To faire le mariole in Brussels is to wear a certain insolence with pride — working-class swagger, sharp humor, a refusal to be impressed. It’s a spirit long associated with the Marolles, an old, rebellious neighborhood shaped by the city’s social history.
The Bruksel walk “Mariole dans les Marolles” takes you through a district built along Rue Haute, one of Brussels’ oldest streets. Wedged between the city’s first and second walls, the area drew monastic orders as early as the Middle Ages. Later, it became home to trades considered “dirty” or physically punishing — tanners, wool workers, and the like.
By the 19th century, the Marolles had become one of Brussels’ great working-class neighborhoods: dense, proud, marked by poverty but also by strong networks of mutual aid, solidarity, and social struggle. In 1965, residents rose up against plans to expand the Palace of Justice — a protest that became a founding moment for the neighborhood’s identity, and one that still fuels today’s fights over housing, urban renewal, and the shape of its streets and squares.
Along the way, we look at how the city has confronted urban poverty: social housing, a strong network of community organizations, and the tensions brought by gentrification as it steadily reshapes the area.
We walk through the Marolles’ landmark spots — Rue Haute, the flea market at Place du Jeu de Balle — but we also venture into lesser-known corners: Petites Marolles, Querelle, and the Radis quarter. A tour that goes beyond the postcard version of the Marolles, into a neighborhood that’s working-class, tight-knit, combative, and always in motion.
This guided tour takes place just before the Tonada concert at Vanhaerents Art Collection.
You’ll find more information and tickets for the concert below:
Please note: A ticket for the guided tour does not grant access to the concert. A separate concert ticket is required.