Halle Gate

We enter Sint-Gillis through the large gate! The Hallepoort is the last remnant of the second city wall around Brussels, built in the 14th century. This was the path taken by the farmers of Sint-Gillis as they brought their vegetables into the city. Because they hindered the city's growth, the walls, gates, and towers of the second city wall were demolished starting in the 18th century. Along the route – in the shape of a pentagon – broad boulevards emerged in the early 19th century, which still form the layout of the Kleine Ring today. The small park around the Hallepoort became a green refuge amidst traffic. The medieval Hallepoort was a much lower, simple building with a horseshoe-shaped arch on the side of Sint-Gillis. A small pond still reminds us of the moat that used to run here. The water came from a side branch of the Elsbeek, which we encounter again later on our walk. In the 19th century, the Hallepoort was encased by a much taller structure: a romantic neo-Gothic renovation with corner turrets, battlements, and pointed arch windows. The museum is definitely worth a visit!

→ Cross the Hallepoortlaan and take the street that runs perpendicular to the Hallepoort, the Waterloosesteenweg. This will take you to the center of Sint-Gillis.

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