National Basilica of the Sacred Heart | |
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50°52′00″N 4°19′02″E / 50.86667°N 4.31722°E | |
Location | Parvis de la Basilique / Basiliekvoorplein 1 1083 Ganshoren, Brussels-Capital Region |
Country | Belgium |
Denomination | Catholic Church |
Website | Official website |
History | |
Status | |
Dedication | Sacred Heart |
Consecrated | 1935 |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Active |
Architect(s) | Pierre Langerock, Albert Van Huffel, Paul Rome |
Architectural type | Basilica |
Style | Art Deco |
Groundbreaking | 12 October 1905 |
Completed | 11 November 1970 |
Specifications | |
Capacity | 3,500 |
Length | 164.5 metres (540 ft) |
Nave length | 141 metres (463 ft) |
Width | 107.80 metres (353.7 ft) |
Nave width | 25 metres (82 ft) |
Height | 89 metres (292 ft) |
Number of domes | 1 |
Dome diameter (outer) | 33 metres (108 ft) |
Number of towers | 2 |
Materials | Reinforced concrete, terracotta layering, bricks, dimension stone |
Administration | |
Archdiocese | Mechelen–Brussels |
Clergy | |
Archbishop | Luc Terlinden (Primate of Belgium) |
The National Basilica of the Sacred Heart (French: Basilique nationale du Sacré-Cœur; Dutch: Nationale Basiliek van het Heilig-Hart) is a Catholic minor basilica and parish church in Brussels, Belgium. It is dedicated to the Sacred Heart, inspired by the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur in Paris. Symbolically, King Leopold II laid the first stone in 1905 during the celebrations of the 75th anniversary of Belgian independence. The construction was halted by the two world wars and finished only in 1970. Belonging to the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mechelen–Brussels, it is the 14th largest church by area in the world and the largest in Belgium.
Located at the head of Elisabeth Park atop the Koekelberg hill, between the municipalities of Koekelberg and Ganshoren, the church is popularly known as the Koekelberg Basilica (French: Basilique de Koekelberg; Dutch: Basiliek van Koekelberg). The massive brick and reinforced concrete structure, in Art Deco style of neo-Byzantine inspiration, features two thinner towers and a nearly as high green copper dome that rises 89 metres (292 ft) above ground, dominating Brussels' north-western skyline. It is served by the tram stop Bossaert-Basilique/Bossaert-Basiliek (on line 9).[1]