Brussels

The city is capital of the province of Brabant, and Greater Brussels ("L'Agglomération de Bruxelles") forms one of the country's three autonomous regions, the others being Flanders and Wallonia. Brussels is part of an archbishopric which also includes Mechelen

Brussels is the capital of the European Union (EU) in practice, not officially, but is considered so due to its history with the various EU institutions. Brussels is also host to the headquarters for NATO, the Western European Union and EUROCONTROL. In addition, there are numerous other international organisations and corporations within the city. The city is also highly regarded as a host of international conferences.

The municipality of Brussels proper comprises only the area formerly enclosed by the old ramparts - long since replaced by the broad boulevards of the so-called "Pentagon". It is made up of the Lower Town, through which flow several branches of the Senne (now canalised underground), and the smaller Upper Town on a ridge to the east. Clustered around the city center and today continuous with it are 18 separately administered suburban districts. Thus Brussels as a whole is an agglomeration of 19 different municipalities, each with its own local government. That this has been an obstacle to the coherent development of the city is all too obvious from the many dilapidated areas and failed or poorly executed building projects.

Nowhere in Belgium do Flemings and Walloons live in quite such close proximity as in Brussels, the linguistic frontier running only a few kilometers south of the city. While Brussels itself is officially bilingual, Francophones in fact predominate (80%) in the central district and Flemish speakers in the suburbs. It is Brussels' fate therefore to be at the mercy of often opposing ethnic group interests, the paralysing effects of which have frequently proved to the city's disadvantage.

Nevertheless, few if any European cities have such an international feel as Brussels. A quarter of the approximately one million inhabitants are foreigners and they could hardly be a more varied mixture. On the one hand there are the army of people employed by the international organizations, and on the other hand guest workers and immigrants from North and sub-Saharan Africa, many of whom live in the country illegally.

Brussels is an entirely modern city, extensive replanning and redevelopment since the early part of the century having profoundly altered the character of the old Brabant capital except in one or two places. Even now several major projects are in progress. Work is almost complete on reshaping the area in front of the Gare Centrale to create a more fitting "entrée" to the historic heart of the city. And an ambitious plan exists to redevelop the area around the headquarters of the European Commission in the Palais Berlaymont - due for demolition because of the asbestos risk. Amid all this redevelopment those with an eye for such things will spot many an architectural disaster, as well as districts still badly in need of revitalisation. At the same time, speculative fever combined with the already mentioned ethnic rivalry and fragmented administrative responsibility threatens to destroy the vernacular character of attractive quarters like Les Marolles.

As Belgium's main cultural and scientific center Brussels is home to the Belgian Royal Academy as well as to a university, a polytechnic, numerous technical colleges and art schools and a variety of other cultural institutions. It is also the country's financial capital (National Bank) and economic hub, lyi