Brussels' location on the shores of the Senne placed it on an
important trade route between Bruges, Ghent and Cologne. As a
result, the town grew rapidly into a city between the 11th and the
13th centuries. During this period, the Grand Place took shape, and
the commercial centre expanded to the Upper Town. Belgium passed
from Frankish overlords into the control of the French in the
Medieval period. It then passed relatively quickly between the
Spanish, the Austrians and then to the Dutch in 1815, and as a
result there is a blend of architectural styles present in the city
today.
However, tensions mounted at the prospect of being ruled by the
Dutch, and Brussels became the centre of the Belgian Revolution in
1830, which saw the country establish its independence and a
monarchy with relative ease. After a troubled beginning to the 20th
century, Brussels rose from the ashes to become the political
centre of a new age, thanks in no small part to its location in the
centre of Western Europe.