Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Brussels

National Basilica of the Sacred Heart
Basilique nationale du Sacré-Cœur (French) Nationale Basiliek van het Heilig-Hart (Dutch)
National Basilica of the Sacred Heart
50°52′00″N 4°19′02″E / 50.86667°N 4.31722°E / 50.86667; 4.31722
Location	Parvis de la Basilique / Basiliekvoorplein 1 1083 Ganshoren, Brussels-Capital Region
Country	Belgium
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Website	Official website
History
Status	Minor basilica Parish church
Dedication	Sacred Heart
Consecrated	1935
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Pierre Langerock, Albert Van Huffel, Paul Rome
Architectural type	Basilica
Style	Art Deco
Groundbreaking	12 October 1905; 118 years ago (1905-10-12)
Completed	11 November 1970; 53 years ago (1970-11-11)
Specifications
Capacity	3,500
Length	164.5 metres (540 ft)
Nave length	141 metres (463 ft)
Width	107.80 metres (353.7 ft)
Nave width	25 metres (82 ft)
Height	89 metres (292 ft)
Number of domes	1
Dome diameter (outer)	33 metres (108 ft)
Number of towers	2
Materials	Reinforced concrete, terracotta layering, bricks, dimension stone
Administration
Archdiocese	Mechelen–Brussels
Clergy
Archbishop	Luc Terlinden (Primate of Belgium)

The National Basilica of the Sacred Heart (French: Basilique nationale du Sacré-Cœur; Dutch: Nationale Basiliek van het Heilig-Hart) is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and parish church in Brussels, Belgium. It is dedicated to the Sacred Heart, inspired by the Basilique du Sacré-Coeur in Paris. Symbolically, King Leopold II laid the first stone in 1905 during the celebrations of the 75th anniversary of Belgian independence. The construction was halted by the two World Wars and finished only in 1970. Belonging to the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mechelen–Brussels, it is one of the largest churches by area in the world.

Located at the head of Elisabeth Park atop the Koekelberg hill, between the municipalities of Koekelberg and Ganshoren, the church is popularly known as the Koekelberg Basilica (French: Basilique de Koekelberg; Dutch: Basiliek van Koekelberg). The massive brick and reinforced concrete structure, in Art Deco style of neo-Byzantine inspiration, features two thinner towers and a nearly as high green copper dome that rises 89 metres (292 ft) above ground, dominating Brussels' north-western skyline. On a clear day, the basilica can be recognised with the naked eye from dozens of kilometres away outside Brussels.