The Brussels Grand Place or Grote Markt in Brussels (Belgium) is probably the most glamorous central square of Europe. It is surrounded by very representative buildings funded by numerous Brussels craft guilds. All of them are carefully decorated with busts, sculptures, reliefs, ornaments, and quite much gold leaf.
Le Roy d’Espagne (the King of Spain), also known in Dutch as Den Coninck van Spaignien, is house No. 1 on the Grand Place. Built in 1697, after the square’s reconstruction following the 1695 French bombardment, it occupies the site of the Serhuyghs family’s stone residence, one of Brussels’ seven noble families.
Originally, Le Roy d’Espagne served as the headquarters for the bakers’ guild, officially the Maison de la Corporation des Boulangers (House of the Corporation of Bakers). Above the ground floor entrance, there is a depiction of Saint-Aubert, the patron saint of bakers, overseeing the building.
A view onto the Grand Place. In Front from left to right the houses Le Renard, Le Cornet, La Louve, Le Sac, La Brouette and Le Roy d’Espagne. To the left the Grand Hall and to the right the King’s House.
The building got its name from an ornate bust of Charles II, the King of Spain in 1697, featured prominently on its second-floor façade. At that time, Charles II was not only the monarch of Spain but also the sovereign ruler over the southern Netherlands, now Belgium.
The first floor’s facade is decorated with medallions prominently displaying the likenesses of notable Roman emperors: Marcus Aurelius, famed for his philosophical wisdom; Nerva, who started the era of the Five Good Emperors; Decius, known for persecuting Christians; and Trajan, renowned for his military conquests and expanding the Roman Empire.
The King of Spain’s House is the only building on the Grand Place without a gable-topped façade. Instead, it boasts an attic balustrade adorned with statues symbolizing elements essential to baking: strength, wheat, wind, fire, water, and security. Hercules symbolizes the physical effort and endurance required in baking, from kneading dough to managing ovens. Ceres, the goddess of agriculture, represents wheat, the foundational ingredient for bread and pastries. A woman with a windmill symbolizes the historical use of windmills to grind grain into flour. Mercury represents the elemental force of fire used in baking. Neptune symbolizes water’s indispensable role in mixing dough. Minerva, with the horn of abundance and the hourglass, represents the foresight and wisdom necessary for securing ingredients and timing critical in baking processes.
The building has a unique dome topped with a gold-coated Fame blowing the trumpet. In Greek and Roman mythology, Fame (or Pheme in Greek and Fama in Roman) is personified as a goddess known for her swift ability to spread news, rumors, and the reputations of mortals and gods alike. She is depicted blowing a trumpet, symbolizing the broadcasting of information or acclaim being is a a metaphor for announcing important news, victories, or the esteemed reputations of individuals to the world, suggesting that their deeds or names are worthy of widespread acclaim and will be remembered through time.
The Roy d’Espagne’s suffered damage during the tumultuous period of the French Revolution. However, as part of a comprehensive restoration effort aimed at revitalizing the Grand Place, the building was restored in 1902. The overall design of the building changed, but the restoration brought back the sculpted décor and dome, missing since the 19th century, according to the original plans.
