Editing Brussels (section)

===Middle Ages===
[[Lambert I, Count of Louvain]], gained the County of Brussels around 1000 by marrying Charles' daughter. Because of its location on the banks of the Senne, on an [[Brabant Road|important trade route]] between the [[County of Flanders|Flemish]] cities of [[Bruges]] and [[Ghent]], and [[Cologne]] in the [[Kingdom of Germany]], Brussels became a commercial centre specialised in the textile trade. The town grew quite rapidly and extended towards the upper town (Treurenberg, [[Coudenberg]] and [[Sablon, Brussels|Sablon/Zavel]] areas), where there was a reduced risk of floods. As the town grew to a population of around 30,000, the surrounding marshes were drained to allow for further expansion. In 1183, the Counts of Leuven became [[Dukes of Brabant]]. Brabant, unlike the county of Flanders, was not fief of the king of France but was incorporated into the [[Holy Roman Empire]].

In the early 13th century, the [[first walls of Brussels]] were built<ref>{{cite web|title=Zo ontstond Brussel|trans-title=This is how Brussels originated|url=http://www.bop.vgc.be/didmat/ogenblikken/achtergrond/ontstaan.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071120140134/http://www.bop.vgc.be/didmat/ogenblikken/achtergrond/ontstaan.html|archive-date=20 November 2007|publisher=Vlaamse Gemeenschapscommissie [Commission of the Flemish Community in Brussels]|language=nl}}</ref> and after this, the city grew significantly. Around this time, work began on what is now the [[Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula]] (1225), replacing an older [[Romanesque architecture|Romanesque]] church.{{sfn|Brigode|1938|p=185–215}} To let the city expand, [[Second walls of Brussels|a second set of walls]] was erected between 1356 and 1383. Traces of these walls can still be seen; the [[Small Ring, Brussels|Small Ring]], a series of boulevards bounding the historical city centre, follows their former course.