The Cathedrale Ste Michel et Gudule is the national church of Belgium, although it was only granted cathedral status in 1962. It is the finest surviving example of Brabant Gothic architecture. There has been a church on the site of the cathedral since at least the eleventh century. Work began on the Gothic cathedral in 1226 under Henry I, duke of Brabant, and continued over a period of 300 years. It was finally completed with the construction of two front towers at the beginning of the sixteenth century under Charles V.

The cathedral is made of a sandy limestone, brought from local quarries. The interior is very bare; this is due to Protestant iconoclast ransacking in 1579-80 and thefts by French revolutionists in 1793. It was fully restored and cleaned in the 1990s and now reveals its splendour.

The statue of St Michael is the cathedral’s symbol of its links with the city. While the gilded plaster statue is not itself historically exceptional, its long heritage is; the patron saint of Brussels, the Archangel St Michael is shown killing the dragon, symbolic of his protection of the city.