Koningin Astridpark

Koningin Astridpark is a three-hectare park in the heart of Bruges, tucked behind the former walls of a Franciscan monastery. It's one of the few places in the city that has remained a green enclave for centuries, even as the surrounding urban fabric changed again and again.

Where did this park come from?

The Franciscans, known locally as the Recollects, settled in Bruges around 1221, and in 1246 were granted a plot on a rise known as the Braamberg. Behind the monastery walls stretched a large garden where the friars worked and meditated for more than five centuries. That quiet, contemplative character survived even after the site's ownership and purpose changed completely.

How did a monastery garden become a public park?

After the French takeover of Belgium, all religious communities were dissolved by law on September 1, 1796. The monastery buildings were demolished and the garden passed into private hands. Following extended debate over what to do with the site, the city of Bruges purchased the three-hectare property on October 28, 1850, for 50,000 francs. Part of the land was earmarked for expanding the nearby prison, and part for building the Saint Magdalene Church.

Who designed the park?

In 1851, the city commissioned Egidius Rosseels, a garden architect from Leuven, to design the layout. His design drew heavily on the 18th-century English landscape style, favoring flowing lines, clusters of trees and naturalistic greenery over rigid geometric avenues. Between 1858 and 1859, the park gained one of its most recognizable features: an octagonal cast-iron kiosk, built by the sculpture workshop of L. Le Soinne and J. Witmeur.

Where does the current name come from?

The park's name has shifted along with its history. It was first known as "Hof der Recoletten" (Garden of the Recollects), after its former Franciscan owners. From 1906 it was officially called "Jardin Botanique" (Botanical Garden). It only received its current name after the death of Queen Astrid in 1935, in her honor.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is Koningin Astridpark located? The park sits in the historic center of Bruges, close to the city's heritage buildings, on the site of a former Franciscan monastery near the Braamberg rise.

How big is the park? It covers roughly three hectares, making it one of the larger green spaces right in the city center.

What is the park's most distinctive feature? An octagonal cast-iron kiosk built in 1858–1859, one of the park's best-known landmarks, along with paths and plantings laid out in the English landscape style.

Where does the park's name come from? The park is named after Queen Astrid of Belgium, honored with the name after her death in 1935 — before that it carried other names tied to its monastic and botanical past.

Are there any visible traces of the former monastery? The monastery building itself was demolished after the 1796 secularization, but the park's layout and green character are a direct continuation of the monastery garden that occupied the site for more than five centuries.