Boulevard Adolphe Max

The Boulevard Adolphe Max was built between 1868 and 1871, as part of the Central Boulevards, which were created after the covering of the river Senne.{{sfn|Demey|1990|p=65}}Map of Suys' proposal. City Archives of Brussels: p.p. 1.169 To stimulate the new boulevard's development, an architectural competition was organised. The first prize was awarded in 1876 to the {{lang|fr|Maison des Chats}} or {{lang|nl|Hier is't in den kater en de kat}} (loosely, "House of Cats") by the architect Henri Beyaert.{{Cite web|url=http://www.irismonument.be/fr.Bruxelles_Pentagone.Boulevard_Adolphe_Max.1.html|title=Bruxelles Pentagone - Hier is\'t in den Kater en de Kat - Boulevard Adolphe Max 1-3 - BEYAERT Henri|website=www.irismonument.be|access-date=2018-12-16}} The boulevard was originally named the {{lang|fr|Boulevard du Nord|italic=no}}/{{lang|nl|Noordlaan|italic=no}} ("North Boulevard"), since it led to the old North Station on the Place Charles Rogier.{{sfn|Eggericx|1997|p=5}} In 1919, it was renamed in honour of the then-mayor of the City of Brussels, Adolphe Max (1869–1939).{{Cite web |title=Boulevard Adolphe Max – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural |url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/fr/streets/10004001 |access-date=2025-06-03 |website=monument.heritage.brussels |language=fr}}

File:Cheering civilians ride on Cromwell tanks as British troops enter Brussels, 4 September 1944. BU509.jpgs as British troops enter Brussels, 4 September 1944]]

Until the Second World War, the Boulevard Adolphe Max was one of the liveliest streets in Brussels, with renowned shops, typical Brussels cafés and an impressive number of cinemas. On 4 September 1944, it was the scene of great jubilation during the liberation of Brussels by the British Guards Armoured Division. From the 1970s, however, the area entered a period of urban decay. Almost all the old shops disappeared, and in their place, souvenir shops, snack bars and sex shops opened. The luxurious Hotel Le Plaza, located on the boulevard, also closed its doors in 1976. Since 1976, the North–South line of the Brussels premetro has run underneath the boulevard. The reopening of the Hotel Le Plaza in 1998 marked the beginning of a certain revival. By the turn of the 21st century, only a few sex cinemas remained. The last one, the ABC, closed in 2014.

In recent years, the introduction of one-way traffic on the side near the Place de Brouckère has reduced the traffic volume considerably. There are also currently plans to renovate the Boulevard Adolphe Max and its surrounding streets, as part of the broader revitalisation of the city centre.{{Cite web|url=https://www.brussels.be/adolphemax|title=Preliminary design for the reconstruction of the Boulevard Adolphe Max and surroundings|website=www.brussels.be|access-date=2018-12-16}}

The Boulevard Adolphe Max is home to many buildings in neoclassical, Beaux-Arts, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and eclectic styles. Some examples include:

• No. 1–3: {{lang|fr|Maison des Chats}} or {{lang|nl|Hier ist in den kater en de kat}} (1874), an eclectic building of neo-Flemish Renaissance inspiration, by Henri Beyaert
• No. 5–9: Hotel Atlanta (1925–1929), an Art Deco hotel by Michel Polak{{Cite web|title=Hôtel Atlanta – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural|url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/fr/buildings/33217|access-date=2021-01-26|website=monument.heritage.brussels|language=fr}}
• No. 11–17: Thonet House (1872), an eclectic apartment building by {{ill|Félix Laureys|fr|Félix Laureys}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.irismonument.be/fr.Bruxelles_Pentagone.Boulevard_Adolphe_Max.11.html|title=Bruxelles Pentagone - Boulevard Adolphe Max 11-13-15-17 - LAUREYS F.|website=www.irismonument.be|access-date=2018-12-16}}
• No. 28–34: {{lang|fr|Le Printemps}} (1875), a narrow, triangle-shaped eclectic building by {{ill|Adolphe Vanderheggen|fr|Adolphe Vanderheggen}}{{Cite web|title=Boulevard Adolphe Max 28-30-32-34 - Rue de la Fiancée 9 – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural|url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/fr/buildings/33220|access-date=2021-01-26|website=monument.heritage.brussels|language=fr}}
• No. 104: Marivaux theatre, original neoclassical building (1873) by D.G. Marinus, Art Deco redesign (1923) by G. Hubrecht{{Cite web|url=http://www.irismonument.be/fr.Bruxelles_Pentagone.Boulevard_Adolphe_Max.104.html|title=Bruxelles Pentagone - Theatre Marivaux (1922) / Marivaux (1967) - Boulevard Adolphe Max 104-106 - Rue Saint-Pierre 17-19-21-23-25 - MARINUS D.G.|website=www.irismonument.be|access-date=2018-12-16}}
• No. 118–126: Hotel Le Plaza (1928), an Art Deco hotel and cinema, by Alfred Hoch and Michel Polak{{Cite web|url=http://www.irismonument.be/fr.Bruxelles_Pentagone.Boulevard_Adolphe_Max.118.html|title=Bruxelles Pentagone - Hotel Plaza - Boulevard Adolphe Max 118-126 - Rue de Malines 29-31 - Rue Saint-Pierre 37-39 - HOCH Alfred|website=www.irismonument.be|access-date=2018-12-16}}

File:Immeuble Adolphe Vanderheggen - 2043-0229-0.JPG|{{lang|fr|Le Printemps}} (Vanderheggen, 1875)

File:Bruxelles-MaisonDesChats.jpg|{{lang|fr|Maison des Chats}} or {{lang|nl|Hier ist in den kater en de kat}} (Beyaert, 1874)

File:Belgique - Bruxelles - Hôtel Atlanta - 01.jpg|Hotel Atlanta (Polak, 1925–1929)

File:Adolphe Maxlaan 11-17.jpg|Thonet House (Laureys, 1872)

File:Adolphe Maxlaan 104.jpg|Marivaux theatre (Marinus, 1873 and Hubrecht, 1923)

File:Adolphe Maxlaan 118.jpg|Hotel le Plaza (Hoch and Polak, 1928)

{{Portal|Belgium}}

• List of streets in Brussels
• Neoclassical architecture in Belgium
• Art Nouveau in Brussels
• Art Deco in Brussels
• History of Brussels
• Belgium in the long nineteenth century

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{cite book|last=Demey|first=Thierry|title=Bruxelles, chronique d'une capitale en chantier|volume=I: Du voûtement de la Senne à la jonction Nord-Midi|location=Brussels|language=fr|publisher=Paul Legrain/CFC|year=1990|oclc=44643865}}
• {{cite book|last=Demey|first=Thierry|title=Bruxelles, des remparts aux boulevards|location=Brussels|language=fr|publisher=Badeaux|year=2013|isbn=978-2-930609-02-7}}
• {{cite book|last=Eggericx|first=Laure|title=Les Boulevards du Centre|series=Bruxelles, ville d'Art et d'Histoire|volume=20|location=Brussels|language=fr|publisher=Centre d'information, de Documentation et d'Etude du Patrimoine|year=1997|url=http://patrimoine.brussels/liens/publications-numeriques/versions-pdf/bvah/les-boulevards-du-centre}}
• {{cite book|ref={{harvid|Mardaga|1993}}|title=Le Patrimoine monumental de la Belgique: Bruxelles|volume=1B: Pentagone E-M|location=Liège|language=fr|publisher=Pierre Mardaga|year=1993|url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/files/cities/1000/documents/02-vol-b-fr-def_k.pdf}}

• {{Commons category-inline|Boulevard Adolphe Max/Adolphe Maxlaan, Brussels}}

Adolphe Max

Category:City of Brussels

Category:19th century in Brussels