flower carpet belgium::The square is the most important tourist destination and most memorable landmark in brussels, along with the and flower carpet belgium

flower carpet belgium::The square is the most important tourist destination and most memorable landmark in brussels, along with the and.
This was the seed of what would become brussels.
By the end of the 11th century, an openair marketplace was set up on a driedup marsh near the fort that was surrounded by sandbanks.
The market was called the nedermerckt , or lower market.
The market likely developed around the same time as the commercial development of brussels.
At the beginning of the 13th century, three indoor markets were built on the northern edge of the grand place; a meat market, a bread market and a cloth market.
These buildings, which belonged to the , allowed the wares to be showcased even in bad weather, but also allowed the dukes to keep track of the storage and sale of goods, in order to collect taxes.
Other buildings, made of wood or stone, enclosed the grand place.
Improvements to the grand place from the 14th century onwards would mark the rise in importance of local merchants and tradesmen relative to the nobility.
Short on money, the duke transferred control of and commerce to the local authorities.
The city of brussels, as with the neighbouring cities of and constructed a large indoor cloth market to the south of the square.
At this point, the square was still haphazardly laid out, and the buildings along the edges had a motley tangle of gardens and irregular additions.
The city and demolished a number of buildings that clogged the grand place, and formally defined the edges of the square.
The was built on the south side of the square in stages between 1401 and 1455, and made the grand place the seat of municipal power.
To counter this symbol of municipal power, from 1504 to 1536 the built a large building across from the city hall as symbol of ducal power.
Wealthy merchants and the increasingly powerful of brussels built houses around the edge of the square.
The french launched a massive bombardment of the mostly defenseless city centre with and , setting it on fire and flattening the majority of the grand place and the surrounding city.
Only the stone shell of the town hall and a few fragments of other buildings remained standing.
That the town hall survived at all is ironic, as it was the principal target of the artillery fire.
Their efforts were regulated by the city councillors and the governor of brussels, who required that their plans be submitted to the authorities for their approval.
This helped to deliver a remarkably harmonious layout for the rebuilt grand place, despite the ostensibly clashing combination of gothic, and louis xiv styles.
In the late 18th century, revolutionaries sacked the grand place, destroying statues of nobility and symbols of christianity.
The guildhalls were seized by the state and sold.
In the late 19th century, mayor had the grand place returned to its former splendour, with buildings being reconstructed or restored.
The grand place continued to serve as a market until november 19, 1959, and it is still called the grote markt or great market in dutch.
The grand place was named by as a in 1998.
Brussels grandplace has recently been voted the most beautiful square in europe.
The first flower carpet was made in 1971, and due to its popularity, the tradition continued, with the flower carpet attracting a large number of tourists.
flower carpet belgium::Almost all of the buildings in this square still
have a historical significance today flower carpet belgium