UCLouvain (or Université catholique de Louvain , French for Catholic University of Louvain, officially in English the University of Louvain) is Belgium's largest French-speaking university and one of the oldest in Europe (originally established in 1425). It is located in Louvain-la-Neuve, which was expressly built to house the university, and has smaller campuses in Brussels, Charleroi, Mons, Tournai and Namur. Since September 2018, the university uses the branding UCLouvain, replacing the acronym UCL, following a merger with Saint-Louis University, Brussels.
The original University of Louvain (Universitas Lovaniensis) was founded at the centre of the historic town of Leuven (or Louvain) in 1425, making it the first university in Belgium and the Low Countries, and abolished by law in 1797. This university was the centre of Baianism, JansenismDictionnaire historique de la Papauté, sous la direction de Philippe Levillain, éd. Fayard, 1994, sub verbo "Innocent XII Pignatelli 1691-1700" : "Bien que la théologie et l’éthique jansénistes dans leurs postulats théoriques et pratiques aient été largement rejetées par le Saint-Siège, elles sont encore bien loin de disparaître de la vie de l’Église à la fin du XVIIe siècle. À l’époque d’Innocent XII, quelques groupuscules plus combatifs ont quitté la France et se sont transférés en Belgique et en Hollande, d’où ils redoublent d’activité, souvent en conflit avec les directives de Rome. L’université de Louvain est leur forteresse". Daniel Tollet et Pierre Chaunu, Le jansénisme et la franc-maçonnerie en Europe centrale au XVIIe et XVIIIe siècle, p. 143 : "Louvain plaque tournante des idées jansénistes", and Henri Francotte1, professeur à l'université de Liège, La Propagande des encyclopédistes français au pays de Liège (1750-1790), Bruxelles : Hayez, 1880, p. 28. : "le jansénisme régnait en maître à l'université de Louvain". and Febronianism in Europe. A new university, the State University of Louvain, was founded in 1817 and abolished by the law in 1835. A new catholic university was founded in Mechlin in 1834, the Catholic University of Mechlin and moved to Leuven in 1835 that is frequently, but controversially, identified as a continuation of the older institution. In 1968 the Catholic University of Leuven split into the Dutch-language Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, which stayed in Leuven, and the French-language Université catholique de Louvain, which moved to Louvain-la-Neuve in Wallonia, 30 km southeast of Brussels. Since the 15th century, Leuven/Louvain, as it is still often called, has been a major contributor to the development of Catholic theology.
History
The Catholic University of Leuven, based in Leuven ("Louvain" in French), 30 km east of Brussels, provided lectures in French from its founding in 1834, and in Dutch from 1930. In 1968, the Dutch-language section became the independent Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, which remained in Leuven, while the French-speaking university was expelled to a greenfield campus and town, Louvain-la-Neuve, 30 km south-east of Brussels, in a part of the country where French is the official language. This separation also entailed dividing existing library holdings between the two new universities.
With the democratization of university education already stretching existing structures, plans to expand the French-speaking part of the university at a campus in Brussels or Wallonia were quietly discussed from the early 1960s, but it was not anticipated that the French-speaking section would become an entirely independent university and lose all of its buildings and infrastructure in Leuven. The first stone of the new campus at Louvain-la-Neuve was laid in 1971, and the transfer of faculties to the new site was completed in 1979.According to a 2007 agreement, the University of Louvain was to absorb three smaller French-speaking catholic colleges: the Facultés universitaires Notre-Dame de la Paix (FUNDP) located in Namur, the Facultés universitaires Saint-Louis (FUSL) located in Brussels (later called Saint-Louis University, Brussels) and the Catholic university of Mons (FUCaM) located in Mons and Charleroi. The negotiations for a full merger aborted by an insufficient vote by the general assembly of the FUNDP in December 2010. The result was a merger between the University of Louvain and the FUCaM in Mons, effective from 15 September 2011. The Mons campus is denoted UCLouvain FUCaM Mons. The three universities still collaborate in consortium, the Académie Louvain. Within this group, member universities have coordinated their masters programmes in the fields of economics, management, political sciences and sciences as well as the doctoral programmes in all disciplines.
In September 2018, the University of Louvain (or UCL until then) and Saint-Louis University, Brussels de facto merged, founding the UCLouvain, a denomination they currently share.
Chronology In 1425, Dukes of Brabant created the University of Louvain (Université de Louvain), which was suppressed under Joseph II, reopened in 1790, and was finally closed under the French Republic in 1797.
In 1817, the State University of Louvain (Université de l'Etat de Louvain) was founded, which closed 15 August 1835.
In 1834, the Catholic bishops of Belgium created the Catholic University of Belgium (Université catholique de Belgique) in Mechlin, also known as the Catholic University of Malines (Université catholique de Malines).
A law passed on 27 September 1835 stated that there would be only one university funded by the State of Belgium in Louvain. The same year, shortly after the suppression of the State University, the Catholic University of Belgium moved to Louvain. It took advantage of the reputation of the city as an ancient university centre and adopted a new name: Catholic University of Louvain (Université catholique de Louvain).
In a Catholic spirit inspired by Pope Gregory XVI, the promoter and first rector of the university, Monseigneur de Ram, wanted to create a shield that would repulse religion's enemies and block every doctrine weakening the base of Catholic society.
The pharmacy school was founded in 1845 and the engineering school in 1865.
In 1884 the Catholic University of Louvain celebrated its fiftieth anniversary.
In 1968, as a result of linguistic issues, the university was divided into two different universities: one French speaking, which moved to the province of Walloon Brabant, and one Dutch speaking, which remained in the same location.
In 1970, these two universities were established by law as the Katholieke Universiteit te Leuven and Université catholique de Louvain.
In 1971, the first foundation stone was laid in Louvain-la-Neuve, a new city constructed for the French-speaking university.
Student population Evolution of the number of students at the University of Louvain, including the FUCaM in Mons that integrated the UCL in 2011, Saint-Louis University, Brussels that formally integrated the university in 2023.
Faculties and schools
Sector of Human Sciences (SSH)
Faculty of Law and Criminology (DRT), Louvain-la-Neuve School of Criminology Saint-Louis Faculty of Law (DRTB), Saint-Louis Brussels Faculty of Philosophy, Arts and Literature (FIAL), Louvain-la-Neuve Higher Institute of Philosophy (ISP) School of Philosophy (EFIL) Department of Languages and the Arts French and Romance languages and literature (ROM) Modern Languages and Literatures (LMOD) Ancient languages and literatures (classical and oriental) (GLOR) Modern and ancient languages and literature (LAFR) Linguistics (LING) Louvain School of Translation and Interpreting (LSTI) Department of History, Art History and Archaeology History (HIST) Art History, Archaeology and Musicology (ARKE) Department of Information and Communication Multilingual communication (MULT) Performing Arts (THEA) Information and Communication Sciences and Technologies (ICTS) Saint-Louis Faculty of Philosophy, Arts and Human Science (PHLB), Saint-Louis Brussels Marie Haps Faculty of Translation and Interpreting (TIMB), Saint-Louis Brussels Faculty of Economic, Social and Political Sciences and Communication (ESPO), Louvain-la-Neuve, Mons & Charleroi Commission for the Aggregation and In-service Training of Teachers (AGES) School of Communication (COMU) Economics School of Louvain (ESL) Interfaculty School of European Studies (EURO) Hoover Chair - Teaching Commission (HOOV) Open Faculty of Economic and Social Policy (FOPES) Louvain School of Political and Social Sciences (PSAD). Undergraduate Bureau (ESSP) School of Labour Sciences (TRAV) Saint-Louis Faculty of Economic, Social and Political Sciences and Communication (ESPB), Saint-Louis Brussels Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (PSP), Louvain-la-Neuve School of Psychology (EPSY) School of Speech Therapy (ELOG) School of Education and Training (EDEF) School of Sexology and Family Sciences (ESFA) Faculty of Theology (TECO), Louvain-la-Neuve Doctoral School of Theology and Biblical Studies (EDT) Departement of Theology (THEO) Department of Bible Studies (EBIB) Department of Religious studies (SREL) Louvain School of Management (LSM), Louvain-la-Neuve, Mons, Namur & Brussels Saint-Louis Institute for European Studies (IEEB), Saint-Louis Brussels
The faculties of Philosophy, Arts and Human Sciences, Economic, Social, Political and Communication Sciences (ESPB), Law (DRTB), the Institute for European Studies (IEEB) and the Marie-Haps Faculty of Translating and Interpreting of autonomous UCLouvain Saint-Louis Bruxelles campus are not attached to their corresponding counterparts of UCLouvain.
Sector of Health Sciences (SSS)
Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry (MEDE), Brussels Louvain Medical School (MED) School of Dentistry and Stomatology (MDEN) Faculty of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences (FASB), Brussels School of Pharmacy (FARM) School of Biomedical Sciences (SBIM) Faculty of Public Health (FSP), Brussels Faculty of Motor Sciences (FSM), Louvain-la-Neuve
Sector of Science and Technology
Louvain School of Engineering (EPL), École polytechnique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve School of Urban and Spatial Planning (URBA) Faculty of Architecture, Architectural Engineering and Urban Planning (LOCI), Brussels, Tournai & Louvain-la-Neuve Faculty of Bioengineering (AGRO), Louvain-la-Neuve Department of Applied Biology and Agricultural Production (BAPA) Department of Chemistry and Bioindustries (CABI) Cluster in Environmental Sciences Faculty of Science (SC), Louvain-la-Neuve School of Biology (BIOL) School of Chemistry (CHIM) School of Geography (GEOG) School of Physics (PHYS) School of Mathematics (MATH) School of Veterinary Medicine (VETE) School of Statistics, Biostatistics and Actuarial Sciences (LSBA)
Campuses While the main campus of the University of Louvain is based in Louvain-la-Neuve, it also comprises a campus in Brussels, UCLouvain Brussels Woluwe, in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, which until recently was called "Louvain-en-Woluwe" hosting the university's sector of medical science and primary academic hospital (8000 students), a campus in Mons called UCLouvain FUCaM Mons (2300 students), a minor installation in Charleroi with 133 students (as of 2011) at UCLouvain Charleroi, an architectural school in Tournai, UCLouvain Tournai, with 540 students (as of 2011), and an architectural school in Brussels, UCLouvain Bruxelles Saint-Gilles, with 570 students (as of 2011). With the merger with Saint-Louis University, it also comprises an independent campus specialized in education and research of social and human sciences in the center of the City of Brussels, UCLouvain Saint-Louis - Bruxelles and the Marie-Haps Faculty of Translating and Interpreting in Ixelles' European quarter, next to the European Parliament (4150 students).
Hospitals