The Royal Quarter's creation began in 1774 with the construction of the
Place Royale/Konigsplein at the instigation of
Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine,
Governor-General of the Austrian Netherlands. The authors of the project were the French architects
Jean-Benoît-Vincent Barré and
Gilles-Barnabé Guimard. It was largely complete by 1783. At the centre of the new district is
Brussels Park, the main alley of which forms an axis connecting the
Royal Palace and the Palace of the Council of Brabant (today's
Palace of the Nation). The streets surrounding the park were built in accordance with the strict rules of
neoclassical architecture. The district marked a new stage in the history of Brussels'
urban development. It was there that, for the first time in the city's history, such urban planning elements and principles as straight "perspective" streets, standard façades, and
pavements were widely used. As such, it is a striking example of urban development and architecture of
the Enlightenment. ==See also==