The "Cinquantenaire" park, museums and monuments were meant
to be erected to celebrate Belgium's 50th anniversary in
1880. However the buildings were not finished until 1905,
in time to celebrate the country's 75th anniversary.
Besides the arch and the park, the Cinquantenaire complex
houses the following museums: Royal Army and Military History
Museum, Autoworld, and Royal
Museum of Art and History.
In the gardens you will also find Belgium's largest Mosque
(originally a conference center for the 1897 World Fair
held in Brussels), ironically located close to one of
Victor Horta's controversial creations: a building housing
the sculptor's Jef Lambeaux's erotic Passions
Humaines ensemble. This exhibit remains controversial
to this day, and the building is only open on request for
museum visitors.
If you are in Brussels in summertime, make sure you go to
the Drive-In Movies: from the end of June till the end of
August, a weekly selection of movies shown in open air at
the Cinquantenaire. Old-timers pay half price, and
moviegoers typically blast their horns when there is a lot
of action (particularly erotic) on the screen! Check out
our events page
for more things to do in Brussels.













