Timeline of Brussels (20th century)

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Prehistory Neolithic flint mines of Spiennes 4300–2200 BC
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Early Middle Ages Franks   Merovingians 481–751 Carolingians 751–987 Prince-Bishopric of Liège 980–1789
Middle Ages Franco-Flemish War 1297–1305 Burgundian rule 1384–1482  • Wars of Liège 1465–68 Habsburg rule 1482–1556
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19th century Dutch rule 1815–30 Belgian Revolution 1830–31 Reign of Leopold I 1831–65  • Treaty of London 1839 Reign of Leopold II 1865–1909  • School War 1879–84  • Congo Free State 1885–1908
20th and 21st centuries Belgian Congo 1908–60 Reign of Albert I 1909–34 World War I 1914–18  • Invasion 1914  • Atrocities 1914  • German occupation 1914–18 Ruanda-Urundi 1922–62 Reign of Leopold III 1934–51 World War II 1940–45  • Invasion 1940  • German occupation 1940–44  • Holocaust 1941–44 Royal Question 1944–50 Reign of Baudouin 1951–93 Reign of Albert II 1993–2013 Reign of Philippe 2013~
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The following is a timeline of the history of Brussels, Belgium, in the 20th century.

• 1901 – The Maison & Atelier Horta is built.

• 1902
  • À la Mort Subite café is built.
  • The Solvay Library [nl; fr] is built.
  • The Sino-Belgian Bank is established at the request of King Leopold II.
  • The Sonian Forest Railway begins operation, connecting Petite-Espinette/Kleine Hut [nl; fr] to Boitsfort/Bosvoorde railway station.
  • The Brussels Motor Show is first held.
  • 12 April: Riots erupt [nl] in the Marolles/Marollen during the Belgian general strike of 1902.
  • 15 November: An attempted assassination [nl; fr] of King Leopold II by Gennaro Rubino takes place.
  • 16 November: The Solvay Institute of Sociology is established by industrialist Ernest Solvay.
• 1903
  • Le Falstaff [fr] café is built.
  • The École de Commerce Solvay business school is founded with a donation from Ernest Solvay.^[1]
  • December: The socialist De Gazet van Brussel [nl] starts publication.
• 1904
  • The Saint-Gilles Municipal Hall is built.^[2]
  • 26 June: Josaphat Park opens.^[3]

• 1905
  • The Cauchie House is built.
  • Buses begin operating in the city.^[4]
  • 21 September: St. Michael's College opens in Etterbeek.
  • 25 September: The Cinquantenaire Arcade is completed.^[4]
• 1906
  • 13 January: Besix is founded by the Stulemeijer family.
  • 7 February: The dismembered body of Jeanne Van Calck is found at 22, rue des Hirondelles/Zwaluwenstraat.
  • 24 February: Chilean diplomat Ernesto Balmaceda Bello is shot dead by Carlos Waddington, the brother of his fiancé Adelaida Waddington.
  • 2 May: The Yachting Club de Bruxelles [fr] is established.
• 1908
  • The Chapel of the Resurrection is built.
  • The Society Against Cruelty to Animals [fr] is established in Veeweyde/Veeweide [nl; fr].^[5]
  • 27 May: R.S.C. Anderlecht is founded.
• 1909
  • 6 December: Adolphe Max is appointed mayor by royal decree.
  • 23 December: King Albert I takes the constitutional oath at the Palace of the Nation.

• 1910
  • The Hotel Astoria opens on the Rue Royale/Koningsstraat.
  • The original Mont des Arts/Kunstberg is inaugurated.^[6]
  • Henri Wittamer opens a bakery with his wife on the Square du Grand Sablon/Grote Zavelsquare.^[7]
  • 10 March: Le Mariage de mademoiselle Beulemans is first performed at the Théâtre de l'Olympia.
  • 23 April–1 November: The Brussels International world's fair is held.
  • 14–15 August: A fire destroys part of the Solbosch/Solbos [nl; fr] section of the Brussels International Exposition.^[8]
  • 23 September: The Brussels Convention on Assistance and Salvage at Sea is signed.

• 1911
  • The Stoclet Palace is built.
  • The North–South connection begins construction.^[4]
  • 16–17 April: The Schaerbeek Municipal Hall is partially destroyed by a suspected arson fire.^[9]
  • 30 October–3 November: The first Solvay Conference is held.
  • 23 December: The Cercle de la Toison d'Or private club is founded.
• 1912
  • The Young Trade Unionists is established by Joseph Cardijn.^{[10][11][12][13]}
  • 14 October: Polish Dominican priest, count, academic and mystic Joachim Badeni is born in the city.^[14]
• 1913
  • The Belle-Vue Brewery is established.
  • 14–24 April: The Belgian general strike of 1913 takes place.
  • 5 October: The Sports Palace [nl; fr] opens on the edge of Josaphat Park.^[3]

• 1914
  • 1 May: Tram line 81 begins service.
  • 11 May–4 June: The Great Zwanz Exhibition [nl] is held.
  • 21 August: World War I: The city is captured and occupied by the German Army.^[4]
  • 26 August: The city becomes the seat of the Imperial German General Government of Belgium.
  • The Imperial German Air Service establishes Flugplatz Brüssel military airfield in Haren.
  • 29 November: The pro-German Gazet van Brussel [nl] starts publication.
• 1915
  • 7 June: A Zeppelin hangar on Flugplatz Brüssel is partially destroyed during an attack on airship LZ38.
  • October 1915: René Magritte moves from Charleroi to the city to study at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.^[15]
  • 12 October: Edith Cavell is executed by firing squad at the Tir National/Nationale Schietbaan.
• 1917
  • The Emile Versé Stadium opens.
  • 4 February: The Council of Flanders is established by the "activist" faction of the Flemish Movement, with covert backing from Germany.^[16]
• 1916 – 1 April: Gabrielle Petit is executed by firing squad at the Tir National.
• 1918
  • 10 November: The Brussels Soldiers' Council is established by German troops in German-occupied Belgium.
  • 17 November: Adolphe Max returns triumphantly to loud cheers from the city's residents after his time in Germany.^[17]
  • 22 November: King Albert I returns to the city.

• 1919
  • Population: 685,268 metro.^[18]
  • The Lignes Farman airline begins operating its Paris–Brussels route.^[19]
  • The New University is reintegrated into the Free University.

• 1920
  • The Oscar Bossaert Stadium opens.
  • The Mundaneum opens.
  • 15–26 August: The fencing events of the 1920 Summer Olympics are held at the Egmont Palace.^[20]
  • 20 August: Belga news agency is established by Pierre-Marie Olivier and Maurice Travailleur in Schaerbeek.
  • 28 August–5 September: Some of the football events of the Summer Olympics are held in the Joseph Marien Stadium.^[21]
• 1921 – 30 March: Haren, Laeken and Neder-Over-Heembeek are annexed by the City of Brussels.^[4]
• 1922
  • The Experimental Garden Jean Massart [fr] is established.^[22]
  • The The Karak Soap & Perfumery Works [nl] is established.^[23][24]
  • 12 November: Tour & Taxis officially opens. ^[25]
• 1923
  • The Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History opens.
  • Brugmann Hospital [fr] opens.
  • 1 January: The Vlaamse Club voor Kunsten, Wetenschappen en Letteren [nl] is established.
  • 2 January: Tram line 23 begins service.
  • 23 May: The Societé anonyme belge d'Exploitation de la Navigation aérienne (Sabena) is established.^[4]
• 1925 – St Andrew's Church is consecrated.
• 1926
  • The École nationale supérieure des arts visuels de La Cambre (ENSAV) is established.
  • The Comme chez Soi restaurant is established.
• 1927 – 24–29 October: The fifth Solvay Conference, perhaps the most famous, is held.
• 1928
  • The Charlier Museum opens.
  • The Villa van Buuren is built.^[26]
  • The first Fernand Jacobs Award is presented to Louis Crooy and Victor Groenen in honour of Fernand Jacobs.
• 1929
  • 4 January: Tintin first appears in Le Petit Vingtième newspaper.
  • 19 October: The Centre for Fine Arts opens.
• 1930
  • Population: 200,433 city.^[4]
  • The Hotel Le Plaza opens.
  • 18 June: The National Institute for Radio Broadcast [nl; fr] (NIR) is established.
  • 23 August: The Jubilee Stadium opens.
• 1931 – The Brussels Symphony Orchestra is founded.
• 1932 – 7 October: The Luna-Theater opens on the site of a former luna park.^[27]
• 1933
  • The Uccle Crematorium opens, becoming the first crematorium in Belgium.^[28]
  • 6 April: The Synagogue of Anderlecht is consecrated.
  • 8 March: The Vlaamsch Verbond voor Brussel [nl] is established.^[29]
• 1934
  • The Villa Empain is built.
  • The Citroën Garage is built.
  • 22 February: The funeral of King Albert I takes place.
  • 23 February: King Leopold III takes the constitutional oath at the Palace of the Nation.

• 1935
  • The Brussels International world's fair is held; the Palais des Expositions is built.
  • The Basilica of the Sacred Heart is consecrated.
  • The Groot Symfonie-Orkest is established.
  • The Société royale de Flore de Bruxelles and Société royale linnéenne de Bruxelles [fr] merge and form the Société royale linnéenne et de Flore de Bruxelles [fr].^[30]
• 1937
  • King Leopold III commissions the world's first six-metre-high concrete climbing wall, built in the garden of the Château of Stuyvenberg.^[31]
  • The Résidence de la Cambre, the city's first high-rise, is constructed.^[32]
  • 21 March–1 April: The first Eugène Ysaÿe Competition (present-day Queen Elisabeth Competition) is held.^[33][34]
• 1938
  • The Royal Belgian Film Archive is established.
  • The Forest Municipal Hall is built.^[35]
  • The Flagey Building is built.
  • Scabal is established as a cloth merchant and supplier of fabrics by Otto Hertz.
  • Suikerbakkerij Joris [nl] is established.
  • 28 February: Bossemans et Coppenolle is first performed at the Théâtre du Vaudeville [nl; fr].
• 1939
  • The Constantin Meunier Museum opens.
  • 21 June: The Institut Jules Bordet is inaugurated.^[36]
  • 28 November: Joseph Van De Meulebroeck is appointed mayor by royal decree.

• 1940
  • 17 May: World War II: The German occupation begins;^[4] the Belgian Government [nl] flees the city to Bordeaux.^[37]
  • 31 May: The German Military Administration in Belgium and Northern France is headquartered in the city.^[37][38]
  • 1 June: Adolf Hitler visits the city.^[39]
  • 1 July: The Zéro [fr] intelligence network in formed by employees of the Bank of Brussels.^[37]
  • 20 July: The Frontstalag 110 prisoner-of-war camp is established by the Germans.^[40][41]
  • 31 July: The Radio Bruxelles [fr] and Zender Brussel [nl] radio stations are established by the Military Administration.^[37]
  • 15 August: La Libre Belgique clandestine newspaper begins its publication.^[37]
  • 17 December: The Belgian National Movement is established.^[37]
• 1941
  • 1 February: Le Drapeau Rouge [nl; fr] and De Roode Vaan [nl] clandestine newspapers begin their publication by the Communist Party of Belgium.^[37]
  • 13 March: The Frontstalag 110 POW camp is dissolved.^[40][41]
  • 29 May: The 'Hunger march for the release of prisoners of war', 3,000 women rally behind slogans and march through the city.^[37]
  • June: A passenger train derails in Uccle after a failed sabotage attempt by the Belgian National Movement of a tank transport from Charleroi on line 154 [nl; fr].^[42]
  • 30 June: Joseph Van De Meulebroeck is arrested and deported; Jules Coelst [nl; fr] is designated deputy mayor.
  • 18 August: The Comet Line starts operating.^[43]
  • 10 October: Bombing of the Rex headquarters on the Rue de Laeken/Lakensestraat [fr]; Jean-Joseph Oedekerken is killed.^[37]
  • 25 November: The Free University of Brussels closes.^[37][44]
• 1942
  • January: Groupe G is formed by a group of former students of the Free University.
  • 10 March: Violence erupts in the city during a parade of the Walloon Legion before leaving for the Eastern Front, marked by bombings and attacks from communist militants against collaborators and military targets.^[45]
  • 3 September: A razzia occurs in the Marolles, 718 are arrested and transported to Dossin.^[46]
  • 24 September: Greater Brussels [nl] is formed by merging 18 municipalities into the City of Brussels; Jan Grauls is appointed mayor.^[37]
• 1943
  • 20 January: An attack on the Gestapo headquarters by Baron Jean de Selys Longchamps takes place.
  • 14 April: Paul Colin is assassinated by Arnaud Fraiteur.^[47]
  • 27 April: A failed assassination attempt on Icek Glogowski, occurs at his residence on Rue Vanderkindere/Vanderkinderestraat [fr] when a pistol jams, after which he is transported daily by the Gestapo.
  • 7 September: The city is bombarded [nl] by the Allies, killing 342.

• 1944
  • 28 February: Alexandre Galopin is assassinated by Flemish collaborators from DeVlag.
  • 1 August: Attacks in the city against the Germans and collaborators take place; they retaliate and execute 30 people.^[37]
  • 23 August: 15 people are executed by the Germans.^[37]
  • 3–4 September: The city is liberated by the Welsh Guards; the Palace of Justice is burnt by the Germans to destroy legal records during their retreat.
  • 8 September: The Belgian Government in exile returns to the city after four years in London.
  • 20 September: Prince Charles, Count of Flanders takes the constitutional oath at the Palace of the Nation, and becomes regent.^[48]
  • 20 November: The Free University reopens.
  • 15 December: The District of Brussels, formed by Nazi Germany, is no longer in control of the territory.
• 1945
  • 10 June: A mock funeral procession for Adolf Hitler is held in the Marolles, during which funds were raised to support the victims of Auschwitz.^[49][50]
  • 29 June: General Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes the first Honorary Citizen of the City of Brussels.^[51]

• 1946 – 26 September: Tintin comics magazine starts publication by Le Lombard.
• 1947 – 24 November: A fire erupts at the Ministry of Education building, killing 17 and injuring 40.^[52]

• 1948
  • 17 March: The Treaty of Brussels is signed, establishing the Western Union (WU).
  • 20 July: Brussels Airport opens in Zaventem.
  • 1 September: The foundation stone is laid for the Volkswagen Forest/Vorst car manufacturing plant by D'Ieteren.
• 1949
  • The Black Russian is created by Gustave Tops, a bartender at the Hotel Métropole, in honour of Perle Mesta, the U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg.^[53]
  • 22 May: The Brussels Grand Prix [fr] is first held.^[54][55]
• 1950
  • 1 August: King Leopold III asks the Government and Parliament to vote on a law delegating his powers to Prince Baudouin, Duke of Brabant.^[56]
  • 11 August: Prince Baudouin takes the constitutional oath for the first time and becomes the Prince Royal.^[56]
  • 1 October: St. Job's Church [nl; fr] is consecrated.^[57]
• 1951
  • 13 March: The Cercle artistique et littéraire de Bruxelles [nl] is integrated into the Cercle royal Gaulois to become the Cercle royal Gaulois artistique et littéraire.
  • 17 July: King Baudouin takes the constitutional oath for the second time at the Palace of the Nation, and becomes the King of the Belgians.^[56][58]
• 1952 – The North–South connection is completed; Brussels-Central railway station and Brussels-South railway station open.
• 1953
  • 17 June: Transports Intercommunaux de Bruxelles is formed, replacing Les Tramways Bruxellois [nl; fr] as the city's main public transport operator.
  • 1 August: The Brussels Heliport [nl; fr] commences operations under Sabena.
  • 15–19 August: The 7th Summer Deaflympics are held in the city.
• 1955 – 25 May: The Royal Flemish Theatre suffers extensive damage from a fire.^[59]
• 1956
  • The Atomium starts construction.
  • 14 February: Lucien Cooremans is appointed mayor by royal decree.
• 1957 – Delhaize inaugurates the first supermarket on the European continent at the Place Eugène Flagey/Eugène Flageyplein.^[60]

• 1958
  • The city becomes one of the seats of the European Community.
  • The Pro-Cathedral of the Holy Trinity is consecrated.
  • 17 April–19 October: Expo 58 world's fair is held.
  • September – The European School, Brussels I (ESB1) opens.
• 1959
  • The State Administrative Centre [nl; fr] begins construction.^[4]
  • 2 July: The wedding of Prince Albert and Paola Ruffo di Calabria [fr] takes place.

• 1960
  • The city hosts the Congolese Round Table Conference.
  • Ballet of the 20th Century contemporary dance company is established.
  • 3 April: The weekly Sablon Antiques Market is inaugurated by Mayor Lucien Cooremans.^[61][62]
  • 30 July–6 August: The 45th World Esperanto Congress [fr] takes place in the city.^[63]
  • 1 November: The city becomes the seat of the Secretariat-General of the Benelux [nl].^[64]
  • 15 December: The wedding of King Baudouin and Fabiola de Mora y Aragón takes place.
• 1961
  • The Serment royal des Saints-Michel-et-Gudule ou des Escrimeurs de Bruxelles is reestablished as La Maison de l'Escrime [fr] by Charles Debeur.
  • 15 February: Sabena Flight 548 crashes on approach to Brussels Airport, killing all 72 people on board and one person on the ground.^[4]
  • 27 February: The Royal Association of the Descendants of the Lineages of Brussels is established.
  • 22 October: The first March on Brussels against Francisation is held.^[65]
  • 8 December: The Archdiocese of Mechelen is renamed the Archdiocese of Mechelen–Brussels, with the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula becoming its co-cathedral, and Leo Joseph Suenens becoming the first archbishop.
  • 21 December: The Film Museum [nl; fr] is founded.
• 1962
  • The Hoger Rijks Instituut voor Toneel en Cultuurspreiding [nl; fr] (HRITCS) is established.
  • The Institut national supérieur des arts du spectacle et des techniques de diffusion (INSAS) is established.
  • The Vicariate of Brussels [nl; fr] is established.
  • 17 September: The Statistics Belgium building collapses [fr], killing 17 and injuring 19.^[66]
  • 14 October: The second March on Brussels against Francisation is held.^[65]

• 1963 – 2 August: The city becomes part of the bilingual Brussels-Capital administrative area.^[67]
• 1965
  • The Maison du Peuple/Volkshuis is demolished and is replaced with the Sablon Tower [nl; fr].^[4]
  • 24 February: A fire erupts at the Gai Séjour nursing home, killing 15 and injuring 10.^[68]
• 1966
  • The Sports Palace is demolished and replaced by Brusilia.^[3]
  • 1 November: The Brussels Heliport ceases operations.
• 1967
  • The South Tower is built.
  • 17 February: The Manhattan Plan [nl], is approved by Prime Minister Paul Vanden Boeynants, paving the way for the construction of the Northern Quarter.
  • 1 May: The European Commission starts moving into the Berlaymont.
  • 22 May: The À L'Innovation department store is destroyed by fire.^[4]
  • 16 October: NATO's headquarters are established in the city.
  • 13 December: The Study and Documentation Centre for War and Contemporary Society (Cegesoma) is established.
• 1968
  • 9 January: Tram line 19 begins service.
  • 19 April: Tram line 44 begins service.
  • 16 April: Tram line 39 begins service.
  • May: Student demonstrations take place at the Free University.^[4]
  • 6 July: Tram line 55 begins service.
  • September: Jan-van-Ruusbroeckollege opens in Laeken.^[69]
• 1969
  • The Brussels Hilton opens.
  • The current Mont des Arts/Kunstberg is inaugurated.^[6]
  • 29–30 June: The Tour de France passes through the city.
  • 8 September: The El Al airline offices are bombed.
  • 13 September: The Battle of the Marolles [fr] takes place.^[70]
  • 1 October: The Free University splits along linguistic lines into the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).
  • 17 December: King Baudouin opens the premetro between Schuman and De Brouckère.^[71]

• 1970
  • The Royale Belge is built.
  • 30 April: The Mudra [nl; fr] modern dance school is established by Maurice Béjart.
  • 12 September: Jacques Georgin [nl; fr] is attacked by members of the Order of Flemish Militants while pasting election posters in Laeken and later dies of a heart attack.
  • 8 October: Forest National/Vorst Nationaal opens.
  • 11 November: The Basilica of the Sacred Heart is completed.
• 1971
  • The Flower Carpet begins at the Grand-Place.
  • 7 May: The Bulletin initiates a petition calling for a car-free Grand-Place, signed by many locals, including Jacques Brel, followed by a picnic protest, blocking car access to the square. Months later, the mayor yields.^[72]
  • 26 July: The Brussels Agglomeration [fr; nl] is created.^[73]
  • 1 September: Mayor Roger Nols [nl; fr] of Schaerbeek sets up separate counters [nl; fr] in the Town Hall, violating the Language Law on Administrative Affairs [nl] requiring bilingual municipal officials.
  • 25 November: The first and only elections of the Brussels Agglomeration Council [nl] are held.^[4]
• 1972 – La Villa Lorraine [nl; fr] becomes the first restaurant outside France to earn a Michelin star.
• 1974
  • The first Brussels Independent Film Festival is held.
  • January: The first Brussels International Film Festival is held.
• 1975
  • The Université catholique de Louvain's Jardin des plantes médicinales Paul Moens [fr] is established.
  • Trademart Brussels is established.
  • March: Bruneau restaurant is opened by the chef Jean-Pierre Bruneau.
  • 1 January: The Fire Brigade [nl; fr] merges with four surrounding brigades as part of a restructuring effort following the À L'Innovation department store fire.
  • 14 May: Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles is released by Chantal Akerman during the 28th Cannes Film Festival.
  • 26 April: The first Congress of Brussels Flemings [nl] takes place to prepare for the creation of the Brussels-Capital Region.^[74]
  • 30 July: Bank Brussels Lambert is established.
  • 30 August: Pierre Van Halteren is elected mayor.

• 1976
  • April: Manneken Pis and Mietje Stroel [nl] are symbolically engaged in a ceremony at the Town Hall.^[75][76]
  • 23 August: The Saint Luke's University Hospitals of the University of Louvain opens in Louvain-en-Woluwe.
  • 20 September: The Brussels Metro begins operating.
  • 28 September: The Brussels Planetarium opens.
• 1977
  • The first Memorial Van Damme is organised by a group of journalists in honour of Ivo Van Damme in the Heysel Stadium.
  • The VUB Academic Hospital [nl; fr] (AZ-VUB) of the VUB opens in Jette.
  • 21 May: A fire erupts at the Hôtel des Ducs de Brabant, killing 19.^[77]
  • 20 September: The Archief en Museum van het Vlaams leven te Brussel [nl; fr] is established.
  • October: The Erasmus Hospital of the ULB opens in Neerpede [nl; fr].^[78]
• 1978
  • The Brussels Ring is constructed.
  • The RTBF Symphony Orchestra is formed.^[79]
  • The Oriental Pavilion is transformed into the Great Mosque of Brussels.
  • 9 November: Radio Brol, the city's first pirate radio, is launched by ULB students to support protests like the one against rising registration fees.^[80]
• 1979
  • The Archives of the City of Brussels moves into the former Magasins Waucquez [fr].^[81]
  • The city celebrates the 1,000th anniversary of its founding.^[4]
  • Au Stekerlapatte [nl] restaurant is established by the Flemish radio and television presenter Daniël Van Avermaet [nl].
  • 9 January: Radio Activités is launched by Coordination Anti-Nucleaire de Bruxelles in association with Les Amis de la Terre-Bruxelles becomes the first pirate station with regular broadcasts.
  • 28 August: The Brussels bombing occurs, injuring 18.
  • 19 December: Godfried Danneels is appointed Archbishop of Mechelen–Brussels.

• 1980
  • Population of the Brussels-Capital Region: 1,008,715.^[82]
  • The Flemish Community and the French Community of Belgium each designate Brussels as their capital city.
  • 9 February: The bilingual Radio Contact is launched.^[80]
  • 4 December: A French-Algerian man is killed by members of the Front de la Jeunesse, sparking a massive anti-racist demonstration; Justice Minister Philippe Moureaux introduces a law against racism in Parliament, which is adopted a few months later.^[83]
• 1981
  • 21 March: King Baudouin Park [nl; fr] is laid out.^[4]
  • 1 April: Studio Brussel is established as a regional radio station of the BRT.
  • 1 July: Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) representative Naïm Khader is assassinated in the early hours in front of his home in Ixelles.
  • 18 July: Lawyer and diplomat Fernand Spaak is shot dead in his flat with a hunting rifle by his estranged wife, Anna-Maria Farina.
  • 4 December: The Bibliotheca Wittockiana is founded by Michel Wittock.
  • 31 December: A burglary by the Brabant Killers at the Gendarmerie barracks in Etterbeek stealing weapons, ammunition, and a car, some of which were allegedly found later in Madani Bouhouche's garage.

• 1982 – 18 March: The Brussels Urban Transport Museum is established.
• 1983
  • First Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film (BIFF) is held.
  • 9 January: Robbery and murder of Greek-born taxi driver Constantin Angelou by the Brabant Killers. The car and body are later found in Mons.^[84][85]
  • 28 January: Raymond Dewee's Peugeot 504, along with his ID and driving licence, are stolen at gunpoint in Watermael-Boitsfort. Two weeks later, the car is used in an armed robbery at a Genval Delhaize, linked to the Brabant Killers.^[86]
  • 25 February: The Brabant Killers carry out an armed robbery at a Delhaize in Fort Jaco [fr], stealing less than 600,000 BEF with no fatalities.^[87]
  • 4 March: Hervé Brouhon is elected mayor.
  • 17 May: La Fonderie, Brussels Museum of Industry and Labour, is established.
  • 14 July: Turkish administrative attaché Dursun Aksoy is assassinated near his home on Avenue Franklin Roosevelt/Franklin Rooseveltlaan.
  • 23 October: The Peace March [nl] occurs, with over 400,000 participants, protesting the NATO plan to place nuclear weapons at Kleine-Brogel and Florennes under the Double-Track Decision.
• 1984
  • 13 February: The body of Christine Van Hees [nl] is discovered in an abandoned mushroom farm in Auderghem.
  • 7 September: The Bar Association of Brussels is split into French-speaking and Dutch-speaking orders.^[88]
  • 30 September: The Brussels Marathon is first held.^[89]
  • 2–8 October: The Cellules Communistes Combattantes (CCC) carry out three attacks against companies cooperating with NATO, resulting in minimal damage.^[90]
  • 15 October: Attack on the liberal Paul Hymans Institute in Ixelles by the CCC.^[90]
• 1985
  • 15 January: The CCC attacks a NATO/SHAPE support group in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert.^[90]
  • 1 May: The CCC attacks the Federation of Belgian Enterprises offices on the Rue des Sols/Stuiversstraat [nl], killing two firefighters and injuring 13 others.^[90]
  • 6 May: The CCC carries out an attack against a Gendarmerie building, blaming them for the death of the two firefighters on 1 May.^[90]
  • 16 May: Pope John Paul II visits the city.^[91]
  • 29 May: The Heysel Stadium disaster takes place.^[91]
  • 8 October: The CCC attacks the headquarters of electricity producer Intercom.^[91]
  • 4 November: The CCC attacks the bank BBL in Etterbeek.^[91]
  • 21 November: During Ronald Reagan's visit to NATO headquarters in Evere, a bomb explodes in an office building targeting Motorola for its cooperation with the military.^[90]
  • 14 December: The French-language television station Télé Bruxelles [nl; fr] is established.
• 1986
  • 29 September: Autoworld opens.
  • 8 December: The Flemish private club De Warande is founded and establishes itself in the Hôtel Empain [nl; fr].

• 1987
  • Jeanneke Pis statue is erected as counterpoint to Manneken Pis.
  • 9 May: The 32nd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest is held at Brussels Expo.
  • 16 May: Terres Neuves, the world's first climbing gym, opens.^[92][31]
• 1988
  • 2 October: Metro line 2 begins service.
  • November: Kinepolis Brussels opens.

• 1989
  • 9 March: The Jewish Museum of Belgium opens.
  • 29 March: Saudi Arabian Imam Abdullah al-Ahdal is fatally shot at the Great Mosque of Brussels by members of the Lebanese Soldiers of the Right.
  • 12 June: Mini-Europe opens.
  • 18 June: The Brussels-Capital Region is formed; the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region is established.^[93]
  • 12 July: Charles Picqué becomes the first Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region.
  • 14 July: The Flemish, French and Common Community Commissions are established.^[94]
  • 6 October: The Belgian Comic Strip Center opens.
• 1990
  • Population of the Brussels-Capital Region: 964,385.^[82]
  • The first Couleur Café is held.
  • 25 February: Kosovar human rights activist Enver Hadri is assassinated by three Yugoslavs working for the State Security Administration.
  • 22 March: Canadian engineer Gerald Bull is assassinated by Mossad outside his apartment in Uccle.
  • 6 May: The Armenian Apostolic St. Mary Magdalene's Church [nl; fr] is consecrated.^[95]
  • 26 October: The first Le Pain Quotidien bakery is established on the Rue Antoine Dansaert/Antoine Dansaertstraat [nl; fr] by Alain Coumont.
  • 23 December: The Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company is formed by the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, replacing Transports Intercommunaux de Bruxelles.

• 1991
  • The first comic strip murals is created on the Rue du Marché au Charbon/Kolenmarkt.
  • 5 March: The Brussels-Capital Region adopts its first flag.
  • 10–12 May: Riots erupt [nl; fr] in Forest in response to police violence, leading to the arrest of 273 people.
  • 12 December: The Jeugdtheater Brussel [nl] is established after uncertainty regarding youth theatre within the Beursschouwburg.
• 1992
  • 27 March: Riots erupt [nl] in Cureghem/Kuregem.
  • 5 August: Loubna Benaïssa [nl; fr] is killed on her way to the supermarket by Patrick Derochette [nl].
• 1993
  • The Espace Léopold opens.
  • The first Brussels International Festival of Eroticism is held.
  • Tour & Taxis ceases operations as a distribution and customs center.^[96]
  • 20 January: The kidnapping of Ulrika Bidegård takes place.
  • 20 July: Michel Demaret is appointed mayor by the City Council.
  • 7 August: The funeral of King Baudouin takes place.
  • 9 August: King Albert II takes the constitutional oath at the Palace of the Nation.
  • 15 September: The Dutch-language television station TV Brussel is launched from the Royal Flemish Theatre.^[97]; Beliris is established.
  • 7 October: An ordinance is adopted to establish a framework for enhancing vulnerable neighbourhoods, later referred to as "neighbourhood contracts [nl; fr]".^[98][99]
  • 4 December: Tram line 82 begins service.
• 1994
  • The City of Brussels is designated capital of Belgium and seat of the Federal Government.^[100]
  • 1 March: An explosion in a Hunderenveld apartment building in Berchem-Sainte-Agathe causes a partial collapse of three floors, killing six tenants.^[101][102]
  • 1 April: The first Kunstenfestivaldesarts (KFDA) is held.
  • 28 April: Freddy Thielemans is elected mayor for the first time.^[103]
  • 16 April: The Fuse nightclub opens.
  • 30 June: The Performing Arts Research and Training Studios (P.A.R.T.S.) contemporary dance school is established as the successor of Mudra [nl; fr].^[104]
  • 14 November: The international terminal of Brussels-South railway station opens.
• 1995
  • The Erasmus Brussels University of Applied Sciences and Arts (EhB) is established.
  • 1 January: The Province of Brabant is split into Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant; The Governor of the Administrative Arrondissement Brussels-Capital is established.
  • 5 April: Riots [nl] erupt in Molenbeek; several gendarmes and a TV Brussel cameraman are injured.
  • 21 May: François-Xavier de Donnea is appointed mayor by the City Council.
  • 4 June: Father Damien is beatified by Pope John Paul II at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
• 1996
  • The South Tower is renovated.
  • 16 March: The Flemish Council relocates to the Hôtel des Postes et de la Marine [nl].^[105]
  • 18 May: The Belgian Lesbian and Gay Pride, Roze Zaterdag, Samedi Rose [nl] pride parade is first held.^[106][107]
  • 20 October: The White March takes place as a protest against the mishandling of the Dutroux affair.^[108]
• 1997
  • 16 October: András Pándy, is arrested for the murders of his wife, ex-wife, two biological children, and two step-children, all of whom mysteriously disappeared.^[109]
  • 7 November: Riots erupt [nl] in Cureghem after the Gendarmerie fatally shoot Saïd Charki, an alleged drug dealer, in his car.^[110]
• 1998
  • The Musical Instruments Museum (MIM) relocates to the Hôtel de Spangen [nl; fr] and the former Old England department store.
  • The first Brussels Short Film Festival is held.
  • 5 March: The Cercle de Lorraine business club is founded at the Château Fond'Roy [fr].
  • 22 September: Nigerian asylum seeker Sémira Adamu is suffocated to death by two police officers.^[111]
  • 26 December: A fire breaks out in the Royal Park Theatre.^[112]
  • 17 November: Anti-Kurdish violence [nl] erupt, as around 300 Turkish youths target the Kurdish community of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode.
  • 2 December The Grand-Place is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.^[4][113]
• 1999
  • Het Zinneke statue is erected by analogy with Manneken and Jeanneke Pis.
  • 5 June: The René Magritte Museum opens.
  • 15 July: Jacques Simonet becomes Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region.
  • 8 September: The Clockarium is established.
  • 4 December: The wedding of Prince Philippe and Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz takes place.
• 2000
  • The city is named European Capital of Culture alongside eight other European cities.^[114]
  • The Hôtel Tassel, Hôtel Solvay, Hôtel van Eetvelde and Maison & Atelier Horta are listed as 'Major Town Houses of the Architect Victor Horta' UNESCO World Heritage Sites.^[115]
  • 27 May: The first Zinneke Parade is held.^[116]
  • 10 June–2 July: The city is co-host of the UEFA Euro 2000.
  • 28 July: The city is divided into five police zones.^{[117][118][119][120][121]}
  • 22 September: The Brussels Stock Exchange merges with Paris Bourse and the Amsterdam Stock Exchange to form Euronext, and is renamed Euronext Brussels.^[122][123]
  • 28 September: The Brussels Volkstejoêter [nl], a troupe performing in the Brussels dialect, is established.^[124]
  • 18 October: François-Xavier de Donnea becomes Minister-President.

• Timeline of Brussels
• History of Brussels [fr; nl]

• Media related to History of Brussels at Wikimedia Commons