Place Sainte-Catherine

• Place Sainte-Catherine (French)
• Sint-Katelijneplein (Dutch)

The Church of St. Catherine on the Place Sainte-Catherine/Sint-Katelijneplein in Brussels
Location within Brussels Show map of Brussels Place Sainte-Catherine (Belgium) Show map of Belgium
Location	City of Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium
Quarter	Quays or Sainte-Catherine/Sint-Katelijne Quarter
Coordinates	50°51′02″N04°20′52″E / 50.85056°N 4.34778°E / 50.85056; 4.34778

The Place Sainte-Catherine (French) or Sint-Katelijneplein (Dutch) is a square in the Quays or Sainte-Catherine/Sint-Katelijne Quarter of Brussels, Belgium. ^{[1] [2]} The Church of St. Catherine, of which it takes its name, is located on this square. ^[3] It is served by Sainte-Catherine/Sint-Katelijne metro station on lines 1 and 5 of the Brussels Metro.

Location and accessibility

The Place Sainte-Catherine is an elongated square that begins at the Place du Vieux Marché aux Grains/Oude Graanmarkt, extends on either side of the Church of St. Catherine, perpendicular to the Quai aux Briques/Baksteenkaai and the Quai au Bois à Brûler/Brandhoutkaai, and opens onto the Rue de Laeken/Lakensestraat and the Rue de l'Évêque/Bisschopsstraat.

Places of interest

Church of St. Catherine

Main article: Church of St. Catherine, Brussels

The most important building on the Place Sainte-Catherine is the Church of St. Catherine. The current church was designed by the architect Joseph Poelaert and built between 1854 and 1874 on the site of a basin of the former Port of Brussels, replacing an older church dating back to the 15th century. ^{[4] [5]}

Black Tower

Main article: Black Tower (Brussels)

Behind the Church of Saint Catherine stands the Black Tower, one of the best preserved remains of the first fortifications of Brussels, built at the start of the 13th century. It is notable for being a single medieval tower surrounded by modern-day buildings. This odd sight has made it a popular tourist destination. ^{[6] [7]}

• 
  Church of St. Catherine
• 
  The original church's tower
• 
  Black Tower

See also

• Belgium portal

• History of Brussels
• Belgium in the long nineteenth century

References

Citations

1. "Place Sainte-Catherine | screen.brussels". screen.brussels (in French). Retrieved 10 June 2025.
2. "Place Sainte-Catherine – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural". monument.heritage.brussels (in French). Retrieved 10 June 2025.
3. "église paroissiale Sainte-Catherine – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural". monument.heritage.brussels (in French). Retrieved 4 September 2022.
4. Vandendaele & Leblicq 1980.
5. Mardaga 1994, p. 319.
6. Mardaga 1994, p. 329.
7. "Tour Noire". www.visit.brussels. Retrieved 11 March 2025.

Bibliography

• Vandendaele, Richard; Leblicq, Yvon (1980). Poelaert et son temps (exhibition catalogue) (in French). Brussels: Crédit Communal de Belgique.
• Le Patrimoine monumental de la Belgique: Bruxelles (PDF) (in French). Vol. 1C: Pentagone N-Z. Liège: Pierre Mardaga. 1994.

External links

• Media related to Place Sainte-Catherine/Sint-Katelijneplein, Brussels at Wikimedia Commons