2.2 Brussels: a city of political power

• Aardrijkskunde
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 3

2.2 Brussels: a city of political power

Learning objectives:

After studying this section, you will be able to:

• Explain why Brussels became an administrative centre;
• Describe what functions Brussels fulfils as an administrative centre.

Brussels during the Middle Ages

• Agricultural community along the river Senne; 
• Growing crops + herding cattle;
• Tradesmen came > city growth;
• A canal was dug to reach the North Sea via the Schelde;
• Trade and agriculture made Brussels an important political, economic and religious centre.

Twentieth century and forward

During the Industrial Revolution factory workers migrated to the cities. The city expanded outwards.

Agglomeration = An urban area made up of several settlements, swallowed up by a city’s growth.

Rejuvenation = The process in which a city’s older and decayed areas are reconstructed and restored.

Rejuvenation of the Canal Zone in Brussels.

Rejuvenation as a part of 

urban renewal.

A classical European morphology

An American sociology

Commuters = People who travel to work, often living in the suburbs or outside a city.

Administrative centre = A city with a political function where important decisions are made.

Capital city

The word capital comes from the Latin word caput, which means ‘head’. Therefore, the capital city can be seen as the ‘head city’ of a country or region. Other meanings of the word capital have an economic nature, such as the Dutch word ‘kapitaal’. Don’t let this confuse you!

Brussels, capital city of the EU

NATO headquarters

Eurocrats = Civil servants, who work for the European Union.

Bilingual Belgium

See the planner in Teams for what you have to do!