Basiliekstraat, Scherpenheuvel-Zichem, Flemish Brabant, Belgium
Basilica of Our Lady of Scherpenheuvel
Belgium's most important Marian pilgrimage site, a domed Baroque church built on a hilltop in Flemish Brabant where a miraculous statue of the Virgin has drawn pilgrims since the late Middle Ages.
Scherpenheuvel — Sharp Hill — is a small town in Flemish Brabant that has been a pilgrimage destination since the fourteenth century, when a wooden statue of the Virgin was placed in an oak tree on the hilltop and prayers offered there began to be answered. The current basilica was built between 1609 and 1627 under the patronage of the Archdukes Albert and Isabella, who poured money into the project as part of the Counter-Reformation effort to strengthen Catholic devotion in the Low Countries. The architect was Wenceslas Cobergher, and the church is a centrally planned heptagonal building — seven-sided — topped by a copper dome. It was one of the first Baroque churches in the region. Inside, the miraculous statue of Our Lady sits in a niche above the main altar, dressed in robes and crowned. The interior is compact and focused, all sight lines leading to the statue. Seven radiating chapels correspond to the seven sides. The hilltop setting means you approach the church by climbing, which gives the arrival a pilgrim's sense of effort and reward. The surrounding town was laid out in a star pattern with the basilica at the center, a piece of Counter-Reformation urban planning that is still visible from the air.
Diocese: Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels
Style: Baroque (heptagonal centralized plan)
What to See
The approach matters — walk up the hill rather than driving, and you will understand why pilgrims have been coming here for centuries. The seven-sided plan is unusual and worth appreciating from inside and out. The miraculous statue is small and simply carved, dressed in embroidered robes; it sits in its niche above the altar surrounded by candles and flowers. The radiating chapels each have their own altarpieces. Outside, if you can get an aerial view — or just look at a map — the star-shaped street plan of the town is a remarkable piece of deliberate design. The candlelight procession on the first Sunday after All Saints is the most atmospheric time to visit.
Pilgrim Notes
Scherpenheuvel is about an hour east of Brussels by car, or reachable by train to Diest and then a short bus or taxi ride. The town is small and quiet outside of major pilgrimage days. The basilica is open daily. The annual candlelight procession in November draws large crowds. For a fuller trip, combine this with visits to the cathedral in Mechelen and the Beguinage in Leuven, both within easy driving distance.