Royal Library of Belgium
The Royal Library of Belgium (also: Royal Library of Brussels ; Dutch Koninklijke Bibliotheek van België , French Bibliothèque royale de Belgique , abbreviated: KBR ) is the national library of the Kingdom of Belgium . It is located in Brussels .
Order and collection
As the national scientific library, the Royal Library of Belgium collects all publications published on the territory of the federal state of Belgium, as well as works by Belgian authors and writings on Belgium that appear abroad. The library acquires publications in order to keep them in its collection and to make them accessible to the public. In particular, it is aimed at the information needs of the scientific sector. The library also publishes the Belgian Bibliography .
In addition to printed works that appear as monographs , the collection also includes periodicals such as newspapers and magazines and documents from public organizations such as the United Nations and the European Union . There are valuable works, manuscripts, coins and graphics in special collections. The inventory of manuscripts includes the Brabantsche Yeesten , the Brussels Rotulus , the Xantener Evangeliar and the Chroniques de Hainaut .
The building
The current building of the Royal Library was built between 1954 and 1969 to a design by the architects Maurice Houyoux, Roland Delers and Jacques Bellemans. Of the 67,000 m² usable area, 8,000 m² are intended for visitors. Most of the archives are located in underground parts of the building. As part of the Kunstberg , the house occupies one of its sides.
history
The dukes of Burgundy had an extensive collection of manuscripts assembled as early as the 15th century . At the time of Philip the Good's death, this Burgundian library already had around 900 manuscripts . The collection has been in the Coudenbergpaleis since 1559 and has been called the Royal Library since then .
When the Coudenbergpaleis was destroyed by fire in 1731, most of the manuscripts were saved. During the occupation of Brussels by French troops in 1746, parts of the collection were brought to Paris ; only part of these holdings was returned in 1770. In 1754, the holdings that remained in Brussels moved to the Domus Isabellae, which was located in today's Baron Hortastraat. In 1772 the library was opened to the public.
In 1794 numerous manuscripts and other valuable works were again brought to Paris on the orders of the commissioners of the French government. In 1803 the remaining collection was transferred to the city of Brussels. Due to the decision of the Congress of Vienna , some of the works brought to Paris had to be returned to Brussels.
The government of the United Netherlands divided the library into two collections in 1815. The manuscripts became state property as the Burgundian library , the printed works remained with the city of Brussels. In 1842 the printed works were also transferred to the - now Belgian - state.
On June 19, 1837, the Belgian government donated the Royal Library of Belgium . To this end, the Karel Van Hulthem collection with 70,000 volumes was purchased from Ghent. The library in the Paleis van de Nijverheid was opened to visitors on May 21, 1839.
At the suggestion of King Leopold III. and Queen Elisabeth , the Belgian government decided in 1935 to have a new library built, which should bear the name of King Albert I. In 1954 the foundation stone was laid for this building, which was inaugurated on February 17, 1969 as the Koninklijke Bibliotheek Albert I , or Albertina for short .
Head of the library
Chief Conservators
- 1837–1850 Baron Frédéric de Reiffenberg
- 1850–1887 Louis-Joseph Alvin
- 1887–1904 Edouard Fétis
- 1904–1909 Henri Hymans
- 1909–1912 Joseph Van Den Gheyn, SJ
- 1913–1914 Dom Ursmer Berlière OSB
- 1919–1929 Louis Paris
- 1929–1943 Victor Tourneur
- 1944–1953 Frédéric Lyna
- 1953–1955 Marcel Hoc
- 1956–1973 Herman Liebaers
- 1973–1990 Martin Wittek
- 1990–1991 Denise De Weerdt
- 1992 Josiane Roelants-Abraham
- 1992-2002 Pierre Cockshaw
- 2002-2005 Raphaël De Smedt
General Director
- 2005–2017 Patrick Lefèvre
- since 2017 Sara Lammen (acting)
Web links
- Royal Library of Belgium website (Dutch, French, English)
- Literature by and about the Royal Library of Belgium in the WorldCat bibliographic database
Individual evidence
- ^ For example in Robert Eitner: "The Royal Library of Brussels", in: Monthly Issues for Music History , vol. 24 (Berlin 1892).
Coordinates: 50 ° 50 ′ 37.4 " N , 4 ° 21 ′ 22.5" E