The prison de Saint-Gilles, which replaced Carmes prison in the Sablon, was built between 1878 and 1884 and was the work of the engineer, Francois Derré the architect, Joseph Dumont. The jail is in a purely Tudor style that resembles a medieval castle or fort and was built according to the ideas of 19th century criminologists, including the first General Inspector of prisons, Edouard Ducpétiaux (1804-1869).
Location of Prison of Saint-Gilles:
Photos of Prison de Saint-Gilles:
Main towers and entrance gate
Definitely not what you would expect for a jail to look like…
![](https://www.brusselspictures.com/wp-content/photos/prison-saint-gilles/thumbs2/Prison-de-Saint-Gilles (3).jpg)
Walls surrounding what is currently the biggest prison of Brussels
![](https://www.brusselspictures.com/wp-content/photos/prison-saint-gilles2/thumbs2/Jail-Saint-Gilles%20(3).jpg)
Corner shot
![](https://www.brusselspictures.com/wp-content/photos/prison-saint-gilles2/thumbs2/Jail-Saint-Gilles%20(4).jpg)
Main entrance again
![](https://www.brusselspictures.com/wp-content/photos/prison-saint-gilles/thumbs2/Prison-de-Saint-Gilles%20(7).jpg)