01. Former Palace of the Count of Flanders [Court of Auditors]

The former Palace of the Count of Flanders is a vast complex of buildings occupying the block between Rue de Namur, Place Royale and Rue de la Régence and Rue des Quatre Fils Aymon, the result of successive extensions carried out during the 19th and 20th centuries. The central wing, in an eclectic style with neo–Baroque style, was built between 1866 and 1890 by the architects Gustave Saintenoy and Clément Parent at the request of the Count of Flanders, and blends harmoniously with the earlier neoclassical pavilion on Place Royale. The interior features sumptuous décor of panelling and stuccoed ceilings in salons in the Neo-Regency, Neo-Louis XV and Neo-Rococo styles, as well as a former Renaissance-inspired smoking room. In 1920, the palace became the property of the Bank of Brussels, which carried out a series of alterations, including extensions onto Rue de la Régence and Rue de l’Arsenal (which no longer exists), whilst respecting the original style. The complex has been occupied by the Court of Auditors since 1982.