What is the Senate of Belgium?

The Senate of Belgium is one of the two chambers of the Federal Parliament of Belgium. The other house is the Chamber of  Representatives.

Thus the Senate is considered to be the upper house of the Federal  Parliament. 

The senate was created in 1831 as a chamber fully equal to the Chamber of Representatives. It has undergone several reforms in the past. The most important ones took place in 1993 and 2014.

Entrance of the Senate

History

After the Belgian Revolution of 1830 in which Belgium became an independent country of The Netherlands, the National Congress  decided about the Belgian Constitution and the State Structure. 

A bicameral Parliament was chosen due to fears of more democratic and progressive decisions in the Chamber of  Representatives. 

To be eligible, people had to pay 1.000 francs, which meant that at that time, only about 4.000 persons could be elected. 

In the past French was the sole language of government in Belgium, it was until 1913 that Dutch was used in the parliament. 

Nowadays the Senate consists of 60 members, 50 are elected by the community and regional parliaments and 10 are co-opted members.

In the Senate the walls show historical royal figures inter alia the counts of Flanders and other historical figures who played an important role in the regions which formed the current area of Belgium.



An important royal link

Before 2014, the children of the King, older than 18, or the Belgian descenants of the main branch of the Royal House were entitled to be senators by right by taking the oath of office. 

Untill Prince Philippe became King in July 2013 there were three 

senators by right:

- Prince Philippe (now King Philippe);

- Princess Astrid;

- Prince Laurent. 

This was abolished in 2014.

Federal parliament of Belgium in Brussels 2014

Federal parliament of Belgium in Brussels 2018

The building

From 1831 the Senate and from 1830 the House of Representatives moved into the the Palace of the Nation.

This building had a Neoclassical design and was created by a French Architect Gilles-Barnabé Guimard.

The building works took place from 1779 till 1783. Under Austrian rule it housed the Sovereign Council of Brabant.

During the Dutch period it was one of the two homes of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of The Netherlands (the other was in The Hague).

The Palace of the Nations stood near the site of the former palace of the Dukes of Brabant which was destroyed by fire in 1731.

A beautiful portrait of Queen Fabiola of Belgium

King Albert II of Belgium statue - I don't like the statue very much -
A bit too modern for me :-) 

Queen Paola of Belgium statue

A visit

For royal history lovers, the Senate of Belgium in Brussels really is a must see because a beautiful room displays all the statues and the portraits of the Kings and Queens of Belgium. It's really impressive.

own pictures taken in 2019