Object description

The Congress Column is a monumental column situated on the Place du Congrès/Congresplein in Brussels, Belgium, which commemorates the creation of the Constitution by the National Congress of 1830–1831. It was erected between 1850 and 1859, on the initiative of Charles Rogier according to a design by Joseph Poelaert, and was inspired by Trajan's Column in Rome. At the top of the column is a statue of Belgium's first monarch, King Leopold I, and the pedestal is surrounded by statues personifying the four freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution, while the Belgian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier lies at the foot of the column.