Different forms of prostitution have flourished in different neighbourhoods across Brussels over the years. Stews were bathhouses that were more like brothels. It is here that punters slipped into both bath and bed. A little further along, where the old stock exchange building now stands, there were also a few brothels in the fifteenth century. In the seventeenth century brothels flourished in the Marollen district high up in the city. This was the age of religious wars and the Southern Netherlands were under the yoke of Catholic Spain.
Soldiers from the Spanish army were regular visitors. Lonely men, far away from home for long periods of time, congregated in areas close to the area of Brussels where you could find the bordellos. It may seem hard to fathom today, but in the past the posh St Hubertus Galleries were also a meeting place for prostitutes and their punters. Prostitution can no longer be found on a large scale in these places today. Even before the North Station was built in , brothels were to be found in this neighbourhood.
The atmosphere in many of the inns and theatres of this neighbourhood used to be rather bawdy. There was dancing, singing, drinking and carousing, but people always found time for a little love-making too. Little by little, these brothels had to make way for the construction of the North Station, which at this time still stood on the Rogierplein.
Although the neighbourhood changed as a result of urban planning, prostitution continued to exist here, albeit in a new form in and around the Rogierplein. The railway station led to a lot of to-ing and fro-ing making the station approaches the perfect place for prostitutes to recruit clients. Later, this is an activity that also spread to the boroughs of Sint-Joost and Schaarbeek. There, in the North District, prostitution occurred behind closed doors.
Prostitutes left the curtains open and with brightly coloured lights indicated that a certain kind of visitor was welcome. These were open day and night and visitors were well received. Prostitution has been around forever and for many of those years city authorities have attempted to control it. In recent times city councils have constantly been searching for a balance between keeping prostitution out and tolerating it. In the s and s, for instance, many champagne bars in Sint-Joost had to close down as a result of action by Sint-Joost city council.
