We are organising a day of events around the Brontë places in Brussels for members of our Group from Belgium and the Netherlands, who will be joined by a small group from the UK. Those coming from the Netherlands will include two of the Group's founder members, Eric Ruijssenaars, the author of Charlotte Brontë's Promised Land: The Pensionnat Heger and other Brontë places in Brussels and The Pensionnat Revisited: More light shed on the Brussels of the Brontës, and Selina Busch, who illustrated the books.
In the past, Eric, Selina and Maureen Peeck O'Toole, who also lives in the Netherlands, have helped to organise similar events in Brussels for visits by the Brontë Society. The last such trip by the Society was in 2003 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the publication of Villette.
This time we will be guided round the Brontë places by Derek Blyth, author of numerous guide books and articles on Brussels (his Brussels for Pleasure - 13 walks through the historic city includes a Brontë walk). The walk will of course include the Palais des Beaux Arts on the site of the former Pensionnat; Place Royale, which Charlotte Brontë knew well and used in Villette; the park (the setting of Lucy Snowe's hallucinatory wanderings in the novel) and the cathedral where Charlotte went to confess when suffering from depression.
Weather allowing, members will picnic in the park. The day will end with a variety of evening events including talks and a Brontë quizz.
If you are interested in joining our group and participating in such events, please email helen.macewan@ec.europa.eu for details.
